Literature Review

You’re not imagining it. The ‘quad-demic’ is making everyone sick. New Jersey Advance Media; by Jackie Roman; 1/27/25 A quadruple threat of viruses is driving up emergency room visits and hospital admissions across the United States, including in New Jersey. Public health experts warn a “quad-demic” — a contagious combination of COVID-19, influenza, RSV and norovirus — has increased pressure on New Jersey hospitals this winter. Emergency department visits and hospital admissions remain elevated for COVID-19, influenza, and RSV, according to the state’s latest respiratory illness surveillance report. ... The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that there have been at least 16 million illnesses, 190,000 hospitalizations, and 8,300 deaths from flu so far this season. Thirty-one of those deaths were among children, according to the CDC. [Click on the title's link for more data and a national map, with updates by the CDC on 1/22/25.] 

Caring for a dying spouse at the end of life

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."

Care Dimensions receives $10,000 grant from ACM Lifting Lives to support music therapy program MassNonprofit News; 1/22/25Care Dimensions, the largest hospice and palliative care provider in Massachusetts, is proud to announce receiving a $10,000 grant from ACM Lifting Lives®, the philanthropic partner of the Academy of Country Music. ... “Dealing with memory loss can be such an unmooring experience,” noted Care Dimensions Creative Arts Therapy Coordinator Li Kynvi, who is a board-certified music therapist. “One of the magical things about music therapy, especially for those with dementia, is that music lives in them in a whole different way than even the last five minutes does, which enables them to not only engage with a song, but engage with the person sharing it, and delivers a feeling of connection and competence often difficult for dementia patients to experience.”Editor's note: Providing patient care from a board certified music therapist is far superior to simply having a musician perform. Music therapy focuses on the person: physically, mentally, emotionally, socially, spiritually. Music therapy engages memories and meanings for the present moment, and ahead. For more information, examine the Certification Board for Music Therapy. Click here for their directory.

Utah home care association sounds alarm on HCBS access crisis McKnight's Home Care; by Adam Healy; 1/17/25The Homecare and Hospice Association of Utah (HHAU) is calling for greater Medicaid support of home- and community-based services as beneficiaries in the state face worsening access barriers. “Our biggest concern, and the most pressing one, is with the HCBS waiver rates,” Matt Hansen, executive director of HHAU, said Wednesday in an interview with McKnight’s Home Care Daily Pulse. “If [providers] are still participating in the HCBS waivers, they’re doing it as a charity in most cases. We’ve had 64% of providers exit these programs between December 2022 and December 2023, so that’s 64% fewer providers.”

Los Angeles wildfires leave older patients vulnerable Direct Relief - California Wildfires; by Talya Meyers; 1/22/25 The radio announcer said nursing home residents were being evacuated to the Pasadena Convention Center, so Dr. Laura Mosqueda headed over. Older adults were arriving at the evacuation shelter with hair and hospital gowns covered in ash. People urgently needed to be on oxygen — in a large convention hall with few electrical outlets — or their catheters were getting full but responders didn’t have gloves. ... Some patients were in hospice and end-of-life care, and getting them placed more comfortably was an urgent priority. ... The wildfires that ripped across Southern California communities this month will hurt the health of millions — causing everything from short-term respiratory symptoms to long-term adverse outcomes from chronic disease — but older adults will likely be among the most vulnerable. ... [And with that,] Dr. Mosqueda cautioned that while older adults may be more likely to be medically fragile, many aren’t. Many have perspectives that help them navigate frightening, uncertain situations like the wildfires. “Older adults…were among the most calm and circumspect people I spoke with,” she recalled. “They just had a lot of wisdom and life experience, and they weren’t getting freaked out. They had so many internal resources.”

Brightspring Health Services, Inc. enters into definitive agreement to divest Community Living business to Sevita; reports preliminary 2024 financial results and provides 2025 guidance excluding Community Living The MarCom Journal, Louisville, KY; by Leigh White; 1/20/25 BrightSpring Health Services, Inc. (“BrightSpring” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ: BTSG), a leading provider of home and community-based pharmacy and health services for complex populations, today announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to divest its Community Living business, namely ResCare Community Living, to Sevita, a leading provider of home and community-based specialty health care, for $835 million in cash consideration, subject to customary adjustments. The transaction is expected to close in 2025, pursuant to regulatory approvals and typical closing conditions. Following the divestiture, BrightSpring’s Provider Services will be comprised of Home Health and Hospice, Personal Care, Rehabilitation Services, and Primary Care. 

Navigate a smooth transition from hospital to home care Health Medicine Network; 1/17/25 When discharged from hospital, a high proportion of people face emotions such as anxiety and fear, which can make the transition from hospital care to safe and appropriate home care difficult. But it doesn’t have to feel that way if you develop an effective strategy before you leave the hospital. ... 

Partnership for Quality Home Healthcare to merge with National Alliance for Care at Home Home Health Care News; by Audrie Martin; 1/17/25 The Partnership for Quality Home Healthcare (PQHH) will shut down effective March 1. The PQHH board of directors will join efforts with the National Alliance for Care at Home (the Alliance) to create a stronger and unified voice for the industry. By collaborating with the Alliance, the PQHH board aims to enhance advocacy on public policy and regulatory issues impacting the home health community. Their goal is to promote a health care system that acknowledges home health’s vital role in providing compassionate, value-driven care. ... Since its founding in 2010, PQHH has represented community — and hospital-based home health care agencies, working in partnership with government officials to ensure access to high-quality home health care. This mission was at the forefront of their decision to close.

‘Those Who Have Made Death Their Life’ Part 1: Hospice The Daily Yonder - Keep It Rural; by Hannah Clark; 1/15/25 Hannah Clark spent six months riding along with the nurses and certified nursing assistants (CNAs) of Hearth Hospice who provide in-home care to those living in Northwest Georgia and Southeast Tennessee. These hospice workers often drive up to a hundred miles a day to visit a handful of patients scattered across the Appalachian landscape in both rural towns and urban centers. What will follow this introductory essay is her photo reportage in three parts, documenting what she has witnessed accompanying these caregivers. The intimate portraits and vignettes show tender moments at different stages towards the end of one’s life. Their beauty lies in the companionship Clark captured in moments of need and vulnerability. Editor's note: Click here for the Introduction, which we posted 1/16/25. 

Guidelines for evaluating, diagnosing, and disclosing dementia published by Alzheimer’s Association Practical Neurology; 1/14/25 The Diagnostic Evaluation, Testing, Counseling, and Disclosure Clinical Practice Guideline (DETeCD-ADRD CPG) Workgroup, convened and funded by the Alzheimer’s Association, has developed new recommendations for clinicians to use when evaluating patients with possible Alzheimer disease (AD) or AD and related dementias (ADRD). An executive summary of the recommendations for use in primary care and other practice settings was published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia, along with a companion article summarizing specific guidance for specialists. The Workgroup included representatives from  primary, specialty, subspecialty, long-term, and palliative care disciplines as well as the fields of health economics and bioethics.  Editor's note: Click for open access to the Alzheimer's Association clinical practice guideline ..., executive summary of recommendations for primary care. 

Allevant Solutions shares over 10 years of insights into rural post-acute care patient outcomes PR Newswire, Mechanicsburg, PA; by Allevant Solutions, LLC; 1/13/25 Allevant Solutions, LLC shared key insights from its experience over a 10-year period showing that partnerships between larger acute care hospitals and rural critical access hospitals (CAHs) for post-acute care benefit patients, health care teams and hospitals. The aggregate, de-identified data reflects patient outcomes from over 100 CAHs across 24 states, specifically around the utilization of the swing bed concept – which Allevant calls Transitional Care.  A swing bed is the federal government's term for a patient bed in a small, rural critical access hospital that can be used for acute or post-acute care after a hospital stay.  Rural patients who have to leave their community for higher levels of care often have difficulty finding high-quality, continuing care when they are ready to return. 

Doctors, nurses press ahead as wildfires strain L.A.’s healthcare Los Angeles Times, produced by KFF Health News; by Emily Alpert Reyes, Bernard J. Wolfson and Molly Castle Work; 1/10/25 The rapidly spreading wildfires are not only upending the lives of tens of thousands of Los Angeles County residents and business owners, but also stressing the region’s hospitals, health clinics, first responders and nursing homes. ... Amid the maelstrom, doctors, nurses and other caregivers did their jobs. ... “All hospitals in close proximity to the fires remain on high alert and are prepared to evacuate if conditions worsen,” the Hospital Assn. of Southern California said in a statement. “The fires are creating significant operational hurdles,” the association added. ... [From a nurse,] "In times like this, this is when community si the most powerful."