Literature Review

Sought-after physician specialty roles are taking longer to fill Modern Healthcare; by Tim Broderick; 9/24/25 The time it took to fill open positions for the most sought-after physician specialties increased to almost five months in 2024, according to new research. The nonprofit Association for Advancing Physician and Provider Recruitment, with research firm Industry Insights, examined 2024 data from more than 15,000 searches of the association’s site, 61% of which were related to physician searches. ... The analysis found the estimated median days to fill the selected jobs increased by 11.5%, to 145 days in 2024 from 130 days in 2023. Oncology positions were the hardest to fill, at an estimated median of 332 days. Cardiology positions followed with an estimated median of 248 days to fill. [Access to the full article might be limited per a paywall.] Editor's Note: Oncology and cardiology are now the two hardest physician specialties to fill. This matters for hospice care because, according to NHPCO’s Facts and Figures 2024, cancer and circulatory diseases join Alzheimer’s and other nervous system disorders as the top three hospice diagnoses—together representing nearly three-fourths of all admissions. Delays in recruiting oncologists and cardiologists risk postponing timely palliative and hospice referrals. Newly hired specialists in these fields also need focused training—and intentional relationship-building with hospice teams—to ensure patients and families receive seamless, compassionate care.

Confidential conversations in palliative care: An ethnographic exploration of trust and interpersonal relationship between nurse and patient Journal of Clinical Nursing; by Tove Stenman, Bodil Holmberg, Ylva Rönngren, Ulla Näppä, Christina Melin Johansson; 9/30/25 Confidential conversations in palliative care are grounded in fragile, dynamic trust, necessitating ongoing presence, sensitivity and adaptability from RN. To support these interactions, healthcare environments must prioritise privacy, relational continuity and communication training. Future research should investigate how organisational structures and clinical settings influence confidential conversations. ... Healthcare environments should facilitate confidential conversations by ensuring relational continuity and minimising distractions. Communication training that emphasises presence and management of silence can strengthen nurse–patient relationships, enhancing patient care and emotional support.

Strengthening mental health literacy enhances job well-being in palliative care Oncology Nures Advisor; by Megan Garlapow, PhD; 10/1/25 Positive mental health literacy (PMeHL) significantly improved job well-being among palliative care nurses, with job crafting acting as a partial mediator in this relationship, according to a study published in BMC Psychology. These results highlight the importance of psychological resources and proactive role adjustments for supporting nurses working in high-stress palliative care settings.Editor's Note: "Job crafting" is the process by which employees actively shape and redefine their roles to enhance job satisfaction, engagement, and meaning in their work. 

Instilling hope: A comprehensive model of cancer care for younger adults Targeted Oncology; by Andrea Eleazar, MHS and Shane Dormady, MD, PhD; 9/29/25 In the past decade, the incidence of numerous cancer types has increased, particularly among younger adults under age 50. For younger adults, many of whom are primary breadwinners of their households or in the height of their educational or professional careers, a cancer diagnosis at this life stage can be unexpected and jarring. ... In an interview with Targeted Oncology, Shane Dormady, MD, PhD, medical director of El Camino Health Cancer Center, describes the unique needs and challenges of younger adults, outlines El Camino Health’s comprehensive care strategy, and offers insights and considerations for treating and interacting with this patient population.

Long COVID hitting doctors and nurses hard Medscape; by David Brzostowkicki; 9/3/25 Jeffrey Siegelman, MD, contracted COVID-19 in August 2020 and, 3 months later, published a paper online in JAMA about his experiences. Today, he’s still dealing with the symptoms, as one of many healthcare providers who have long COVID. He said his experience highlights the impact of long COVID on hundreds of thousands of doctors, nurses, and other healthcare workers, by some estimates, who have been on the frontlines fighting the pandemic from the beginning. “I reflect on that paper from JAMA, and I thought that 3 months was a long time,” said Siegelman, associate professor of emergency medicine at the Emory University School of Medicine and a practicing emergency room doctor in Atlanta. “And here I am, 5 years later, and I still have symptoms. I think that’s the case for a lot of patients with long COVID, that it just keeps getting longer.”

Cook Children’s physician testifies in Jarvey trialTexomas, Wichita Falls, TX KFDX/KJTL; by Joshua Hoggard; 9/26/25AUTHOR’S NOTE: This story contains details from trial proceedings that include allegations of abuse against a child victim. Due to the content of this story, discretion is advised before reading. ...Hospice physician concludes first week of trial: After lunch, Carlton called Dr. J. Robert Parkey to the witness stand. Dr. Parkey works with United Regional Healthcare Systems and specializes in hospice medicine. ... Dr. Parkey testified that he provided care for the victim after he was born, noting the severe medical issues the child was born with, including an abnormal brain. ... Dr. Parkey testified that the victim “exceeded all expectations” of the Hospice care team by surviving, ... He testified that the team instructed Jarvey on how to properly care for the child once he transitioned from hospice care to home care. Dr. Parkey testified that if Jarvey had reached out to the Hospice team, plenty of resources would’ve been made available to her, but to his knowledge, Jarvey never contacted them regarding the care of her son.

Advance care planning with people living with dementia: Ethical considerations of physicians in the United States and the Netherlands The Journals of Gerontology; by Jingyuan Xu, David R Mehr, Marieke Perry, K Taylor Bosworth, Kate McGough, Wilco P Achterberg, Hanneke Smaling, Jenny T van der Steen; 8/25Interviews with 50 Dutch physicians and 47 American physicians and 3 nurse practitioners generated three themes of ethical considerations: 1) Respecting the autonomy of the person with dementia, 2) Rationality as the basis for decisions and subsequent actions, and 3) Minimizing burden and suffering. The complexity of ACP [advance care planning] for people living with dementia is reflected in the challenges within each ethical consideration and the tensions between them, especially between autonomy and rationality. We recommend an approach to ACP that balances the ethical considerations, focusing on the values of the people living with dementia and allowing flexibility in future decision-making to take the current best interest of the person into account.

A decade of interactive educational exchange: Impacting interprofessional palliative care educationJournal of Pain and Symptom Management; by Laura J Morrison, Shirley Otis-Green, Julie Bruno, Pamela N Fordham, Elise C Carey; 9/25The interprofessional clinical practice model is arguably the most impactful and generative aspect of hospice and palliative care (HPC) clinical practice. This article describes the innovative shared interprofessional leadership model, andragogical infrastructure, program development, educational impact, and critical lessons from the Interactive Educational Exchange (IEE). In response to a deficit in interprofessional HPC educational opportunities for rapid scholarship dissemination and mentorship, interprofessional leaders from medicine, social work and nursing proposed and implemented the IEE at the Annual Assembly of Hospice and Palliative Care presented by the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine and Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association from 2010-2020. The reported outcome measures for interprofessional scholarship and engagement, session evaluations, and attendance demonstrate why this successful innovation was repeated annually for over a decade pre-COVID. 

A hospice intervention for caregivers: Improving home hospice management of end-of-life symptoms (I-HoME) pilot study Journal of the American Geriatrics Society; by Veerawat Phongtankuel, Sara J. Czaja, Taeyoung Park, Jerad Moxley, Ronald D. Adelman, Ritchell Dignam, Dulce M. Cruz-Oliver, Micah Denzel Toliver, M. C. Reid; 9/24/25 Background: While home-based hospice care seeks to reduce suffering at the end of life (EoL), patients continue to experience a high symptom burden. High symptom burden contributes to adverse outcomes, including patient suffering, burdensome care transitions, and caregiver burden. Yet, most caregivers lack formal education in patient symptom management despite providing up to 65 h of care per week. ... Conclusion: The I-HoME intervention was feasible to implement in the home hospice setting and acceptable to caregivers and hospice staff. Future efficacy trials are needed to determine whether this caregiver-focused intervention ... can measurably improve patient and caregiver outcomes in the home hospice setting.

Emergency Departments report more consults for hospice, palliative care Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI; by Michigan State University; 9/25/25 One-third of Americans will visit an emergency department, or ED, within a month of their death. While EDs are primarily purposed to provide emergent care, they’re increasingly becoming an initial touchpoint for hospice and palliative care, or HPC, referrals and consultations, according to a new study from several researchers at Henry Ford Health + Michigan State University Health Sciences.  Why this matters:

Nurse practitioner, RN shortage to hit 362,000 by 2032 Becker's Clinical Leadership; by Paige Twenter; 9/17/25 More than 1 million U.S. nurses are expected to retire by 2030 — far outpacing the projected number of new nurse graduates, according to research published Sept. 16. A study at the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce, based in Washington, D.C., investigated the growing skills shortage across 561 occupations. ... Between 2024 and 2032, an estimated 18.4 million workers with postsecondary education are expected to retire, according to the report. Only 13.8 million workers will enter the labor market with equivalent education and training ... The researchers predict a shortfall of 328,100 registered nurses, 42,100 licensed practical nurses and 33,800 nurse practitioners through 2032. 

New ‘action plan’ gives providers tools to prevent falls, minimize injuries  McKnights Home Care; by Adam Healy; 9/18/25 The National Council on Aging this week published its 2025 National Falls Prevention Action Plan, a report that offers strategies home care providers can use to protect their clients from injury. NCOA’s action plan has six goals: boosting awareness, expanding funding, promoting clinical interventions, enhancing care coordination, upgrading technological capabilities and improving data collection for fall prevention activities. While the action plan aims to inform policymakers about ways to protect older adults from falls, it also includes actionable strategies home care providers can employ to keep their clients safe.

The role of the palliative medicine and supportive oncology APP Oncology Nursing News; by Antonia Corrigan, MSN, ANP-C; 9/22/25 ... A cancer diagnosis can bring an avalanche of psychosocial and physical obstacles for patients to navigate. ... Advanced practice providers (APPs) are key in providing quality supportive care. ... The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) guidelines recommend that patients with cancer be referred to interdisciplinary palliative care teams within 8 weeks of diagnosis. Early palliative referral benefits patients with high symptom burden, both physical and psychosocial, and enhances caregiver support.