Literature Review

The tech shaping healthcare in 2025, per 61 leaders Becker's Health IT; by Naomi Diaz; 1/28/25 Healthcare leaders told Becker's that emerging technologies such as ambient listening, AI-driven automation, and advanced remote patient monitoring are set to transform healthcare in 2025 by tackling workforce shortages and boosting operational efficiency. 

Michigan Center for Rural Health working to expand rural palliative care Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 1/29/25Recent studies have established a dire need for palliative care in rural areas, and the state of Michigan is no stranger to this situation. To respond to the need, the Michigan Center for Rural Health (MCRH) is partnering with Stratis Health, a nonprofit consulting firm that specializes in assisting rural communities with providing palliative care services. The two organizations, which have partnered on projects related to critical care hospitals and Medicare beneficiaries, will choose five rural communities in the state with the goal of increasing their capacity to provide palliative care. In the current phase of the project, Stratis will be training MCRH staff to apply their framework for implementing palliative care programs in the target areas.

Concurrent Care Collaborative a safety net for pediatric patients Noozhawk, Santa Barbara, CA; by Easter Moorman; 1/26/25 Partners for Kids has initiated Santa Barbara County’s first Pediatric Concurrent Care Collaborative designed to offer comprehensive, compassionate, and coordinated care to seriously ill children from birth to 21 years of age. Spearheaded by Kieran Shah, president/CEO of VNA Health, and Rebecca Simonitsch, Quality Initiatives Program manager for Cottage Health, nine local organizations have joined to create a safety net for pediatric patients and their families to help them receive care close to home. The groups are: CenCal Health, Central Coast Home Health & Hospice, Cottage Children’s Medical Center, Dignity Health, Hearts Aligned, Herencia Indígena, Hospice of Santa Barbara, Teddy Bear Cancer Foundation, and VNA Health. 

Healthcare under siege: Defending hospitals from ransomware threats Cylera; by Maureen Sahualla; 1/22/25 Hospitals today are very concerned about ransomware attacks - and rightly so. A recent research report from Comparitech, Ransomware Roundup: 2024 End-of-Year Report (published on January 9th, 2025) found:

Some wary of Providence home health joint venture with for-profit company Herald Net, Everett, WA; by Jenna Peterson; 1/23/25 Some nurses in the state say an upcoming joint venture between Providence Home and Community Care and Compassus, a for-profit company with private equity ownership, could have an adverse effect on health care. The deal, expected to be finalized in Washington early this year, ... impacts locations in five U.S. states. ... Boyle and Compassus spokesperson Dana Coleman said there will be no changes in care or staffing under the joint venture. But some nursing advocates, like Ian Mikusko, worry that a for-profit, private equity influence could be harmful for health care.“Private equity is somewhat more extractive because there’s a pressure to provide large dividend payments to investors,” said Mikusko, strategic researcher with the Washington State Nurses Association. Mikusko cited research that shows quality of care diminishes when private equity companies become involved in health care, such as a 2023 study from the Center for Economic and Policy Research.

TCN podcast: The need for innovation with Meg Pekarske Teleios Collaborative Network (TCN); hosted by Chris Comeaux; 1/22/25 In this episode of TCNtalks, host Chris Comeaux interviews Meg Pekarske, a partner and head of the Hospice and Palliative Care Practice Group at Husch Blackwell.  They discuss Meg's extensive expertise in Hospice Care, the significant challenges, and promising opportunities for growth and diversification.  Meg makes it clear that strategic planning is essential.  Adapting to shifts in the payer market and implementing legal restructuring to support new care models are critical to success.  The conversation boldly addresses the need for innovation and collaboration to navigate the ever-changing landscape of Hospice and Palliative care.  It also touches on surprising facets that reveal Meg's unique approach—she is not your average attorney.[Teleios Collaborative Network is a sponsor of our newsletter.]

DEA unveils long-overdue special registration for telemedicine in proposed ruleThe National Law Review; by Marika Miller, Nathan A. Beaver of Foley & Lardner LLP; 1/21/25 In the final days of the Biden administration, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) released a proposed rule that would allow practitioners with a Special Registration to prescribe Schedule III-V, and in limited circumstances Schedule II, controlled substances via telemedicine. Practitioners with a Special Registration would still need to obtain a DEA registration in each state where they prescribe or dispense controlled substances. However, the proposed rule establishes a limited, less expensive State Telemedicine Registration as an alternative to the traditional DEA registration. The proposed rule imposes several obligations on practitioners with Special Registrations when they prescribe controlled substances via telemedicine.  [Click on the title's link to continue reading.]

The 'paradigm shift’ of hospice service diversification Hospice News; by Holly Vossel; 1/17/25 Some hospices have delved deeper into service diversification to improve timely access and expand their patient reach, while others remain focused on end-of-life care delivery. The decision to launch into new service realms can come with a range of operational and reimbursement questions. Among the keys to diversifying services is establishing a business infrastructure that allows for innovative growth based on communities’ needs, according to Leslie Campbell, COO of Touchstone Communities. The San Antonio, Texas-headquartered company provides hospice, home health, veterans services, assisted living and skilled nursing services. ... Hospice leaders need to ensure that both back-office administrative and interdisciplinary teams are educated on how business growth impacts them, particularly when it comes to quality and compliance across the care continuum, Campbell stated.

At United Hospice good leadership makes all the difference Mid Hudson News, Goshen, NY; by Mid-Hudson News Staff; 1/19/25 In the world of healthcare, there are few environments as emotionally charged and delicate as hospice care.  Here, patients face the final chapter of their lives, and their families must grapple with the profound weight of grief and impending loss. It’s a space that requires not only clinical expertise but also an extraordinary level of compassion, empathy, and resilience. At the heart of it all is leadership—a factor that can profoundly shape the quality of care, support, and comfort patients and families receive during this challenging time. [Cara Pace, United Hospice CEO] noted that leadership in hospice care is not about wielding authority or simply managing logistics. It’s about embodying a vision of compassionate, patient-centered care that resonates throughout the organization. A good hospice leader knows how to create a culture of empathy, where every member of the team understands the profound impact their work has on the lives of patients and families.

DEA proposes special registrations for telehealth prescribing TechTarget - xtelligent Virtual Healthcare; by Anuja Vaidya; 1/15/25  The DEA is set to publish a proposal for a special registrations framework that would allow certain healthcare practitioners to prescribe controlled substances via telehealth without performing an in-person exam first. The unpublished proposal made available on the Federal Register details the special registrations framework, which includes three types of registrations:

New Hampshire woman’s father dies in hospice care when California fires broke out CBS News WBZ, Boston, MA / YouTube; 1/15/25 Just two hours before the fire evacuation--Merle Fetter--Barbara's husband of 64 years died in Royal Oaks Hospice Care, with Barbara holding his hand until the end . … As the fire moved through Altadena towards Monrovia Barbara was forced to leave Merrill's body, unable to be evacuated. ... [Daughter in New Hampshire:]  “I didn't know where my mother was. I didn't know what happened to my father's body.” Barbara's daughter—Joy—thousands thousands of miles away in New Hampshire couldn't fly to Los Angeles until Friday. When she finally landed she received a reassuring call from Royal Oaks her mom was OK and her father's remains taken to the coroner's office. Staff feel like residents here are their family.

Home … where we all want to be The Journal; Dr. Sarah Phillips, Medical Director Hospice of the Panhandle; 1/12/25 Two days before Christmas, I arrived at the home of a patient who had been recently admitted to Hospice services. ... [Story of the patient being on a ventilator in a hospital.] This courageous and self-determined woman expressed the desire to be free from pain, suffering, and the complications and progression of her disease. Knowing that the ventilator was life-sustaining and essentially breathing for her, she made the decision to stop it. To ensure her comfort during discontinuation of the ventilator, the hospice team was present before, during, and after the procedure. Medications were used to ease shortness of breath, pain, and anxiety. ... “It’s a Wonderful Life” was playing on the TV, the Christmas tree was lit. I looked over and see the daughter wiping away her mother’s tears. Each reassured the other that everything will be OK and that they are at peace with this decision. As the medications took effect, the patient drifted off to sleep. The ventilator was stopped. Next, something happens that I will never forget. The daughter leans in and whispers to the patient, “Mom, the ventilator is off now, you are back in total control. This was profound to me on many levels. It certainly spoke to the power and importance of autonomy, the ability to make independent decisions that are aligned with one’s values and goals. ... Despite working in end-of-life care for over a decade, I still have these moments of being overwhelmed by the human spirit.

16 top data governance tools to know about in 2025 informa - TechTarget; by Craig Stedman and David Weldon; 1/9/25 ... Data governance is the process of creating internal data standards, along with policies that control who can access data and how data is used in business operations and analytics applications. It often incorporates data quality improvement initiatives, as well as master data management (MDM) ones. ... Here's a look at 16 prominent data governance tools, listed in alphabetical order, with summaries of their key features and capabilities. The list was compiled by Informa TechTarget editors based on research of the data governance software market that included the use of market reports and vendor rankings from Forrester Research and Gartner.