Literature Review

This global healthcare lesson could change America | part one Teleios Collaborative Network (TCN); podcast hosted by Chris Comeaux with Dr. Mark Stoltenberg; 7/22/26 Some of the most innovative solutions to America's healthcare challenges aren't being developed in the world's wealthiest hospitals—they're emerging from communities with the fewest resources. What can American healthcare learn from global healthcare?  In our latest episode, Dr. Mark Stoltenberg, Harvard Medical School professor and Massachusetts General Hospital physician, joins Chris Comeaux to explore global healthcare, palliative care, hospice leadership, healthcare innovation, and the future of serious illness care in America. ... Drawing from his work leading global palliative care programs throughout Latin America, the Caribbean, Africa, and other underserved regions, he shares how resource-limited healthcare systems are pioneering solutions that can improve American healthcare, strengthen the healthcare workforce, and restore compassionate, person-centered care.

This global healthcare lesson could change America | part one Teleios Collaborative Network (TCN); podcast hosted by Chris Comeaux with Dr. Mark Stoltenberg; 7/22/26 Some of the most innovative solutions to America's healthcare challenges aren't being developed in the world's wealthiest hospitals—they're emerging from communities with the fewest resources. What can American healthcare learn from global healthcare?  In our latest episode, Dr. Mark Stoltenberg, Harvard Medical School professor and Massachusetts General Hospital physician, joins Chris Comeaux to explore global healthcare, palliative care, hospice leadership, healthcare innovation, and the future of serious illness care in America. ... Drawing from his work leading global palliative care programs throughout Latin America, the Caribbean, Africa, and other underserved regions, he shares how resource-limited healthcare systems are pioneering solutions that can improve American healthcare, strengthen the healthcare workforce, and restore compassionate, person-centered care.

All Saints Hospice hosts first-ever school supply drive for Lake Charles students KPLC-7, Lake Charles, LA; by Brendan Brown; 7/18/26 A Lake Charles hospice center is going beyond patient care and into the classroom. All Saints Hospice is collecting school supplies for local students, hoping to ease the financial burden on families before the new school year begins. Getting kids ready for the first day of school isn’t cheap. Bookbags, pencils, paper, binders the list adds up quickly, and for many Lake Charles families, it can be an expensive task to take on. According to the National Education Association, school supply costs increased by 7.6 percent for the 2025-2026 school year compared to the year before, a trend that could continue heading into the next school year.

The women running death salons for people of color to process grief: ‘It allows for freedom’ The Guardian; by Melissa Hellman; 7/19/26 In a small cream-colored room at a cemetery in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Nefertiti Moor sat at the head of a semicircle. Dressed in black with her long hair in locs, she delivered instructions for the evening discussion. "It's not death counseling or a debate," said Moor. She invited the two women in attendance to talk freely about their cultural associations with dying and grief. Tasha Johnson, who worked in behavioral health, said that she felt desensitized after the recent deaths of several people she knew. She was grappling with "the reality that it can be anyone at any point". The free-flowing conversation about mortality, otherwise known as a death salon or death cafe, was unique in that it was designed for people of color. Death salons for marginalized communities are becoming more common around the country, with practitioners addressing the unique end-of-life concerns of queer, trans, or Black and brown people.

[United Kingdom] Hospice marks 35th anniversary with exhibition BBC News, Channel Islands and Guernsey, United Kingdom; 7/18/26 A charity is marking 35 years of providing specialist hospice care for people with life-limiting illnesses, through an art installation. Les Bourgs Hospice was founded in 1991 and the photographic exhibition in the Brian White Gallery at Guernsey Museum, Candie, celebrates the people and community behind it. The States of Guernsey said the gallery consisted of a series of about 70 portraits which captured "the people whose dedication, compassion and commitment" helped shape what the hospice is about. 

Restaurant owner shelves Easter plans to fulfill dying man's last wish to feed his hospice nurses Daily Good; by Good News Network; 4/7/26 Frank Ozimek spent his final days in hospice care, but what occupied his mind wasn't his own suffering -- it was how to thank the nurses who had tended to him with such devotion. When his brother Ken struggled to find a restaurant open on Easter to fulfill Frank's wish to feed the hospice staff, Tommy Milani, owner of a local pizza shop, didn't hesitate: "Absolutely, whatever you need, Ken." Milani set aside his holiday plans and delivered pizzas to the entire nursing staff, completing a circle of care that began with strangers and ended with gratitude. In his last act, Frank found a way to say what perhaps mattered most -- that he had seen the kindness given to him, and wanted to give it back.  

Thrifts & Gifts volunteer supports local hospice provider Focus Newspaper | The Associated Press, valdese, NC; 7/15/26 Dianne Compton has volunteered with AMOREM’s Thrifts & Gifts store for nearly a year, but she’s been supporting hospice care much longer than that. Over the past 25+ years, Compton has supported the hospice organizations in her local community. As a restaurant owner in Rutherfordton, she would provide a special treat to hospice patients on their birthday. Later, after the death of her mother in hospice care, she managed the thrift store that supported the hospice organization there. She also served as a volunteer. ... Her favorite things to do at Thrifts & Gifts are making floral arrangements, working in the shoes and clearing off the back dock. Knowing her time at Thrifts & Gifts directly supports AMOREM’s mission is very rewarding. ... 

“It Wasn’t Just a Lyric — It Was Him” Their Life Song; personal story by Amber Gould, original music about her father by Johnny Warren; 7/15/26Grief doesn’t follow a timeline. Amber Gould knows this well. “There are little everyday moments that remind me of him,” she says. “Whether it’s a familiar place, a scent, or a memory that suddenly comes back, he’s still a part of my daily life. I couldn’t think of a better way to honor those memories and feel connected to him than through music.” That's where Johnny Warren and Their Life Song come in. After Amber responded to Johnny's "remembering" questions about her dad, Johnny--owner of Their Life Song--wrote a deeply personal song about him. Upon turning her memories into song, what Amber found wasn’t closure — it was connection. Editor's Note: Click here for Johnny's tender song about Amber's dad, "The River You Showed Me"

Community gathers to strike out cancer and honor loved ones during awareness event WUFT | PBS/NPR, Gainesville, FL; by Curan Ahern; 7/12/26 Just over one year ago, Corey Williams received the news everyone dreads: a loved one being diagnosed with cancer. A local artist, poet, videographer and father of four, Williams found out in May 2025 his fiancée, Iya Burkett, had cancer. Within a month, Williams saw the disease rapidly progress. ... Williams faced one of the worst realities a man can experience: Burkett died, and he was not prepared. ... Williams also lost his mother to cancer three years prior, leaving him to face the world without the two most important women in his life. After wrestling with the losses, he planned community events to commemorate his loved ones, raise awareness and start uncomfortable conversations about preparedness — conversations that often need to be had but are avoided. ... Along with friends and family, members of Haven Hospice’s bereavement program, Healing Hearts, showed up to support Williams and his family. Burkett worked for Haven Hospice for 13 years, and the organization helped Williams transition into life without his fiancée. 

[United Kingdom] Man, 94, taking on 100-mile walking challenge BBC News; Andy Giddings; 7/13/26 A man is planning to mark his 95th birthday by completing a 100-mile walking challenge for charity in memory of his wife. Smudge Smith, who lives in Telford and is a regular walker, is doing it to support Severn Hospice and hopes to complete the challenge in 100 days. His wife Margaret was cared for by the hospice in Bicton and since her death he has completed a number of fundraising walks to support it and other charities. He plans to get out each day on one of his five pre-planned routes and he will be joined by friends and family including his children Diane, Sue and David. Smith, who lives in the Ketley Bank area of Telford, set off on 3 July and aims to finish the challenge by his birthday on 14 October. 

The meaning of TIME HSJ Online; by Todd Grimes; 7/8/26 I would argue that when it comes right down to it, all any of us have is TIME. What we choose to do with the TIME we are given is up to each of us as individuals. Some days we might wish for TIME to speed up - yet on others we might wish for TIME to slow down. Most of us have even had moments - here and there - that we wish could stand still. ... It was about 50 months ago - lying in my hospital bed - when I learned of my pancreatic cancer diagnosis. ... TIME has become more a state of being and less about where the hands on a clock might be positioned. ...

Dignity, not dollars: Thompson reflects on HopeWest’s role in community as he retires Montrose Press, Montrose, CO; by Katharhynn Heidelberg; 7/1/26 Kelly Thompson never expected to finish his working life at a service providing hospice and palliative care, with other supportive services. When the Grand Junction native returned to the area by moving to Montrose from Lakewood 28 years ago, he had been a horticulturist. Here, he taught at Northside and Pomona elementary schools after earning certification at CMU-Montrose. Thompson was set. Then along came his "10-year itch," and an opportunity at HopeWest's Heirlooms for Hospice store in Montrose. Thompson rose to the manager's position and later, became the care oganization's volunteer coordinator. "I loved that position," Thompson said. Not bad for someone who, upon beginning with HopeWest says he barely knew what the word "hospice" meant. His life's path turned again when HopeWest's program director announced her retirement and approached him about putting in for the position. ...

Remembrance Walk brings grieving families together The Alamosa Citizen, Alamosa, CO; by The Citizen; 6/29/26 A Friday morning breeze came in handy at San Luis Valley’s inaugural Remembrance Walk at Blanca Vista Park. A quiet 1.5-mile Pelican Trail became a place for shared memories, tears, and community healing. Organized by Hospice del Valle, the June 26 event brought together community members from across the Valley, each taking a lap around the lake for someone no longer able to walk beside them. ... Lori Taylor and her family were at the park to celebrate her mother, Judy, who passed away in December. Even though her mother was in hospice care for a single day, Taylor said the nonprofit’s grief support groups made a massive difference for her family.