Literature Review

Physicians slightly more likely to die at home or hospice Chronic Disease, Public Health; by Adrian Wong and Michaela Dowling; 2/23/26 1. In this cross-sectional study, physicians were slightly more likely to die at home or in hospice than both the general population and individuals in other professions.2. The largest absolute differences between physicians and other professional groups were observed when Alzheimer disease or stroke was the underlying cause of death.

Palliative care and quality outcomes in patients with brain metastases and poor prognosis: A multi-institutional analysis JCO Oncology Practice - An American Society of Clinical Oncology Journal; by Rohit Singh, MD, Camilo E. Fadul, MD, Emily Kopp, MS, Guneet Sarai, MD, Roger Anderson, PhD, Ryan F. Amidon, MD, Samantha Schuetz, MD, Amy Chang, MD, Ausia N. Iqbal, MD, Joseph A. Bovi, MD, and Alissa A. Thomas, MD; 2/23/26 Purpose: To analyze the patterns of palliative care (PC) consultation for patients with brain metastases (BMETs) and its association with treatment, overall survival (OS), and quality metrics (eg, advance directives [ADs], hospice enrollment). Conclusion: The involvement of PC services correlated with higher completion rates of ADs and increased hospice utilization, without compromising survival or significantly altering other treatment options. There is an unmet need for PC among patients with BMETs with poor prognosis.

Doing everything FOR the patient, not TO the patient HIStalk - Healthcare IT News & Opinion; by Nassib Charmoun; 2/23/26 “Do as much as possible for the patient and as little as possible to the patient.” That single sentence, written by Bernard Lown, MD in “The Lost Art of Healing,” should serve as a universal guide to thinking about medicine, caregiving, and what it truly means to heal. Dr. Lown was my mentor beginning in my early 20s and remained a close friend until his death in 2021 at age 99, He was decades ahead of his time. He believed that medicine should integrate scientific rigor with moral imagination, and that clinical excellence without compassion is incomplete care. ... Increasingly, the evidence suggests that quality of life, not simply quantity of life, must be the defining outcome.

The effect of race on patterns of care and utilization of palliative interventions in patients with lung cancer Holistic Integrative Oncology; by Calvin Walker, Jr., Zeytun Guyo, Davin Means, Martlin Emeasoba, Samantha  Robinson, Mohammod Mahmudur Rahman, Kingsley Nnawuba & Hanna Jensen; 2/6/26 ... Results: Altogether 2,048 (1,660 white and 388 black) patients were included in the study with other races excluded due to low sample sizes. Black patients were younger, more male, had higher rates of current tobacco use, and utilized Medicaid more often than their white counterparts. Black patients also had more comorbidities while having less family history of cancer, were diagnosed with more advanced stages of cancer, and had more active cancer status in follow-up. ...

Weaving a unified fabric of care will heal the patient-provider relationship MedCity News; by Sachin K. Gupta; 2/20/26 Healthcare can transform only when strategy, workflow, data, and human connection operate together with a single purpose: strengthen the relationship at the center of care. The healthcare industry is under strain. ... At the core of these problems is the strained patient-clinician relationship. Healthcare is losing the very relationship it was built on. This is one of the prime problems that we need to solve to build a stronger healthcare industry, and AI is the instrument. ... Healthcare can transform only when strategy, workflow, data, and human connection operate together with a single purpose: strengthen the relationship at the center of care.

‘It’s a collaborative effort’: Northern Light Medical Transport paramedics providing hospice supportWABI-5, Bangor, ME; by Alyssa Thurlow; 2/19/26 ... Paramedics can help patients across Maine with a variety of needs, but some are embracing a slower-paced role, focused on assisting those who are at the end of life. “Patients have access to care 24/7, and part of that coverage for after-hours is now coming through the community paramedicine program,” said hospice educator Allie Rohrer, RN. ... “It’s not with lights and sirens. It’s very low key. It’s driving there in a car, and then it’s talking through the issues,” said paramedic Ed Moreshead. ... Northern Light’s community paramedics are contracted with Northern Light Home Care & Hospice. Families in need of assistance call the triage number, and a hospice nurse and on-call physician can respond if needed.

A patient’s visit home Parkview Health; by Tim O'Sullivan, Parkview Hospice; 2/17/26 The Canal Stock Farm is more than a historical landmark along Old 24 in New Haven, Indiana. It is the home to now six generations of Ronald Hockemeyer’s family. Over the past year, members of the Parkview Hospice team had the privilege of getting to know Ron and the legacy of his familial home. ... Ron expressed his desire to have just one more day on the farm with his Parkview Hospice social worker, Emily Zimmerman. Emily was aware of a new program that makes the wishes of Parkview Hospice patients come true. She filled out the application and identified all the resources needed to secure a safe visit. Through the generosity of donors to the Parkview Foundation Hospice Fund, Ron’s day on the farm was made a reality.

Comparison of patients seen by an embedded social worker and nurse practitioner palliative care model in hospital medicine versus referral-based specialty palliative care and their acute care utilization outcomes Journal of Palliative Medicine; by Laura P Gelfman, Li Zeng, Keisha Bergland, Elizabeth Rizzo, Cheyenne Higgins, Claire Doucette, Krishna Chokshi, Emily Chai; 2/17/26 Background: Hospitalized patients with serious illness often face delayed or limited access to palliative care. Embedded hospital primary palliative care (HPPC), led by social workers and nurse practitioners, may deliver more timely, needs-based support compared with referral-based specialty palliative care (SPC). Conclusions: An embedded SW/NP-led palliative care model in hospital medicine improves access, reduces acute care use, and is sustainable over time. This approach supports timely, culturally sensitive, needs-based palliative care and may be scalable for hospital-based delivery.

Embedding care in the ED: Liz Goldberg and Lauren Southerland GeriPal; podcast by Alex Smith with Dr. Liz Goldberg and Dr. Lauren Southerland; 2/12/26 The idea of embedding various forms of non-emergency care in the emergency department makes a WORLD of sense.  If an older adult comes into the ED with a fall, the minimum the ED has to do is address the fall injury and send them out. But many emergency providers realize this is often a band aid.  They see that patient again the next time they fall.  And again.  And again.  The same could be said for the patient who is malnourished and dehydrated and admitted for “failure to thrive,” again. And again. Our two guests today, Liz Goldberg and Lauren Southerland, both emergency medicine physician-researchers, have had enough.  ...

Sabbaticals provide a critical lifeline for sustainable medical careers [podcast] MedPage Today's KevinMD.com; podcast by KevinMD; 2/14/26 Palliative care physician and certified physician development coach Christie Mulholland discusses her article “Why every physician needs a sabbatical (and how to take one).” Christie reveals the harsh reality that while sabbaticals exist on paper, unwritten rules often prevent doctors from accessing this critical recovery tool until it is too late. She shares her personal journey of taking an unsanctioned, unpaid break to combat burnout and how that decision allowed her to return to medicine with renewed purpose. 

What can we learn from death in the age of longevity? Time; by Arianna Huffington; 2/16/26 ... Research on those at the end of life shows that our values change as death approaches. At the end, we don’t crave more status or more things, but more connection. A study on terminally ill patients found that common reflections include concern for loved ones, gratitude, and spirituality. Another found that the most commonly discussed topics included accepting one's imperfections, celebrating and appreciating what you have, giving, and service to others. And a study of hospice patients found that they showed “the desire to grow and change at this critical time.” If hospice patients can grow and change at the end of life, why not grow and change now? ... It is a surprising, but important, lesson to learn: bringing death into our lives is what paradoxically allows us to live more fully.  

Palliative external beam radiation therapy for dysphagia in a 101-year-old man with esophageal adenocarcinomaCureus; by Pericles J. Ioannides, Jester M. Odrunia, Gina N. Perez, Morgan Butow, Georg A. Weidlich; 1/26Esophageal adenocarcinoma in centenarians is rare, and treatment options in this age group are limited. We present the case of a 101-year-old male patient with symptomatic distal gastroesophageal junction (GEJ) adenocarcinoma who presented with progressive dysphagia, aspiration, and weight loss. The patient underwent palliative external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) ... targeting the obstructive esophageal mass with a margin using volumetric-modulated arc therapy (VMAT) technique. The treatment was well tolerated by the patient with no significant acute toxicity. After treatment, the patient reported clinically meaningful improvement in functional status, with improved swallowing, advancing from liquids to a soft diet, weight gain, and improved QoL. Moderate-dose palliative radiation can be a safe and effective treatment in a centenarian with obstructive GEJ adenocarcinoma, particularly when endoscopic interventions are not successful or durable.

Florida’s rigid drug policy leaves cancer patients in pain | Column Tampa Bay Times, Tampa, FL; by Deborah Schofield; 2/11/26 Michelle was newly and suddenly diagnosed with stage IV cancer. She had pain every day. And in Florida, that made her suspicious. Despite a terminal diagnosis, ... [when] a prescription for Percocet was finally written, the reality of Florida's system came sharply into focus. Nine pharmacies - major national chains including CVS and Walgreens - told us they did not have the medication and could not say when they would. Nine. ... Eventually, hospice became involved. Only then did Michelle receive more consistent pain control. Yet even hospice was not immune to the system's failures. ... If Florida wants to lead on opioid policy, it must also lead on humanity. That means explicit protections for cancer and hospice patients, clearer regulatory distinctions between acute pain and end-of-life care, and accountability across pharmacy supply chains.