Literature Review

Alivia Care, Inc. introduces Alivia Care @ Home to northeast Florida PR.com, Alivia Care, Inc. Press Releases, Jacksonville, FL; 9/8/24 Alivia Care, Inc., the parent organization of Community Hospice & Palliative Care, is proud to announces Alivia Care @ Home in Northeast Florida. This change marks a significant milestone in the company's mission to enhance the quality of life for patients through exceptional home care, home health, and supportive care services. As part of this initiative, Alivia Care, Inc. recently opened Alivia Care @ Home offices in Gainesville and Ocala last month, furthering their commitment to serving the North Florida community. Alivia Care @ Home offers specialized services for patients who prefer to receive treatment at home. ... Alivia Care @ Home offers a full spectrum of specialized services, including nursing, physical, occupational, and speech therapies. 

Ensign Group expands with new Colorado and Kansas acquisitions Investing.com, San Juan Capistrano, CA; by AI and reviewed by an editor; 9/3/24 The Ensign Group , Inc. ... has expanded its portfolio with the acquisition of seven skilled nursing facilities in Colorado and one in Kansas, effective September 1, 2024. These facilities, which are now subject to long-term, triple net leases, bring Ensign's total operations to 323 healthcare facilities across fourteen states. The Colorado acquisitions include Desert Willow Health and Rehabilitation Center in Pueblo, Junction Creek Health and Rehabilitation Center in Durango, Pelican Pointe Health and Rehabilitation Center in Windsor, Riverbend Health and Rehabilitation Center in Loveland, Broadview Health and Rehabilitation Center and Westlake Lodge Health and Rehabilitation Center both located in Greeley, and Linden Place Health and Rehabilitation Center in Longmont. In addition, Ensign has acquired Prairie Ridge Health and Rehabilitation in Overland Park, Kansas. These latest acquisitions reflect the company's ongoing strategy to grow its presence in the healthcare sector by acquiring both well-performing and underperforming facilities.

Health systems brace for the 'silver tsunami'Becker's Hospital Review; by Laura Dyrda; 8/23/24Around 10,000 Americans turn 65 years old every day, gaining access to Medicare benefits. The number of Medicare beneficiaries is expected to continue growing in the next five years, and health systems are making changes to keep up. In 2020, around 73 million Baby Boomers were eligible for Medicare benefits, and by 2030 all Baby Boomers will be Medicare-eligible, according to the Census Bureau. Advances in medicine and healthy lifestyle mean people are living longer and demanding more from their care. "In the next five years, the most significant disruptor to healthcare will be the capacity challenges associated with the 'silver tsunami' of baby boomers hitting the age of healthcare consumption," said Jonathan D. Washko, MBA, FACPE, NRP, AEMD, Assistant Vice President, CEMS Operations, Northwell Health; Assistant Professor, Department of Emergency Medicine, Pre-hospital and Disaster Medicine, Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra, Northwell Health. "In this environment, coupled with lowering revenues, staffing shortages and higher expenses, healthcare is being forced from an abundance mindset to one of scarcity."

Improving post-hospital care of older cancer patients Cancer Health; by University of Colorado Cancer Center and Greg Glasgow; 8/26/24 A few years ago, University of Colorado Cancer Center member and hospitalist Sarguni Singh, MD, began to notice a troubling trend: Older adults with cancer who were leaving the hospital for skilled nursing facilities after treatment were being readmitted to the hospital or having worse outcomes while in rehabilitation. ... Singh knew of an intervention called Assessing and Listening to Individual Goals and Needs (ALIGN) — a palliative care social worker-led protocol aimed at improving quality of life, aligning goals of care, and providing support to patients and caregivers — and she began using it for cancer care. ... The results were overwhelmingly positive, and patients and caregivers told us, ‘This was so helpful,’” says Singh, associate professor of hospital medicine in the CU School of Medicine.

“What I wish I knew about dementia”: A caregiving only child’s experience The Healthy; by Dr. Patricia Varacallo, DO; 8/20/24 It's no secret dementia affects the brain of the patient, and tests the hearts of their loved ones. Through one woman's personal journey, experts advise on the emotional, medical, and financial aspects of caregiving for dementia. ... Drawing from Ann’s caregiving journey and insights from Dr. Wint and Lucille Carriere, PhD, Cleveland Clinic Angie Ruvo Endowed Caregiving Chair, we share their collective wisdom on what they wish more people knew about dementia.

‘Lean into your superpowers’: Bayada COO champions women in home health leadership Home Health Care News; by Audrie Martin; 8/20/24 Heather Helle, president and chief operating officer of Bayada Home Health Care, believes that home-based care could benefit from having more women in leadership roles. Founded in 1975 and headquartered in Moorestown, New Jersey, Bayada provides in-home clinical care and support services for children and adults, including hospice, behavioral health, and rehabilitation in 21 states and five countries. ... In 2022, women accounted for approximately 80% of workers in health care occupations, a figure higher than the percentage of women in all other employment sectors, as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. ... However, women are underrepresented in leadership roles, comprising only 25% of health care leadership positions in 2022. ... Gender equity is crucial for developing resilient health systems and gender-transformative health and social care policies, according to The World Health Organization. 

Factors associated with Do Not Resuscitate status and palliative care in hospitalized patients: A national inpatient sample analysis Palliative Medicine Reports; by Jean-Sebastien Rachoin, Nicole Debski, Krystal Hunter, Elizabeth CerceoIn the United States, the proportion of hospitalized patients with DNR, PC, and DNR with PC increased from 2016 to 2019. Overall, inpatient mortality and LOS fell, but hospital charges per patient increased. Significant gender and ethnic differences emerged. Black patients and males were less likely to have DNR status and had higher inpatient mortality, LOS, and hospital charges.

Military veterans honored during special ceremony at Sarasota adult day center Sarasota Herald-Tribune, Sarasota, FL; by Noelle Fox; 7/29/24 Twenty military veterans were honored recently at a special pinning event and remembrance ceremony at Town Square Sarasota jointly hosted by the Florida Department of Veterans Affairs and Empath Tidewell Hospice. The veterans honored were all members of Town Square Sarasota, an adult day center, and some of the members honored had fought in the Korean and Vietnam wars. The event was part of the Tidewell Honors Veterans Program. ... Since opening in early 2022, Town Square Sarasota has partnered with Empath Tidewell Hospital to host four special pinning ceremonies honoring its veteran members. Town Square Sarasota also has integrated aspects into its location and programming to recognize and welcome veterans.

‘Good’ death different for everyone Altoona Mirror, Altoona, PA; 7/26/24 The social and economic inequities patients suffer in life often shapes their death” was a key point of a July 13-14 article in the Review section of the Wall Street Journal. ... In the article, which was written by Dr. Sunita Puri, a palliative care physician and the author of “That Good Night: Life and Medicine in the Eleventh Hour,” Puri focuses on the conundrum many families face when dealing with the question of where to spend the final days of life. ... “New research classifies the rise in home deaths as progress,” the message immediately under the article’s headline begins, “but we need to look more closely at what these deaths look like.” ... Puri, now 10 years into her physician career, says it is now clear to her that there is much more to a “good” death than where it occurs. “Presuming a home death is a success obscures important questions about the process,” she wrote. “Did this person die comfortably? Did their caregivers have the resources and guidance they needed? Was dying at home a choice or simply the only option?” 

The bereavement care crisis in hospice facilities MedCity News; by Cara McCarty Abbott; 7/28/24 Bereavement care is an essential part of the hospice experience, designed to support those coping with loss. Bereavement care is not just a compassionate gesture; it is a critical component of the hospice care continuum. So why is it so underserved in the U.S.? ... Instead of pushing harder on hospice providers to find more ways to deliver comprehensive bereavement care with less, it's key to address the systemic forces hampering their ability to deliver quality care at the scale required and address these challenges. Editor's Note: Additionally, does your hospice still rely on the misnamed, overused "5 Stages of Grief"? These were determined from 1960's persons who were dying, not from bereaved persons who live on--surviving--the death. Extensive fresh, contemporary, hospice-designed grief resources to support bereavement counselors and the persons they serve are provided by Composing Life Out of Loss, a sponsor for our newsletter.

No One Dies Alone: a movement against isolation and loneliness in the final hours The Optimist Daily; by The Optimist Daily Ediorial Team; 7/27/24 The fear of dying alone is one of the most powerful and agonizing feelings that many harbor, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. For some, this fear sadly becomes a reality. To address this issue, the No One Dies Alone (NODA) initiative trains and supports volunteers who provide companionship to people in their final hours. ... The NODA concept began in 1986 in Oregon, United States [by] Sandra Clarke, a nurse. ... [Alison] Bunce founded Compassionate Inverclyde (CI) in 2016 as an Ardgowan Hospice-funded project, where she worked as director of care. Starting with 20 volunteers, CI sought to sit with people who were dying alone, initially in hospices and local hospitals before extending to private homes. Today, CI has grown substantially, with over 100 volunteers available to provide companionship at a moment’s notice.

Baptist Health taps 3 vendors to build a population health system that works Healthcare IT News; by Bill Siwicki; 7/26/24With help from Oracle, Innovaccer and Salesforce, the South Florida provider is scoring big population health wins, including a 7% increase in coding gap closure rate and a 17% increase in annual wellness visit completion rates. Baptist Health South Florida operates a network of 11 hospitals covering four counties. It also includes numerous ambulatory facilities, urgent care centers and emergency departments to provide comprehensive healthcare services across the region. ... "One of our primary issues was the fragmented nature of patient data across multiple provider organizations and electronic health record systems," said Milady Cervera, vice president, population health and physician integrated networks, at Baptist Health South Florida. "This lack of interoperability made it difficult to gain a comprehensive view of our patients' health status, care history and ongoing needs. ..."