Literature Review

Can AI hear when patients are ready for palliative care? Researchers use AI to analyze patient phone calls for vocal cues predicting palliative care acceptance Penn LDI - Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics; by Hoag Levins; 2/24/26 A new study suggests artificial intelligence (AI) may help clinicians identify which seriously ill patients are ready for palliative care — by analyzing the energy, pitch, and other subtle vocal cues in recorded group phone conversations among patients, caregivers, and health care providers. The new work by a team led by LDI Senior Fellow and Penn Nursing School Assistant Professor Jiyoun Song, PhD, APRN, is the first to use speech processing to identify palliative care preferences during discussions and decision-making in managed long-term care (MLTC), a type of Medicaid-managed care for community-dwelling patients that need home and community-based services.

Drivers of disease-specific end-of-life disparities Hospice News; by Holly Vossel; 1/30/26 ... Racial and ethnic disparities persist among underserved patient populations with dementia, who have a stronger likelihood of dying without awareness or access to hospice, recent research has found. Clinicians may play a vital role in moving the needle forward. Nearly 260, 000 Black, Hispanic and white Medicare decedents with dementia-related conditions were recently examined in a new study, which was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Health Forum.  Editor's Note: We posted this study in our Saturday Research newsletter, 12/27/25, End-of-life care for older adults with dementia by race and ethnicity and physicians’ role. This article gives more practical descriptions and applications for its results.

Changing the story data tells about Black health The Seattle Medium, Seattle, WA; by Joseph Williams; 1/26/26 When it comes to the health of Black Americans, the numbers don’t lie. ... Last August, Word In Black launched its Insights & Research Division, a data-focused department centered on the perspectives, priorities, and lived experiences of Black Americans. The goal is straightforward: find out what Black people think about the issues affecting them most, analyze the results, and use those insights to reshape the narrative.

Sound of silence: Training physicians to avoid interrupting the diagnosis Medscape; by Donavyn Coffey; 1/21/26 When Anthony Back, MD, a palliative care specialist at the University of Washington in Seattle, takes medical trainees on his rounds, they often come out of the exam room with the same observation: “You didn’t say anything.” Back is among a growing number of physicians who practices silence with his patients, intentionally giving them more time to share and process before he chimes in, and teaching the next generation of doctors to do the same.  ... Emerging evidence and educator experience suggest that silence is not an absence of skill but a deliberate diagnostic and relational tool.

[Spain] Why primary care is central to better end-of-life care Medscape; by Eva Farina; 1/9/26 Primary care professionals should play a proactive role in caring for patients at the end of life, according to family medicine specialists at the National Congress of the Spanish Society of Family and Community Medicine (semFYC) held in Madrid, Spain. ... According to the SUPPORT study, dying in a hospital is often associated with avoidable suffering, excessive use of technology, limited communication, and insufficient care planning. 

Physicians’ end-of-life choices: a surprising study Medpage Today's KevinMD.com; by M. Bennet Broner, PhD; 1/3/26 In July, I wrote about the importance of end-of-life planning (EOL). Shortly after, I read a study that examined physicians’ EOL plans with advanced cancer and Alzheimer’s disease (stage unspecified). The study encompassed nations with different forms of aid in dying, from the U.S., where a terminal coma is the only option most states allow, to Belgium, where physician-assisted dying (PAD) and euthanasia are available. Although the term suicide has been used for PAD, it is incorrect, as no one who chooses these options desires to die; they just want a choice in how and when they do so. ... One would assume, as the researchers did, that physicians would utilize all available medical technology. However, they found that end-of-life choices were nuanced decisions. ...

Early palliative care interventions linked with reduced mortality in patients with advanced NSCLC undergoing ICI treatment Lung Cancers Today; by Cecilia Brown; 12/24/25 Early palliative care interventions were associated with reduced mortality and longer survival among patients with advanced non–small cell lung cancer who received immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), according to a recent study. Researchers from the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center presented the study findings at the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) and American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) 2025 North America Conference on Lung Cancer.

25 years of progress: ELNEC and AACN transforming palliative nursing education Journal of Hospice & Palliative Nursing - JHPN / HPNA; by Cassandra Godzik, PhD, APRN, CNE, Deborah Trautman, PhD, RN, FAAN, Robert Rosseter, MBA, MS, FAAN, Pamela Malloy, MN, RN, FPCN,Jennifer DiBenedetto, PhD, APRN, Polly Mazanec, PhD, AOCN, ACHPN, FPCN, FAAN; 12/25 In the year 2000, leaders with the American Association of Colleges of Nursing joined with Dr. Betty Ferrell and her colleagues at City of Hope to address gaps in how nurses are educated to care for patients at the end-of-life and their families. ... To date, more than 1.7 million nurses have been educated with the ELNEC curriculum, and more than 1200 undergraduate and 440 graduate schools of nursing offer ELNEC training in palliative end-of-life care. The remarkable academic-practice partnership at the heart of ELNEC has dramatically changed nursing care for patients with serious illnesses and their families in the United States and globally. ... Editor's Note: As ELNEC celebrates its 25th anniversary, we honor a leadership legacy that has transformed nursing education and elevated end-of-life care worldwide. What began as a visionary collaboration between AACN and Dr. Betty Ferrell at City of Hope has become a global standard—preparing nurses for clinical excellence, compassionate presence, and interdisciplinary care. With deep appreciation, we celebrate Dr. Betty Ferrell, ELNEC, AACN, City of Hope, and the leaders who continue to champion this vital work forward.

The role of Artificial Intelligence in palliative oncology: Zeroing in on hematologic malignancies CancerNetwork - Oncology Journal; by Ram Prakash Thirugnanasambandam, MBBS, Ariana Bauer, MD, Christopher D’Angelo, MD; 12/3/25 AI revolutionizes palliative oncology by enhancing prognostication, symptom management, and personalized care for patients with hematologic malignancies. ... As AI becomes integrated into health care, it is vital that clinicians understand what it is and how it works. At its core, AI refers to computer systems designed to learn from data to help recognize patterns, make decisions, and support decision-making. ...

Unique ethical dilemmas occur in long-term care settings: Staff need ethics resources  Medical Ethics Advisor; by Stacey Kusterbeck; online ahead of print 12/1/25 issue ... “The position paper was developed in response to concerns from our members about the ethical challenges of the changing environment in long-term services,” says Jason M. Goldman, MD, MACP, president of the American College of Physicians. ... Discharge disposition, communication issues (either among the clinical team or between clinicians and parents), behavior problems, and goals of care were the top ethical issues reported. Lack of caregiver support was another frequent unique ethical concern. Editor's Note: Your hospice is in a unique role to provide ethics trainings for end-of-life care, and thus building trust, clinical best practices, and referrals. The CMS Hospice Conditions of Participation require: Hospices That Provide Hospice Care to Residents of a SNF/NF or ICF/MR (§ 418.112) (f) Standard: Orientation and training of staff. Finally, this rule requires a hospice to assure the orientation of SNF/NF and ICF/MR staff caring for hospice patients. Staff orientation must address the following topics: hospice philosophy; hospice policies regarding patient comfort methods, pain control, and symptom management; principles about death and dying; individual responses to death; patient rights; appropriate forms; and record keeping requirements.

Meet Oscar: The cat who could predict death and comfort patients in a Rhode Island hospice doggodigest - Cats, DD Animal News; by Andrew Alpin, MSc; 11/17/25 ... Oscar, a seemingly ordinary therapy cat, possessed what appeared to be an uncanny gift, the ability to predict when patients were nearing their final moments. It is still a matter of scientific research and debate as to whether animals especially cats and dogs can predict death. ...

When health care teams run short, physician burnout rises American Medical Association (AMA); by Sara Berg, MS; 11/4/25 ... Drawing on data from the AMA Organizational Biopsy®, the study reveals that inadequate team staffing was also linked to physicians’ intentions to cut clinical hours or leave their organizations. The findings underscore how sustained workforce shortages and daily understaffing continue to affect morale and retention in medicine long after the acute phase of the COVID-19 public health emergency. Participants included 970 physicians from 15 organizations.