Literature Review

Bay Bluffs opens hospice wing as end-of-life care models change Interlochen Public Radio; by Michael Livingston; 9/4/24 Three new beds for hospice care opened in Harbor Springs today marking the end of a year-long pivot for an end-of-life care organization in the region. Last year, McLaren Health System closed hospice facilities in Petoskey and Cheboygan. Combined, the facilities provided more than a dozen beds for hospice in the region. At the time, McLaren called the decision to close "difficult" but necessary due to staffing constraints and said it would move to prioritizing outpatient hospice care - when a nurse visits patients in the home rather than a facility. But a group of advocates in Petoskey said residential hospice is needed in the region - especially for people with serious terminal illnesses. David McBride leads the newly renamed group, Friends of Hospice of Little Traverse Bay. It used to be called the Friends of Hiland Cottage for the facility in Petoskey. ... That’s what led to a partnership with skilled nursing facility Bay Bluffs in Harbor Springs. It’s the Emmet County Medical Care Facility and owned by the county health department. Bay Bluffs is not a licensed hospice provider but it is able to outsource hospice from other companies while providing rooms for families to gather with their loved ones and trained nursing. This newer model of end-of-life care is a growing trend and has been tried in other places such as Arbor Hospice in Ann Arbor which closed its residential facility in 2022.

Netsmart announces acquisition of HealthPivots to support value-based care transition for healthcare providersPress release; by Natalie Caruso; 9/4/24Netsmart announced it has acquired HealthPivots, an Oregon-based market intelligence company for the post-acute care continuum. The combination of the Netsmart CareFabric® with the HealthPivots DataLab will lead to consolidated, robust data and advanced analytics, providing an industry-leading platform that will help enhance post-acute care providers transition to value-based care.

Ohio hospital closes amid financial challengesBecker's Hospital CFO Report; by Madeline Ashley; 9/4/24Hicksville, Ohio-based Community Memorial Hospital permanently closed its doors Aug. 31 after temporarily shutting down in May due to financial challenges, Bill Cherry, former CEO of Community Memorial Hospital, confirmed with Becker's. "The decision to close Community Memorial Hospital follows thorough efforts to find a viable path to continue operations," Mr. Cherry said in a Sept. 4 statement shared with Becker's. "Unfortunately, despite all our efforts made, CMH has not been able to identify a sustainable solution. We understand the profound impact this closure will have on the community and we extend our deepest gratitude to the residents of Northwest Ohio and Northeast Indiana for their unwavering support and trust over the years."

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.

ASCO palliative care expert panel provides recommendations to integrate health equity into guideline development OncLive, Cranbury, NJ; by Kyle Doherty; 9/4/24 The ASCO Palliative Care Expert Panel [American Society of Clinical Oncology], in collaboration with ASCO’s Health Equity and Outcomes Committee, has published recommendations for integrating health equity measures into future guideline updates. Recommendations advocated for partnerships with increased representation from historically marginalized groups and patient and community-based advocates; a reinforcement of implicit bias training for Expert Panel members as a component of guideline preparation; stratified recommendations and/or guidelines for additional groups; and the review and appraisal of future recommendations by the Expert Panel, patient as well as community advocates, and ASCO reviewers for the inclusion of proper health equity measures before publication.

Medicare Advantage vendors brace for supplemental benefits cutsModern Healthcare; by Lauren Berryman; 9/4/24Companies that have profited from the largesse of Medicare Advantage insurers seeking to lure customers with generous perks are looking ahead to a tough 2025. Humana and CVS Health subsidiary Aetna are among those signaling that curtailing supplemental benefits such as transportation, fitness memberships, in-home support services, and vision, dental and hearing coverage will be a key part of their strategies to restore margins in a business troubled by high costs and a more restrictive regulatory environment.

Urgency to adopt AI intensifies for health IT leaders Becker's Health IT; by Naomi Diaz; 9/4/24 A Sept. 4 survey from healthcare data platform Arcadia revealed that 96% of healthcare technology leaders view the effective use of AI as crucial for gaining a competitive edge. ... The findings show that while 33% of these decision-makers see AI as essential today, that number rises sharply to 73% who believe it will be indispensable within the next five years. Despite their confidence in AI adoption, 96% of health tech leaders report feeling an increasing urgency to act, driven by pressure from data and analytics teams (82%), IT and tech departments (78%) and executive leadership (73%). However, the survey also highlights a significant challenge: 40% of leaders cite a talent shortage as a major barrier to AI implementation. This has led CIOs to place greater emphasis on skills such as data-driven decision-making (71%), data analysis, machine learning and systems integration (66%), as well as the need for roles focused on training and support for healthcare staff (59%).

“What I wish I knew about hospice”: A Cleveland Clinic palliative care physician’s insights The Healthy; by Dr. Patricia Varacall, DO; 9/3/24 End-of-life care is deeply personal and incredibly complex. An expert MD shares essential insights on hospice: "At its core, is about human connection." … Laura Hoeksema, MD, MPH, FAAHPM, medical director of Cleveland Clinic Hospice and staff physician in the department of palliative and supportive care, explains the importance of hospice: “Death is a part of life just as much as birth is. When time becomes limited, patients need to be able to spend time in a way that’s meaningful to them.” ... Dr. Hoeksema emphasizes that choosing hospice care is exactly that—a choice. The team offers additional support, guiding patients and their families through the last months of life. ... “When a patient has a serious illness, it’s common for their illness to become the primary focus,” reflects Dr. Hoeksema. The constant anticipation of how the disease might progress can create overwhelming anxiety. With hospice, the illness recedes into the background, allowing the emphasis to be on caring for the person as a whole. ... “The most profound healing I’ve witnessed as a physician has been in patients receiving hospice care,” Dr. Hoeksema adds. She recalls seeing families reconcile after years of tension and others coming together after long periods of distance. The joy on a patient’s face when surrounded by loved ones, laughing and reminiscing, is what it’s all about. “Hospice care, at its core, is about human connection.”

Aroostook House of Comfort hosts Remembrance Way Memorial Garden & Pathway dedication The County, Presque Isel, ME; 9/2/24 On Saturday, August 24 the Aroostook Hospice Foundation hosted its annual Remembrance Way Memorial Garden &  Pathway Dedication Ceremony at the Aroostook House of Comfort Gazebo, a touching event that brought together families and friends to honor the memory of their loved ones. This year’s ceremony featured the dedication of 38 new stones, a bench, wind sculptures and one mini garden, each carefully personalized to celebrate the lives they represent. ... The Remembrance Way is more than just a garden — it’s a meaningful tribute and a vital part of the Aroostook House of Comfort’s mission.

Private equity ownership of US hospice centers boomed in recent years – studyThe Guardian; by Jessica Glenza; 9/3/24Investors spent about $1tn buying healthcare facilities over last decade, leading to reports of worsening patient care. Private equity investors are increasingly buying up hospice centers – healthcare facilities meant to focus on pain relief and emotional support for people near the end of their lives. The new study was published in the journal Health Affairs [Private equity acquisitions of hospices are increasing; Ownership remains opaque, by Melissa D. Aldridge, Lauren J. Hunt, Zelle Halloran, and Krista L. Harrison] and provides more evidence of how private equity have acquired firms using often sophisticated and opaque ownership structures. Although for-profit ownership is not new in US healthcare, the surge of private equity ownership is. Such investment groups have spent an estimated $1tn over the last decade, buying up hospitals and doctors’ offices.

Estela’s blog: A mother’s scent KTSM.com, El Paso, TX; by Esther Casas; 9/3/24 My mom passed away on September 28, 2002. This year will mark 22 years since we had our last conversations. I remember that day like it was yesterday. ... I remember her eyes, but I barely remember her voice. We had captured many memorable moments in pictures but never recorded her voice or asked her questions that would never be answered. If you have elderly parents, I suggest you have a real and frank conversation and record it. As I spent several hours doing some fall cleaning, I found myself immersed in memories. ... Each item I discarded felt like a small step towards closure. ... I found a zip-lock bag with the house dress my mom was wearing the morning she died. ... A hospice nurse had written her name: Esther Casas. I carefully opened the plastic and took a deep breath. Most of her scent is now gone. I quickly closed the bag to preserve what little scent is left and put it back in the drawer. ... I felt melancholy, but I used it as an opportunity to remember the three weeks she was in hospice care and the incredible team of family, friends, and hospice nurses who helped her transition home.Editor's note: Have you experienced the hospice care and death of a family member? Whom would you like to thank? Now is a great time. Let them know how that experience of good care plays into the daily care you provide now.

“Rehabbed to Death” in oncology: Where do we go from here?JCO Oncology Practice; by Daniel E. Lage, Craig D. Blinderman, Corita R. Grudzen; 9/3/24You can go to rehab to see if you get stronger for chemo. These are words that every clinician caring for hospitalized patients with cancer has heard or said countless times. And yet, especially when it comes to older adults with advanced solid tumors, less than a third of these patients will ever receive systemic therapy again. Furthermore, their symptom profile is more similar to those discharged to hospice than to those discharged home, and they face debilitating functional decline and early mortality—leading some to coin the term “rehabbed to death” to describe this phenomenon. We suggest a few keys area of focus: (1) reframing hospital discharge conversations, including incorporating practices of disclosing prognoses using validated tools or other algorithms; (2) empowering team-based care and inclusion of palliative care clinicians in the SNF setting; and (3) identifying patients failing to make functional progress early. [Also see accompanying article: Respect for the Patient-Oncologist Relationship May Limit Serious Illness Communication by Acute and Postacute Care Clinicians After Discharge to a Skilled Nursing Facility by Sarguni Singh, Ashley Dafoe, John Cagle, Elizabeth R. Kessler, Hillary D. Lum, Brooke Dorsey Holliman, Stacy Fischer.]