Literature Review

Top challenges for hospice nurses Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 8/28/26 Hospice nurses are wrestling with work-life balance, heavy caseloads and other difficulties amid widespread staffing shortages. The dearth of prospective hospice employees is well known and has existed for years. In addition to impacting provider businesses, this trend also affects nurses on the ground. This often comes in the form of a bigger workload, more travel time and the emotional toll of working with the dying, according to Skelly Wingard, CEO of By the Bay Health.

Camp gives local students a hands-on look at careers in health care MaineHealth, North Conway, NH; Press Release; 8/25/26More than 20 local middle and high school students spent a week this summer discovering that there is much more to health care than what happens in a hospital room. MaineHealth Memorial Hospital’s annual Health Camp offered in partnership with MWV School to Career Summer Program gave students an opportunity to explore a wide range of health care careers through hands-on activities, demonstrations, games and behind-the-scenes experiences throughout the hospital. Throughout the week, campers rotated through hospital departments and interactive activities, getting a firsthand look at the many skills, roles and professions that contribute to patient care.

Oregon OSHA pursues workplace violence prevention rule for healthcare employers Mondaq; by Littler Mendelson; 8/26/26 Oregon OSHA has proposed a comprehensive workplace violence prevention rule for healthcare employers, implementing Senate Bill 537's statutory requirements. The proposal mandates periodic security assessments, development of prevention programs, and annual training for hospitals, ambulatory surgical centers, home health agencies, and hospice programs. While the healthcare industry broadly supports violence prevention efforts, questions remain about whether the rule's training requirements exceed legislative.

Frailty predicts more than age: strategies for hospitalists Medscape; by Julie Peck; 8/25/26 An 85-year-old who remains active and independent may recover from pneumonia more quickly than someone 20 years younger with multiple chronic illnesses, poor nutrition, and declining mobility. Growing evidence suggests that frailty — a state of diminished physiologic reserve and increased vulnerability to stressors — is one of the strongest predictors of prolonged hospitalization, complications, functional decline, discharge to post-acute care, readmissions, and mortality, often outperforming chronological age alone.

‘Pitt’ Crew: all 13 Emmy-nominated actors on bedside manners, blow-ups and fan theoriesTheWrap; by Steve Pond and TheWrap Staff; 8/21/26 TheWrap magazine: “It’s such a collective effort,” Noah Wyle says of making the hit HBO Max hospital drama. ... The 13 acting nominees, one shy of the record set by “Succession,” spoke to TheWrap about life in the Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center. Noah Wyle, Dr. Michael “Robby” Rabinovitch, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series: If Wyle’s Dr. Robby is a broken hero in the first season, he’s shattered in the second, mistreating his staff and acting so self-destructively that he seems borderline suicidal. His perpetually dark mood did not go unnoticed among “Pitt” fans. ... [Continue reading for descriptions by the actors about The Pitt's characters they portray: Dr. Frank Langdon, Dr. Jack Abbot, Dr. Dennis Whitaker, Dr. Melissa King, Dr. Cassie McKay, Charge Nurse Dana Evans, Dr. Baran Al-Hashimi, Louie Cloverfield, Duke Ekins, Roxie Hamler, Becca King, Ilana Miller.]Editor's Note: Use small excerpts in your staff meetings and clinical education to explore specific topics with engaging, memorable examples. Invite insights from attendees.

Hospice nurses at Minnesota-based Allina Health vote to authorize 7-day unfair labor practice strike CBS News Minnesota; by Nicholas Lentz; 8/24/26 Hospice nurses who work for Minnesota-based Allina Health have voted to authorize a seven-day unfair labor practice strike, the union representing them said on Monday. According to Service Employees International Union Healthcare Minnesota and Iowa, all workers who cast a ballot on Friday voted in favor of the strike. The authorization comes amid negotiations to reach a first contract that have been happening for more than a year, SEIU said. Members allege Allina Health is opposed to "creating a fair compensation system that would give nurses extra pay for extra work"  and refuses to pay salaried registered nurses a holiday premium when they are required to work on holidays. The union added that the company also doesn't allow hospice nurses to flex their schedules.

The phone call that taught me how to grieveMedscape; by Bishal Gyawali, MD, PhD; 8/3/26 Mike (name changed) was one of my favorite patients. We aren’t supposed to have favorites, but we are human. And sometimes you just have that unexplainable bond with someone. ... When I returned from my travels, I learned that Mike had passed away. It was heartbreaking for me. ... When I picked up the phone to call his wife, I had butterflies in my stomach. These calls never get easier. I asked: “Hello, is this Jess? I am Dr. Gyawali from the cancer center.” “Thank you for calling,” she responded, her voice cracking a little. I told her that I knew Mike had passed away. She recounted that day with me. ... She said, “You know, Mike could easily pay to get treated at one of the top cancer centers in the world. But he chose to get treated in Kingston because he liked you and your team here.” As I was getting ready to put the phone down, Jess said, “I’m sorry for your loss, too, Doctor. I know how much he meant to you. I’m happy you were his oncologist. Please take care of yourself, too.” I hung up the phone and cried. ... Immediately after that phone call, I sent a text to some of my trainees: “If your patient dies, always call their family. Always. No exception.”  Then I sat down to write this blog. 

How Andrew Bird wrote Louie’s farewell ballad for ‘The Pitt’: ‘What’s more fundamental than the fear of dying alone?’ Gold Derby; by Lyndsey Parker; 8/19/26... Andrew Bird wasn't even familiar with The Pitt when he was cold-called by the show's composer, Gavin Brivik, with an invitation to collaborate on a song for one of the series' most heartbreaking and gut-punching moments. [It was for] that scene, ... in which fan-favorite character Louie Cloverfield, the lovable alcoholic with a heart of gold, dies with only the Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center staff by his side — the lyrics for "Need Someone" came quickly. There's a small but especially tearjerking detail when Emma grabs Louie's hand, right as Dr. Robby is telling them about how Louie had lost his eight-months-pregnant wife and their unborn child in a car accident years ago. Apparently hospitals leave a deceased patient's hand out from under the blanket so that a loved one at the bedside can hold it, but Louie only has the hospital staff, who've sort of become his honorary family, with him when dies. This goes perfectly with your lyric about how "you need someone who is gonna cry for you." ... Bird was partially inspired by the 2020 pandemic — not just society's shared post-COVID trauma, but the lack of appreciation of healthcare workers ...

Clarence Braddock on the future of medical education Stanford Medicine; by Communications Staff; 8/16/26 Clarence Braddock discusses reinventing medical training: simulation, less rote memorization as AI brings info to bedside, shared decision-making, and why the process of curriculum change can matter more than the change itself. Clarence Braddock, MD, MPH, a nationally recognized medical educator and former Executive Vice Dean and Vice Dean for Education in the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, joins Euan Ashley on The Future of Medicine to explore how we train future doctors, why changing long-established systems can be so difficult, and what leaders often misunderstand about creating meaningful change.

Healing thyself: managing moral injury in healthcare Psychology Today; by Wendy L. Patrick, JD, MDiv, PhD; 8/16/26 Key Points

Who should palliative care see? Diane Meier, Bob Arnold, and Justin Sanders GeriPal; by Alex Smith; 8/13/26 As Diane Meier remarks to start today’s podcast, palliative care has come a long way from the days when we were the “brink of death” consult. We’re seeing patients earlier and earlier in the course of illness.  In fact, the evidence base for specialist palliative care is arguably stronger in the outpatient setting than the inpatient setting.  In some ways, as Eric remarked, we are a victim of our own success. We’ve pushed on the boundaries of seeing patients earlier in the course of illness, we’ve demonstrated remarkable value to our colleagues and health systems: now they want us to see more and more patients, with conditions we would not have previously considered core to palliative care practice. Our guests modeled respectful disagreement, and we were somewhat surprised that there was more agreement than we expected.  

Medical aid in dying: Bridging ethical guidance and bedside communication in nursing practiceJournal of Hospice & Palliative Nursing; by Jeanna Ford, Phyllis Whitehead; 7/26As MAiD [Medical aid in dying] becomes more integrated into serious illness care, nurses, particularly those in hospice and palliative care, are increasingly the first clinicians to receive patient questions about this option. These inquiries are often embedded in broader concerns related to suffering, loss of autonomy, fear of prolonged dying, and desire for control rather than solely requests for hastened death. The Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association’s recent position statement on medical aid in dying emphasizes compassionate, nonjudgmental care, respect for autonomy, professional integrity, and the ethical obligation of nonabandonment while recognizing the complexities of conscientious objection. This manuscript examines the evolving legal and ethical landscape of MAiD, explores the professional implications for nursing practice, and introduces the EXPLORE (Elicit, Explore, Probe Suffering, Learn Values, Observe Pressures, Review Support, Evaluate Next Steps) communication framework, a practice-based model developed to provide nurses with a structured, evidence-informed approach for responding to patient-initiated MAiD discussions.