Literature Review

Advance care questions to ask your loved one Parkview Health; 7/27/24 ... To ease into a conversation about decisions and scenarios, we can start with questions that are easier to answer, like: What does a good day look like? If you got to spend the day with your favorite people doing your favorite things, what would you be doing? With whom? ... From there, we can talk about more specifics related to healthcare decisions, such as: If your heart and breathing stop suddenly, would you want to have CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation), which can include pushing on your chest, breathing support, medications, and electrical shocks? ... If you knew that death was likely to happen in a brief period of time, would you want to be in the hospital, in a nursing care facility or at home? ... Editor's Note: The wording, sequencing, and open-ended format of these questions gently open the door for the person to reflect on and describe one's wishes, in contrast to some advance care planning questions that focus on filling out a form. Yes, Advance Directives forms are crucial. However, the forms are a tool for now and for needs ahead. The focus is the person, while building a context of relationship and trust.

Guest column: Private equity poses threat to home health care The Gardner News; by Jane Pike-Benton. Worcester Telegram & Gazette; 7/21/24 Health care observers across the commonwealth are focusing their attention on a bankruptcy court in Houston to learn the fate of eight Massachusetts hospitals being sold at auction by Steward Health Care. Steward’s financial collapse has unsurprisingly brought scrutiny on private equity in care delivery to a crescendo. ...  Nationally, the number of hospice agencies owned by private equity nearly quadrupled from 2011 to 2019. Seventy-two percent of those acquired hospices were previously nonprofits. As policymakers work to stabilize a health care capacity crisis pushed to the brink by Steward, they cannot afford to lose sight of home health and hospice providers in the shuffle. Organizations like ours, many of which were founded with nonprofit missions well over a century ago, are essential to hospitals desperately looking to discharge patients.

More people are dying at home. Is that a good thing? The Wall Street Journal; by Suniat Puri; 7/11/24 New research classifies the rise in home deaths as progress, but we need to look closely at what these death look like. In photos taken a year before we met, my patient smiled widely, flashing a peace sign, her feet planted in the damp sand of a local beach. “Mom was a firecracker,” her daughter told me. My patient, who now slurred her sentences, was dying of cirrhosis. Her jaundiced skin was golden, the corners of her pale lips crusted with dried blood. She wanted to die at home, according to her daughter, who had been estranged but re-entered her mother’s life to care for her. I was still in my training in palliative medicine and, like my patient’s daughter, I believed that a “good death” took place at home, surrounded by family. I shared her view that a hospital death was a failure, painful and undignified. I was glad to help her leave behind uncomfortable tubes and noisy machines for a death I presumed would be more peaceful. [Subscription may be required to continue reading.]

Fewer deaths after serious illness in veterans treated with PARC Care Model U.S. Medicine; by LaTina Emerson; 7/11/24 After a serious illness, veterans who received medical care via the Post-Acute Recovery Center (PARC) model experienced fewer deaths and more days outside of the hospital compared to those not treated with PARC, according to a recent study. ...  Using telehealth, PARC is administered by nurse practitioners to address the complex needs of intensive care unit (ICU) survivors as they transition from hospital to home and improve access to post-ICU care for high-risk veterans, ... Each year, “more than 100,000 veterans transition from ICUs to their home after treatment for life-threatening illnesses, but this transition presents many challenges, including unresolved acute medical issues and the lingering effects of acute organ dysfunction,” according to the study authors. ... 

Primary, palliative provider HarmonyCares gains $200M investment Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 7/9/24 The home-based care provider HarmonyCares, a leading provider of value-based in-home has secured $200 million in a new funding round. HarmonyCares offers palliative care, home-based primary care, home health, hospice, radiology and other services to more than 70,000 patients in 15 states through value-based partnerships with Medicare Advantage plans and Accountable Care Organizations. ... The company plans to use the infusion of capital to expand to new geographies and develop new technologies designed to improve clinical outcomes and patient satisfaction, according to a statement. The funding round was led by General Catalyst, McKesson Ventures and an unnamed large national payer. Other participants included K2 HealthVentures, Rubicon Founders, Valtruis, HLM Capital and Oak HC/FT.

Provider of in-home imaging services and 24/7 radiologist access raises $200M Radiology Business; by Marty Stempniak; 7/9/24 HarmonyCares, a provider of in-home X-ray services that spans 15 states, has raised $200 million in new capital, leaders announced Monday. Based in Nashville, Tennessee, the company is focused on physician-led care for vulnerable patients who cannot travel to a traditional healthcare facility. HarmonyCare Diagnostics brings the latest digital X-ray technology to patients’ homes or long-term care facilities, offering rapid results with board certified radiologists “available 24/7.”

A professional’s perspective: Ageism within the healthcare system; does it exist? Northern Kentucky Tribune; by Jeff Rubin; 7/6/24 A friend of mine named Dee recently shared with me a particularly unpleasant experience she had with a young hospital discharge planner regarding her 97-year-old mom in California. It appears Dee had a heck of a time trying to get her mom discharged to home health care rather than hospice, even though the particular care she needed could have been better delivered at home. A geriatrician by training, Dee ... recognized the invaluable role of hospice in providing end-of-life care. However, the situation she found herself in was less a question of end-of-life and more of palliative care. ...  A recent study in the US sampling 2,035 individuals between 50 and 80 years of age revealed that 93.4% experienced ageism firsthand. Their perception extended to professionals like doctors, nurses, therapists, social workers, and psychologists whose services included working with older people. [Click on the title's link for significant data, descriptions, and resources.]

DME Service Solutions joins the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) OpenPR - Worldwide Public Relations; Press release from DEM Service Solutions; 7/4/24DME Service Solutions, a provider of B2B outsourcing solutions specializing in healthcare, is pleased to announce its partnership with the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC). This partnership allows DME Service Solutions to engage with a community dedicated to advancing quality care and operational efficiency in the home care and hospice industry. NAHC represents the home care and hospice community, advocating for accessible and affordable care. By partnering with NAHC, DME Service Solutions connects with a network of professionals focused on effective home care solutions. This partnership provides access to the latest information and in-depth analysis of industry trends, which is essential for staying aligned with current industry needs. NAHC also offers educational programs that will help DME Service Solutions enhance staff expertise and continuously improve service quality.

Grief care efforts should include settings outside of hospice, provider group say McKnights Senior Living; by Kimberly Bonvissuto; 7/3/24 If standards are developed for high-quality bereavement and grief care, they must apply to settings outside of traditional hospice care, such as affordable senior housing, where there is a “critical lack” of mental health services. That’s according to LeadingAge, which submitted comments last week to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality on a draft report from a research project that will inform an independent panel that will develop standards for high-quality bereavement and grief care. Katy Barnett, LeadingAge director of home care and hospice operations and policy, highlighted the need for cross-continuum grief and bereavement assessments, interventions and resources, including in settings outside of traditional hospice care, such as affordable senior housing.

How the Supreme Court’s Chevron Decision could help stop home health cuts Home Health Care News; by Andrew Donlan; 6/28/24 On Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court upended the Chevron doctrine precedent. For home health industry purposes, that means a potentially weakened Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) moving forward. The news comes just two days after the home health proposed payment rule was released, which included significant cuts for the third straight year. Broadly, moving away from the Chevron precedent – usually known as the Chevron doctrine – will mean less regulatory power for government agencies. Government agencies often take their own interpretations of certain laws and statutes, and then act upon those interpretations. ... The National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) already filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) and CMS over rate cuts in 2023. “In our own analysis, we believe that providers of home health have been underpaid as it relates to budget neutrality,” NAHC President William A. Dombi said when the lawsuit was filed. “At minimum, we would expect to see the rate cuts from 2023, that were permanent readjustments to the base rate, and the one proposed for 2024, along with the temporary adjustments … to go away. The end product of that is that we would have a stable system to deliver home health services to Medicare beneficiaries.”

Senior Helpers is first in-home care company in country to achieve CHAP Age-Friendly Care CertificationPR Newswire, Towson, MD; by Senior Helpers; 6/27/24 Senior Helpers ... is the first in-home care provider in the United States to be Age-Friendly Care at Home certified by Community Health Accreditation Partner (CHAP). "We have always set the highest standard of care for ourselves and our clients, and we are thrilled to be recognized for that," said Mari Baxter, COO of Senior Helpers. "Our proprietary LIFE Profile assessment tool sets us apart from others in the industry and helped position us to be the first in the country to achieve the Age-Friendly Care Certification. ... The three Senior Helpers locations that have earned the coveted Age-Friendly Care Certification for home care are Senior Helpers of Milwaukee, Senior Helpers of Charlotte, and Senior Helpers of Greater Chicagoland. More locations are expected to receive their certifications soon. Editor's Note: Community Health Accreditation Partner (CHAP) is a sponsor for Hospice & Palliative Care Today. Congratulations