Literature Review

Innovations in serious illness care with Bree Owens Teleios Collaborative Network (TCN); podcast by Chris Comeaux; 2/19/25 In this episode of TCNtalks, host Chris Comeaux interviews Bree Owens, a licensed clinical social worker and co-founder of The Holding Group.  They discuss Bree’s journey in the healthcare field, particularly in Palliative Care. Bree shares insights on learning the importance of meaningful conversations with patients and their families about care options, which led her to the unique model of The Holding Group.  Her organization has created space, hence the name The Holding Group, for a patient-centered approach, helping patients and their families find the right care at the right place and at the right time.  Bree emphasizes the significance of informed consent and the role of social workers in facilitating these discussions to enhance patient outcomes and satisfaction.

Addressing overtreatment in end-of-life cancer care Medscape; by David J. Kerr, CBE, MD, DSc; 2/19/25 ... What do we mean by overtreatment? This means that many patients who are approaching the end of life receive treatments, like directed anticancer therapies, that are unlikely to provide clinically meaningful benefits and may do more harm than good. This is an expression that I use often in the clinic when I'm explaining to patients that we have reached the end of the road in active interventions, such as chemotherapeutic drugs, that will do more harm than good. It doesn't stop us from doing our very best to look after patients. We focus on improving the quality of life and maintaining that for as long as we can, while continuing to care and look after the patients. ... Overtreatment may even, one would argue, accelerate death when you consider those 1% or 2% mortality rates that can be associated with some treatments that we offer. ...

Americans who’ve become caregivers rose by a third in 10 years The Daily Sentinel, Grand Junction, CO; 2/14/25 A growing numbers of family members now provide care for older adults who live at home or in residential care settings, a new study shows. Their ranks increased 32%, from 18.2 million to 24.1 million, between 2011 and 2022, according to new research in the journal Health Affairs. The number of hours that these folks spent caring for older adults with dementia jumped by nearly 50%, from an average 21.4 hours per week in 2011 to 31 hours in 2022. Exactly what is driving the increase in family or unpaid caregiving is not fully understood, but researchers speculate that it may be due to a rise in the number of people who live with the folks who they assist. For the study, researchers culled data from the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS) and the National Study of Caregiving (NSOC) in 2011 and 2022.  

The number of family caregivers helping older US adults increased from 18 million to 24 million, 2011–22 Health Affairs; by Jennifer L. Wolff, Jennifer C. Cornman, and Vick A. Freedman; 2/25 The evolving composition and experiences of the family caregiver workforce have profound ramifications for public policy but are not well understood. Drawing on the linked National Health and Aging Trends Study and National Study of Caregiving, we found that the numbers of family caregivers providing help to older adults increased by nearly six million between 2011 and 2022, rising from 18.2 million to 24.1 million. ... For family caregivers as a whole, challenges persist, and for those assisting people with dementia, tailored surveillance and effective support programs are needed.

BrightStar, Compassus, Empath harness clinical, data and product power Home Health Care News; by Joyce Famakinwa; 2/10/25 Clinical power, data power and product power offer three ways of examining some of the top priorities for home-based care companies in 2025. Compassus, BrightStar Care and Empath Health all have a range of initiatives and achievements that are relevant to these areas, which leaders with the three organizations delved into during a panel discussion at the recent Home Care 100 conference. ...

Flu cases continue to rise across the countryABC 6 News, Rochester, MN; by KAALTV; 2/10/25Flu cases are continuing to rise across the country as doctor visits for flu-like symptoms are now reaching their highest point in 15 years. The CDC estimates at least 24 million illnesses this flu season alone, with 13,000 turning deadly. Right now, about 31% of flu tests are coming back positive, nearly double the peak from last season. Doctors say your best line of defense is vaccination.Editor's note: We see this surge across news media sources, and compiled this state-specific list for you. 

Fallon Health announces a new location in Framingham to serve older adults in the MetroWest Fallon Health, Worcester, MA; Press Release; 2/3/25 Fallon Health, a national leader in offering PACE (Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly), is pleased to announce the opening of a new alternative care setting in Framingham. This location aims to bring care closer to home for older adults in the MetroWest region. ... The new space includes 3 exam rooms, lab services, a therapy room for physical, occupational, and other therapeutic services, a conference room for care planning and family meetings, a shower, laundry facilities, and dedicated office space. To ensure a comprehensive support system, Adult Day Health (ADH) services are provided through partnerships with like-minded local programs, including Dia Feliz Adult Day Health Center.

New report details financial, emotional toll of Parkinson’s on family caregivers McKnights Home Care; by Foster Stubbs; 2/4/25 A new report sheds a light on the unique challenges faced by family caregivers who care for loved ones with Parkinson’s disease (PD). The report, Parkinson’s Disease Caregiving in the US, features insights from secondary analysis and supplementary interviews with 10 PD caregivers. These caregivers average 31 hours of unpaid care per week; half of interviewed caregivers exceed 100 hours each week, according to the report. The National Alliance for Caregiving (NAC), with support from The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (MJFF) and Arcadia University, released the report.  

Baptist Health announces joint venture to enhance home health services Lane Report, Louisville, KY; 1/31/25 To further expand the delivery of high-quality care to a growing population, Baptist Health announced a joint venture with national home health leader Alternate Solutions Health Network (ASHN) to enhance services across Kentucky, southern Indiana and southern Illinois. Effective March 3, the joint venture will be owned by Baptist Health and ASHN and will continue operating as Baptist Health Home Care. 

Behind the scenes: Caring for the caregivers Harvard Magazine; by Lydialyel Gibson; 1/30/25 When I was in seventh grade, my best friend’s father was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s. He was in his late 50s. ... My sharpest memories from that time are of my friend’s shock and grief as her father deteriorated, and of her mother’s incredible stamina. ... That was more than 30 years ago. ... [When] I heard about the work of Christine Ritchie, a geriatrician and palliative care physician who studies the caregiver experience, I knew I wanted to talk to her. Ritchie directs the Dementia Care Collaborative at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and teaches at Harvard Medical School, and has been doing this research for decades. ... The caregivers are the heart of this story. Across the country there are more than 11 million other people like them, who continue to fill these difficult, precious, necessary roles. [Click on the title's link to continue reading this important article.]

Homecare industry facing crisisWFMZ-TV 69 News, Allentown, PA; by Christina Lengyel; 1/28/25 ...  [Providers] across the state are struggling to hire enough staff to cover the needs of the state’s 300,000 homecare recipients. Unable to offer comparable hourly wages, the industry is losing its potential recruiting pool to gig work and jobs in the service industry. “We are in crisis. The crisis isn’t coming. We are not planning for it. It’s actively here,” said Mia Haney, CEO of the Pennsylvania Homecare Association at a meeting of the House Aging and Older Adult Services Committee. The average hourly wage for homecare workers in the state is between $13 and $14, making it hard to compete with other industries. Even within healthcare, counterparts performing the same tasks from within care facilities earn more. Home care advocates say the discrepancy doesn’t add up given the value of homecare.

Hospice of Savannah awarded grant for safety improvements NBC WSAV Savannah News, Savannah, GA; by Eric Dorsch; 1/27/25 Hospice of Savannah Inc. (HSI) has announced it has been awarded a grant for repairs and home modifications. HSI will receive $1,999,111 in Older Adults Home Modification Program grant funding to complete safety and functional home modifications and limited repairs in the primary residences of two hundred eligible homeowners and renters over age 62 with low income. The work aims to improve general safety, increase accessibility, reduce falls, and improve residents’ functional abilities in the home for their safe and successful aging in place. 

Operator of home health care company sentenced to 12 years in prison for multimillion dollar health care fraud schemeDOJ press release; 1/23/25[Massachusetts] Faith Newton, 56, was sentenced... to 12 years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. Newton was also ordered to pay a fine of $250,000 and restitution in the amount of $99,734,517. In July 2024, Newton was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud, one count of health care fraud and three counts of money laundering. The jury found the defendant not guilty on one count of money laundering conspiracy... “Ms. Newton used the home health care agency she operated to perpetrate a massive, years-long fraud scheme that siphoned over $100 million from a program designed to support our most vulnerable residents."