Literature Review

Redwood Coast PACE opens location at MRCH for vital senior services Mad River Union, Arcata, CA; 5/29/25 Redwood Coast PACE (Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly), a program of the Humboldt Resource Center, has opened its new location in Arcata at 3798 Janes Road, on the Mad River Community Hospital campus. The Arcata center – along with the PACE centers in Eureka and Fortuna – offers a full range of medical, social and supportive services designed to meet the unique needs of local seniors who have complex medical needs and their families. 

Valir PACE acquires Cherry Blossom PACE in Alexandria, Virginia - expanding quality senior care in Northern VirginiaKTLA-5 Los Angeles and CISION PR Newswire, Oklahoma City, OK; by Valir PACE; 5/22/25Further expanding its footprint in the senior care market, Valir PACE, a recognized leader in the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE), has acquired Cherry Blossom PACE from One Senior Care. This strategic acquisition strengthens Valir PACE's commitment to providing high-quality, comprehensive care to seniors in Northern Viriginia.

Home care workers could be a secret to savings, value-based care Modern Healthcare; by Diane Eastabrook; 5/20/25 ... About 3.9 million workers provide personal care services, such as bathing, toileting, grooming and meal preparation to patients in their homes, according to the Labor Department. While those workers don’t typically provide medical services, they often spend more time with patients than healthcare providers and can offer valuable insight into patients' conditions, said Kristen Wheeler, executive director of home care for the National Alliance for Care at Home. “They will be the first to recognize when something has changed. These caregivers can report back and are a critical part of the healthcare team," Wheeler said. ... That can lead to faster — and less costly — care. The Labor Department estimates the U.S. will need another 800,000 home care workers over the next decade as the population ages. 

You might live to be 100. Are you ready? The Guardian; by Andrew J. Scott; 5/15/25 Ethel Caterham, at the age of 115 years, is said to be the oldest person alive. She offers the sage life advice to “say yes to every opportunity because you never know what it will lead to. Have a positive mental attitude and have everything in moderation.” When she was born in 1909, the average life expectancy of a British female was 52 years – becoming a centenarian was a remote prospect. ... Today, according to the United Nations, centenarians are the fastest growing age group. By 1950, there were an estimated 14,000 whilst today there are nearly 750,000, projected to reach nearly 4 million by 2054. ...  Today, there is too large a gap between average lifespan and healthspan. The number of years we are likely to live has increased more than the number of years we are likely to remain healthy. Reducing this gap is critical for seizing the advantages of longer lives.

Understanding Conservatory Care Services: A comprehensive overview Articlescad.com; by Jonassen Randall; 4/27/25 As the population ages and healthcare requires evolve, conservatory care services have become a crucial part of the continuum of care for numerous individuals. Unlike standard medical treatment environments, conservatory care services focus on supporting people with persistent conditions or impairments, providing a holistic technique that promotes self-respect and quality of life. This short article will explore what conservatory care services entail, who can benefit from these services, and the various kinds they can take.

As the ‘Silver Tsunami’ hits the Flathead Valley, dementia diagnoses are rising while caregivers reach a breaking point Flathead Beacon, Kalispell, MT; by Maggie Dresser; 3/23/25 ... As baby boomers age and Americans live longer than previous generations, the elderly population will continue to grow and overwhelm many local resources, which includes nursing homes and memory care facilities. ... According to 2020 Census data, the national demographic of people ages 65 and over grew nearly five times faster than the total population over the 100-year period stretching from 1920 to 2020, and the population segment has recently reached 55.8 million. But Montana’s senior citizen population is disproportionately higher than many other states, ranking No. 6 overall, with 19.7% of its population considered geriatric, according to 2020 Census data.  Of this population, 9.8% of individuals in Montana suffer from Alzheimer’s.Editor's note: Click here for the national 2024 Alzheimer's Disease Facts and Figures - Special Report: Mapping a Better Future for Dementia Care Navigation.

Attorneys general challenge Trump’s deportations, citing impact on home health workforce McKnights Home Care; by Adam Healy; 4/16/25 Nineteen state attorneys general filed an amicus brief Monday challenging President Donald Trump’s deportation policies. Among their arguments, they contended that deportations would have an outsized, negative impact on the home health industry’s ability to deliver care. “From a public health perspective, [states] depend on noncitizen healthcare workers who, like other immigrants, are forced to live in a climate of fear — nationwide over 1 million immigrants work in healt hcare, including 40% of home health aides and 18% of nursing home staff,” the brief said. The brief aims to block the administration’s so-called “ideological deportation policy,” established by executive orders 14161 and 14188. These orders intimidate workers, impair healthcare delivery and harm states’ economies, the attorneys general argued. 

Without support, seniors aging in place may elect facility-based care, study finds McKnights Home Care; by Adam Healy; 4/16/25 Older adults aging in place may rethink whether they want to receive care at home if they do not receive certain aging-in-place supports from their care providers and loved ones, according to a new study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. The researchers interviewed nearly 300 older adults receiving care at home and in long-term care facilities. ... The first theme was participants’ personal health experiences. ... Similarly, loss of health of loved ones and friends may also influence where patients want to receive care. ... The final factor influencing older adults’ aging preferences was time, the study found. 

What role do immigrants play in the direct long-term care workforce? KFF; by Priya Chidambaram and Drishti Pillai; 4/2/25 President Trump has made a slew of immigration policy changes focused on restricting entry at the border and increasing interior enforcement efforts to support mass deportation. While these actions are focused on undocumented immigrants, they likely will have ripple effects across immigrants of all statuses and millions more people living in immigrant families. Mass deportations could negatively impact the U.S. economy and workforce, given the role immigrants play, particularly in certain industries. ...

Senior living demand hits all-time high: NIC McKnights Senior Living; by Kimberly Bonvissuto; 4/3/25 The demand for senior living is at an all-time high, with the first quarter seeing a record number of occupied units, almost 621,000, the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care said Thursday afternoon [4/3]. Senior living occupancy rates increased 0.3 percentage points to 87.4% in the first quarter, up from 87.1% in the fourth quarter of 2024, according to the latest NIC MAP Senior Housing Market Fundamentals report. Independent living occupancy rose to 89%, up from 88.6% in the fourth quarter, whereas assisted living rates increased to 85.8% compared with 85.5% in the fourth quarter.

HHS restructures duals, PACE offices amid department overhaul Modern Healthcare; by Bridget Early; 4/3/25 The Health and Human Services Department is reorganizing a handful of key programs for dually eligible enrollees and older adults, including laying off numerous staffers. HHS is shuffling how it manages care coordination for people dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid under the Medicare-Medicaid Coordination Office and the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly. PACE, which had been poised for growth, offers home and center-based care mostly to dual-eligible Medicare and Medicaid enrollees who qualify for skilled nursing but can still live in their communities. A spokesperson for HHS said the department has “planned productivity enhancements for the PACE management department.” HHS did not elaborate on what management changes for the PACE program might look like.

The most personal column I’ve ever written The Times, United Kingdom; by Professor Tanya Byron; 3/31/25 ... This column will be more personal than any other I have written in my now 20 years writing for The Times. I write it four days after my sister Katrina and I lost our beloved mum, Elfie, who ... had advanced end-stage dementia. Where do we start when trying to describe the many moments of heartbreak and the challenges that come with the long goodbye we have faced with our parents? Dementia is unpredictable. We say goodbye more than once and so the pain of bereavement does not begin at the time of death. Instead it is a prolonged pain marked by gradual losses. Watching a loved one slowly fade away over months or years brings grief, exhaustion and deep emotional turmoil. Amid all this is the experience of being on a rollercoaster of loss and hope, an experience that creates huge lurches between perceptions and emotions. There are moments of clarity and regression, ... [Continue reading ...]

Thompson Scholars and AdventHealth host successful Health Equity Health Fair AdventHealth Manchester, Manchester, KY; by Christina Couch; 3/25/25 The Thompson Scholars Foundation and AdventHealth are proud to announce the successful completion of the Health Equity Health Fair held [March 24] ... in Manchester, KY. With over 250 participants, the event brought together medical professionals, community representatives, and attendees to address health disparities and promote wellness within the community. The Health Equity Health Fair featured a wide range of activities and resources, including: ... Hospice Care ...