Literature Review

Washington State reaches a nearly $150 million settlement with Johnson & Johnson over opioid crisisAP, by Manuel Valdes and Hallie Golden; 1/24/24The Washington state attorney general announced a $149.5 million settlement Wednesday with drugmaker Johnson & Johnson, more than four years after the state sued the company over its role in the opioid addiction crisis. “They knew what the harm was. They did it anyway,” Attorney General Bob Ferguson told reporters Wednesday. 

Caregiver charged in deathDouglas Budget, by Matt Adelman; 1/24/24A caregiver has been charged with causing the death of her mother ... earlier this month. Central Wyoming Hospice and Transitions Center was present at her passing and notified Converse County Coroner Ross Gorman, who then notified Converse County Sheriff’s Investigator Ben Peech because the alleged actions leading to her death occurred on the family ranch near Douglas.

Jon Franklin, two-time Pulitzer winner as science journalist, dies at 82

Masonic Village Elizabethtown hosts hiring event to combat nurse shortageFox43 WPMT, by Cyera Williams; 1/24/24According to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, the U.S. is projected to experience a shortage of registered nurses (RNs) that is expected to intensify as baby boomers age and the need for health care grows. Masonic Village at Elizabethtown is combatting that shortage by hosting a nursing service hiring event ... 

Don’t stop dreamin’ turns nursing home residents’ dreams into realityiAdvanceSeniorCare, by Paige Cerulli; 1/22/24The nonprofit now works to fulfill dreams for residents of all Quality Life Services homes, as well as for patients of Three Rivers Hospice. “There is one employee at all ten locations, including Three Rivers Hospice, that represents Don’t Stop Dream’ as a Dream Ambassador,” explains [Paula] Elder. “They are responsible for learning about our residents and patients’ needs and dreams, and submitting them for request. Most dreams are typically granted to our residents and patients after research is completed to ensure their safety, travel arrangements (if necessary), and staffing is available.”

Lions' Amon-Ra St. Brown sends signed jersey to fan in hospice who dyed his hair blueNFL, by Erin Walsh; 1/20/24Larry Benjamin, a Detroit Lions fan receiving hospice care who dyed his hair blue for the team's playoff run, received a very special gift from star wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown this weekend. St. Brown sent Benjamin, a lifelong Lions fan, an autographed jersey after hearing about his gesture of support for the team. Editor's Note: Follow-up to the story we posted on 

Inside a $300M push to save failing hospitalsModern Healthcare, by Kara Hartnett; 1/19/24When Madera Community Hospital declared bankruptcy and suddenly closed its doors a year ago, an agricultural community of 68,000 Californians lost its sole source of emergency and specialty care.

Healthcare ranks second among industries with workers frustrated by low pay: survey McKnights Senior Living, by Kathleen Steele Gaivin; 1/19/24Healthcare workers rank second among those frustrated about their industry’s pay, according to a recent analysis from USA Today Blueprint. ... The research included 3 million Glassdoor reviews of 500 large employers in 25 industries. ... Only workers in the education field are less satisfied with their pay than are workers in healthcare, according to the findings.

Head chef at Jersey Hospice cherishes the privilege of cooking for end-of-life patientsBNN, by Mahnoor Jehangir; 1/19/24The head chef at Jersey Hospice, Sam Sherwood, has a deeply personal mission. His role is not merely a professional one, but a labor of love, driven by the memory of his father who passed away just days before Sherwood took the helm of the hospice kitchen. For Sherwood and his team, preparing meals for patients in end-of-life care is more than just a job; it’s a calling.

Widespread health care disparities revealed: Hardships for minority kids start at birthUSA Today, by Adrianna Rodriguez; 1/18/24Black and Hispanic children receive universally worse medical care than their white peers, starting from the moment they’re born and spanning across all specialties, according to a comprehensive five-year review. ... They found widespread racial and ethnic disparities in care, treatment and health outcomes across all pediatric specialties, including neonatology, primary care, emergency medicine, critical care, surgery, mental health, developmental disabilities, endocrinology and palliative, or end-of-life, care, ...

KKR-backed BrightSpring targets $3 billion valuation for long-awaited US IPOReuters; 1/17/24KKR-backed BrightSpring Health Services set a target of an around $3.01 billion valuation on Wednesday for its long-awaited initial public offering in the United States. The company, which caters to patients facing complex or chronic medical conditions, is moving towards a listing after previously pursuing it in 2021.

Home-based leaders are focusing on culture, creative benefits to mitigate staffing challengesHome Healthcare News, by Joyce Famakinwa; 1/16/24One of Accurate Home Care’s biggest strategies for combating the nursing shortage is positioning the company as the employer of choice and focusing on culture. ... “We have to focus heavily on culture, and we have to focus heavily on purpose, and try to attract those who have a heart for home care, and the money is secondary to them,” [Bill] English said [president and CEO of Accurate Home Care]. “Those are the nurses that we went after. Today, we were voted as one of the top 200 workplaces in Minnesota by the Star Tribune.”

Moving beyond death anxiety to reflections on mortalityPsychology Today, by Shoba Sreenivasan and Linda E. Weinberger, reviewed by Lybi Ma; 1/15/24For the healthy, it may be considered macabre to contemplate their mortality; it may seem fatalistic, negative, and something that pulls one away from the present joy of living today. Yet, it can also remind us of the inevitable and consider how we want to spend today as well as whatever time we have left.