Literature Review

New hospice special focus programAmerican Health Association / National Center for Assisted Living; by Amy Miller; 10/22/23 ​​As required under the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021, CMS has established a hospice special focus program (SFP) in the Calendar Year (CY) 2024 Home Health Prospective Payment System (HH PPS) final rule (88 FR 77676). Through increased regulatory oversight and enforcement of the selected poor performing hospice programs, the SFP will address issues that could place hospice beneficiaries at risk of receiving poor quality of care. The hospice SFP is like the current Special Focus Facility (SFF) program in place for nursing homes. As many nursing homes refer residents to hospice programs and may receive questions from residents or their families, it will be important to keep informed if there are noted quality of care issues. 

Eight important financial questions to ask your aging parents LifeHacker; by Emily Long; 10/23/24Money conversations can be uncomfortable, but they are also essential. ... When you start asking financial questions of your parents, remember that you don't need specifics, such as dollar amounts or who is inheriting what. The purpose of these discussions is to ensure your parents' wishes are backed by a plan and to understand whether (and how) they want or need your support as they age. Their plan may also affect you directly if you have power of attorney, help with paying bills, or are expected to be a caregiver in the future.

What the best leadership teams do right Harvard Business Review; by Ron Carucci, Mindy Millward, and Eric Hansen; 10/22/24 Given the unique responsibilities of executive teams, it would seem obvious that they require a specialized set of skills and approaches to be effective. And yet few have cracked the code on building and sustaining such effectiveness. There are three critical, highly interdependent roles they must play to have lasting impact on the company’s performance, culture, and ability to adapt. Executive teams often perform one or two of these reasonably well but fall short in integrating all three. The good news is that, with persistent effort, executive teams willing to put in the work can learn to play all three of these roles — setting themselves apart from the many willing to settle for much less.

Everyday moments of grace: Hospice patient’s art brings joy PeaceHealth; 10/22/24 A hospice patient’s room becomes an art studio to create expressions of her life she loves to share with others. A stay at hospice did not stop Sherry McCalden from doing what she loves - creating art and sharing it with others. ... McCalden is a lifelong artist. Her love of painting started in high school. She's been creating works of art ever since. From landscapes to animals to flowers, she paints what inspires her and what she loves. Not much stops her from painting, including Parkinson's disease. For a few months, she was at the PeaceHealth Richard Nau Hospice House in Longview, Washington before her health stabilized and she was relocated to another facility. She transformed her room at Hospice House into an art studio filled with her paintings. A visit brought joy to both visitors and staff.

Meet the Maytown woman whose 'Apple Dumpling Gang' makes 700+ treats for people needing a pick-me-up LNP and Lancaster Online, Lancaster, PA; by Laura Knowles; 10/22/24 ... “One day my father-in-law — we called him Poppy — came home with six apples, and asked if I would make apple dumplings for him,” Goodhart said. “It was such a simple request.” Paul Goodhart loved his apple dumplings so much that it gave his daughter-in-law an idea. She began making apple dumplings for others who needed a sweet pick-me-up. That was 15 years ago. Since then, Goodhart has enlisted help from others, dubbing the group the Apple Dumpling Gang. Just last week, the group of nearly 40 women made 775 apple dumplings for seniors, hospice patients, retirement home residents, shut-ins, cancer patients and anyone who could use the heartfelt blessing of an apple dumpling handmade with love. 

Coastal Hospice receives check from golf tournament ABC WMDT-47, Ocean Pines, MD; by Sarah Ash; 10/21/24 The Michael J. Strawley Sr. Memorial Golf Tournament Committee presented a check for $15,000 to Coastal Hospice for the support of charitable care. Since 2017, the tournament has donated its proceeds to Coastal Hospice, sending over $78,000. 

Nonprofit repurposes wedding bouquets for seniors Spectrum News 1, Columbus, OH; by Taylor Bruck; 10/21/24 Todd Davis, a resident of Columbus, knows it’s the simple things in life that mean the most. That’s why every weekend, he and volunteers pick up leftover flowers from weddings and other events and repurpose them into beautiful bouquets. They then deliver them to senior citizens all over Columbus and people in hospice care. ... Every week, volunteers turn thousands of flowers into about 200 bouquets, equating to nearly 10,000 this year and endless smiles.

Research synthesis related to oncology family caregiver spirituality in palliative care Journal of Palliative Medicine; by Betty R. Ferrell, Tami Borneman, Marianna Koczywas, and Paul Galchutt;  10/21/24 online ahead of print Family caregivers are central to the delivery of serious illness care and also have needs related to their role and experience. One aspect of the family caregiver quality of life (QOL) that has received less attention is caregiver spirituality. The research objectives for this analysis were (1) Describe spirituality in oncology family caregivers. (2) Determine the impact of palliative care interventions on spirituality and related variables in oncology family caregivers. (3) Describe findings from the research literature related to spirituality in family caregivers. The authors include two nurse researchers (BF, TB) and a physician (MK) who conducted these studies and a board-certified chaplain (PG) who contributed his expertise in chaplaincy.  ... The authors' research synthesis and the literature support the importance of additional research and clinical focus in family caregiver spirituality in serious illness care. 

[In case you missed it] The HOPE Assessment Tool: What you need to know [free webinar by CHAP]Community Health Accreditation Partner (CHAP); 10/21/24 On October 16, 2024, we hosted a webinar on the upcoming implementation of the HOPE Assessment Tool, which will catalyze hospice care starting in 2025. The webinar provided valuable insights into the tool’s implementation, content highlights, and its anticipated impact on hospice program operations. During the session, participants asked numerous important questions, many of which we’ve compiled into this FAQ for further clarification. Access the recorded session and handouts if you missed it or would like to review the presentation.

Kaiser Permanente mental health workers go on strike in Southern California Fox 5 - KUSI, San Diego, CA; by Danielle Dawson; 10/21/24 Thousands of mental health workers at Kaiser Permanente locations across Southern California hit the picket lines on Monday for the first day of an open-ended strike, calling for measures to reduce employee turnover and better patient care. ... The unionized mental health professionals — encompassing therapists, psychologists, social workers and psychiatric nurses — have been demanding Kaiser address issues in their next contract that have contributed to “substandard” care in Southern California. ... Last year, California behavioral health regulators flagged several of these problems when it hit Kaiser with a $50 million fine — the largest-ever penalty issued by the department — for failing to provide timely care to its patients as part of a wider $200 million settlement agreement. “Our agency could lose its Medicare license because we have five days to see our patients and, because our unsustainable caseloads, patient care is being delayed,” Elizabeth Meza, a San Diego-area hospice worker, told KUSI Monday morning. “We are only able to provide the minimum amount of care that they need.”

Leveraging sales strategies in hospice payment cap management Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 10/22/24 Errors or other inconsistencies with the payment cap can have significant consequences for providers, and sales and marketing staff can help hospices achieve a healthy balance. The cap is designed to prevent overuse of hospice, put controls on Medicare spending and foster greater access to care among patients. For Fiscal Year 2024, the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services set the cap at $33,394. In 2025, this will rise to $34,465. If a hospice has a cap liability, they will have to repay that amount to Medicare. In some situations, a hospice might face additional monetary penalties, interest charges or referrals to the U.S. Treasury Department in severe cases.

Providence, Compassus form home care joint ventureModern Healthcare; by Diane Eastabrook; 10/22/24Home care provider Compassus will take over management of Providence’s home-based care services through a joint venture the two companies announced Tuesday. Under the arrangement, Brentwood, Texas-based Compassus would manage and jointly own Providence’s home health, hospice, community-based palliative care and private duty nursing services under the name Providence at Home with Compassus, the companies said in a news release. Neither company would disclose financial terms of the deal, which is subject to approval by state and federal regulators.Publisher's note: This joint venture is different from other recent Compassus joint ventures with Mercy Health, OhioHealth, and Bon Secours.

Aging Mastery: 10 weeks, 10 topics to empower seniors for healthy living New Hampshire Union Leaders; by Kathleen D. Bailey; 10/20/24 Jen Brechtel, director of Community Health for the Granite VNA, said one of the biggest issues in the agency’s “Aging Mastery” program” is sleep. “It’s the topic people come in most for,” she said. “We partner with a sleep center to help them out. Another big one? Community engagement.” The Granite VNA and Hospice is interested in all factors affecting their senior clients. With a menu of data-driven programs, the agency is reaching out to help seniors master aging. The “Aging Mastery” program is a project of the National Council on Aging, according to Brechtel. ... The 10-week class, ongoing now in Sanbornton, has sessions devoted to the concepts that please (or plague) elders: navigating longer lives, exercise, sleep, healthy eating/hydration, financial fitness, advance planning, healthy relationships, medication management, community engagement and falls. Experts from the community take turns teaching the topics, with a VNA staffer as moderator.