Literature Review

Highlighting Nurses Week: Best, worst states for nurses in 2024 Becker's Hospital Review; by Erica Carbajal; 4/30/24 WalletHub has deemed Washington the best state for nurses to practice in 2024 — a recognition based on an analysis of earnings, job growth and working conditions. For the annual ranking, the financial services company compared 50 states across two key dimensions: opportunity and competition, and work environment. Twenty metrics were grouped into those two dimensions, ... Here are the 10 best and worst states for nurses in 2024, per the ranking:  ...

Updated guidance on workplace harassment covers misgendering pronouns, bias over bathroom use, more McKnights Senior Living; by Kathleen Steele Gaivin; 5/2/24 Final guidance published last week by the Equal Opportunity Employment Commission aims to clarify for employers, employees and others their obligations related to harassment in the workplace. ... This is the first update to the guidance in 25 years, aimed at enforcing more recent changes in federal law. EEOC clarified that harassment by any person — including employers, coworkers, customers and clients — can violate federal law. ... According to the EEOC, the new guidance “updates, consolidates and replaces the agency’s five guidance documents issued between 1987 and 1999 and serves as a single, unified agency resource on EEOC-enforced workplace harassment law.” Among other guidance, the EEOC calls out asking intrusive questions about a person’s sexual orientation, gender identity, gender transition or intimate body parts as forms of harassment. ...

America’s graying. We need to change the way we think about age. The Harvard Gazette; by Alvin Powell; 4/25/24 Experts say instead of disability, focus needs to shift to ability, health, with greater participation, economically and socially. People in their 70s, 80s, and even 90s run marathons, write books, and go to work daily. But the predominant national conversation on aging focuses on disability rather than ability, something experts say is a problem as participation of America’s older adults grows more important, economically and socially, as the nation ages.

Art exhibition held to honor hospice patientKTVN 2 News, Nevada; by Jake Reno; 4/28/24 Robert Henry, who has always dreamed of showcasing his artwork, was very overwhelmed and happy to see all of the people who came to see his work. Compassion Care Hospice and the Nevada Fine Arts held an art exhibition to honor Robert Henry, a hospice patient ... After members of the hospice care team found out more about Henry's story and how much art meant to him, they were inspired to figure out a way to honor him and his life's passion.

Lindon woman’s dream of having her music on the radio comes true KSLTV 5, Salt Lake City, Utah; by Alex Cabrero; 4/26/24 With weeks left to live, a Lindon woman’s dream of her music airing on the radio is becoming a reality. “They are experiences I have had, but there are no words ever that will describe my journey,” Gracelyn Wilkinson said. Gracelyn Wilkinson’s music, specifically the words to her songs, is about as remarkable as it gets. While she is only 19 years old, she has had the kind of life experiences many people will fortunately never have. ... Gracelyn Wilkinson is now home in Lindon on hospice, where precious time is now measured in days.

PeaceHealth's home nurses authorize a potential second strike The Lund Report, by Nathan Wilk; 4/23/24Homecare and hospice nurses at PeaceHealth Sacred Heart in Springfield [OR] have authorized a second strike that could last indefinitely. The nurses are seeking a contract with same wage increases as their in-hospital counterparts. They previously went on strike for two weeks in February. ...During the previous strike, nurses accused PeaceHealth of providing poor replacement care to patients. If this strike goes through, Waltasti said it would continue to provide uninterrupted services, but he also pointed to other options for patients.

A leading authority in senior care and services: Seniors Blue Book Iowanews Headlines; 4/23/24Seniors Blue Book, a trusted name in senior care and services, has been recognized as a leading authority in the industry. With a dedication to improving the lives of seniors and their families, Seniors Blue Book has consistently demonstrated its commitment to providing high-quality, reliable information and resources for the senior community. ... For over 40 years, Seniors Blue Book has been at the forefront of the senior care and services industry, offering a wide range of resources and solutions designed to improve the lives of older adults and their families. 

30 systems sign on to new effort to advance age-friendly care Becker's Clinical Leadership, by Erica Carbajal; 4/17/24Thirty health systems are participating in a new collaborative through the Institute for Healthcare Improvement that aims to accelerate the adoption of age-friendly care for older adults. The Age-Friendly System-Wide Spread Collaborative is billed as a learning and action community through which systems will focus on embedding four evidence-based elements of high-quality care for older adults: what matters, medication, mentation and mobility, known as the 4Ms. Participants — which include Los Angeles-based Cedars Sinai, New York City-based Mount Sinai Health System and Atlanta-based Grady Health — will share data and collaborate to advance their own improvements in scaling age-friendly care across their sites of care. Participants also have the opportunity to be among the first to achieve a new IHI recognition for systemwide adoption of the 4Ms. 

Marijuana Legalization Review: A guide for employers in a complex legal landscapeForbes, by Alonzo Martinez; 4/19/24As marijuana legalization sweeps across the United States, employers face a complex legal landscape regarding its use among employees. What was once a clear-cut issue of termination for positive drug tests has evolved into a complex assessment, with federal, state, and local laws offering conflicting guidance on how to navigate marijuana use in the workplace.

Death Cafes: Where people talk mortality over tea and cake The Week UK, by Chas Newkey-Burdent; 4/18/24 Once a month, in countries from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe, people are gathering to eat cake and talk about the typically taboo topic of death. At Death Cafes, said Emma Freud in The Times, people with a range of interests in the subject come together to discuss "the end of life experience in any of its forms,"  ... After joining a Death Cafe in Willesden, northwest London, Gaby Wine wrote in The Jewish Chronicle that it was "heart-warming" that "while not everyone agrees with one another, everyone shows great respect."

States with the best health outcomes still have deep racial disparities STAT, by Usha Lee McFarling; 4/18/24 A new analysis of health inequities in the United States shows that every state has deep racial and ethnic disparities in the performance of their health care systems. The report released Thursday by the Commonwealth Fund analyzed 25 indicators that track health outcomes, health care access, and quality of care provided for five racial and ethnic groups. It found dramatic disparities for Black, Hispanic, and Indigenous Americans, even in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Hawaii, New Hampshire, and New York — the states considered to have the best overall health care performance. In all states, White and Asian residents had the best health outcomes. 

Experts say Shannen Doherty’s approach to cancer ciagnosis can be helpfulToday Headline; 4/16/24Shannen Doherty, the actor best known for her role in “Beverly Hills, 90210,” has stage 4 cancer. She’s getting rid of her material possessions so she can focus on spending time with her mother. On an episode of her podcast, “Let’s Be Clear With Shannen Doherty,” released on April 1, the actor said she wants to sell off some of her stuff so her mother doesn’t have to worry about dealing with it if she dies. ... She also said she hopes to use that money to travel with her mom without dipping into her savings.

Reno Little Theater’s ‘The Quality of Life’ explores the complications of death and grief ThisIsReno, by Taylor Harker; 4/14/24Reno Little Theater’s “Quality of Life” brilliantly interweaves the lives of two families confronting profound grief and mortality. ... Together, ... two families navigate the turbulent waters of existential crises, each bringing their unique perspectives on faith, resilience and the ethics surrounding end-of-life decisions. ... “Quality of Life,” a dramatic comedy by Jane Anderson, explores how individuals and families confront and converse about death. The narrative is both tender and perceptive, delving into the internal conflicts and strong familial bonds that challenge and uphold them.