Literature Review

Guthrie held its Tree for Life eventWENY-TV (Horseheads, NY)December 4, 2023Sayre, PA—Guthrie Robert Packer Hospital held its annual ‘Tree for Life’ event to support the Guthrie Hospice. This is the 34th year the hospital held the event. and many gathered to honor their loved ones.

Models can predict when older adults with dementia may need nursing home careMcKnight’s Long Term Care NewsDecember 5, 2023It often can be difficult to determine when a person with dementia may need to go to a nursing home or receive that level of care. A new study created models to help people determine when older adults living with dementia will require nursing home-level care. The results can give people and their loved ones evidence-backed data if it comes time to make that decision. The study was published on Dec. 4 in JAMA Internal Medicine.

Light-a-Life Tree Lighting for Hospice BuffaloWKBW-TV (Buffalo, NY)December 2, 2023Buffalo, NY—Hospice and Palliative Care Buffalo hosted its 35th annual Light-a-Life Memorial Tree Lighting Ceremony. This is a longstanding tradition that provides an opportunity to remember loved ones who were cared for by Hospice and Palliative Care Buffalo.

It’s OK to Never ‘Get Over’ Your GriefBy Mikolaj Slawkowski-Rode, MA, PhDNew York TimesDecember 3, 2023Over the past century, traditional mourning practices have fallen out of favor in the West. Black is now usually worn only to a funeral, and not always then. But traditional mourning practices were designed to do just that: to preserve a place for the dead among the living, to help mourners carry the weight of their grief not by getting over it but by maintaining their relationship with the deceased (as metaphysically suspect as that might sound to modern ears). Today we are encouraged to step out from the shadow loss casts over our lives and return to happiness. ... This approach to grief and mourning might seem to be a good thing, like picking yourself up after a fall. It is arguably less morbid, with its emphasis on “getting closure” and “moving on” in a process whose goal is “healing.” But I fear the benefits do not outweigh the costs. ... [Editor’s Note: The author is an assistant professor of philosophy at the University of Warsaw and a research fellow at Blackfriars Hall at the University of Oxford. He is the editor of “The Meaning of Mourning: Perspectives on Death, Loss, and Grief.”]

Why Doctors and Pharmacists Are in RevoltNew York TimesDecember 3, 2023... And doctors are not the only health professionals who are unionizing or protesting in greater numbers. Health care workers, many of them nurses, held eight major work stoppages last year—the most in a decade—and are on pace to match or exceed that number this year. This fall, dozens of nonunion pharmacists at CVS and Walgreens stores called in sick or walked off the job to protest understaffing, many for a full day or more.

20 companies awarded licenses to start Alabama’s medical marijuana industryBirmingham (AL) NewsDecember 2, 2023Birmingham, AL—The Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission awarded licenses on Friday to 20 companies to cultivate, process, transport, test, and sell medical marijuana products, a key step toward starting the new industry in Alabama. Patients who receive a recommendation from a doctor will be able to buy the products to treat chronic pain and a wide range of conditions and symptoms.

Volunteers stepping up to help Hospice of the Red River Valley finish holiday giftsFargo (ND) ForumDecember 1, 2023Fargo, ND—The community is stepping up to give grieving families a special gift for the holidays. Hospice of the Red River Valley makes teddy bears called Celebration Bears using the clothing of patients who have passed away as keepsakes at the request of their families.

This grief therapist draws on her own experience with loss to help othersOrange County RegisterNovember 30, 2023Claire Bidwell Smith is no stranger to grief. She lost both of her parents to cancer at a young age—her mother when she was 18, and her father when she was 25. “I entered into my adult life with a lot of grief and was just trying to figure out everything that had happened to me. After my mom died, everybody was like ‘You’ll be fine. You’re an adult, just go forward into your life.’ And I wasn’t fine. It was really, really hard.” ... Based in Santa Monica, Smith initially worked in hospice before starting a private practice as a grief therapist, now facilitating online grief support groups and in-person retreats. And she never stopped writing. Smith has published three nonfiction books about grief; her new book, “Conscious Grieving,” comes out in March 2024.

Connecticut’s nursing shortage is all about pay ratesBy Latoya Hall, RN, and Heather Massicotte, RNCT MirrorDecember 1, 2023Like many other states across the United States, Connecticut is grappling with a severe shortage of nurses. Personally, we have both seen nurses leaving the bedside at alarming rates to find jobs in other states and even outside of healthcare. We are not alone in this observation. As dedicated healthcare professionals, we are proud to provide essential care to patients, but the financial strain is undeniable.[Editor’s Note: Both authors are candidates in the Doctor of Nursing Practice-Family Nurse Practitioner program at Sacred Heart University’s College of Nursing, Fairfield, CT.]

‘Tears streaming down my face’—New Chevy commercial hits home with Americans

Still more Ohio CVS pharmacies accused of staffing-related problems

The U.S. pharmacy industry is crumbling. Here’s how to fix it.