Literature Review

Poem: I knew you had been sick for quite a while. I had no idea you were walking your last mile.The Andalusia Star News, by Vickie C. Wacaster, "a patient and hospice advocate for Aveanna Hospice"; 3/14/24. This poem is at the end of an article, "COLUMN: Hospice helps make most of all moments."I knew you had been sick for quite a while. I had no idea you were walking your last mile. Had I known your time was so near, Despite my fear, I would have talked more, touched more, and loved more. I asked about your care, your prognosis, your life, Why couldn’t they tell me? I was your wife. Or was I in denial? Did someone try to tell me? Did I refuse to hear? Could I not see? Did I refuse to accept? Your diagnosis and prognosis, did I reject? Was it because of unbelief? That death snatched you as a thief.We could have made the most of the time you had left, If only we had not been afraid of what we felt.

Other Business Headlines of Interest, updated 3/14/24 per nasdaq.com

Responding to Soul Injury: Tools for hope and healing Journal of Hospice & Palliative Nursing; by Deborah Grassman, Abi Katz, Luann Conforti-Brown, Josephine F Wilson, Angie Snyder; 3/13/24Soul Injury is defined as a wound that separates a person from their real self, caused by unmourned loss and hurt, unforgiven guilt and shame, and fear of helplessness or loss of control. Tools and interventions have been developed to guide people impacted by Soul Injury. This study assessed the effectiveness of 12 tools and interventions, ... The Anchor Your Heart tool was the most frequently used tool and had the most enduring utilization across time and settings.Editor's Note: Click here for The Anchor Your Heart Tool identified in this article. Share this research and article with your clinical teams and bereavement counselors.

Google Cloud releases new clinical generative AI tools at HIMSS24MedCity News, by Katie Adams; 3/12/24 At HIMSS, Google Cloud announced new AI features designed to assist providers, payers and any other healthcare organizations seeking to make better use of their clinical data.

Doctor with terminal cancer shares the three things everyone should consider doing to prepare for deathYour Tango, by Alexandra Blogier; 3/12/24Kim is a resident doctor who was diagnosed with metastatic sarcoma when she was 28 years old. She invites people to see what her life is like, as both a medical resident and a cancer patient, focusing on the practice of gratitude and being present. ... Kim revealed the three most important things she’s done as a cancer patient to get the administrative side of her affairs in order, which she recommends everyone do, even if they're not sick.

In the resuscitation discussion, do words matter between doctors and patients? Rutgers, by Patti Zielinski; 3/12/24Rutgers Health researchers seek to reduce barriers to physicians having code status conversations with older adults. ... The study, published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, sought to determine the best language doctors could use when discussing a patient’s code status to reduce the barrier to having these conversations. It found that it takes less than five minutes on average for doctors to have discussions going over what CPR is, what a patient’s preference might be and making a decision that patients felt comfortable with regarding whether they want to be resuscitated, according to the study.Editor's Note: Click on the title above for the summary description; click here for the detailed research article, "Aligning patient values and code status: Choice of Diction's Effect (CODE) study.

Medicaid Fraud Control Units Fiscal Year 2023 Annual ReportU.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General; 3/14/2024Medicaid Fraud Control Units (MFCUs or Units) investigate and prosecute Medicaid provider fraud and patient abuse or neglect. [This 32 page, downloadable document includes:]

All-inclusive senior care center opens first Florida facility in Tampa Tampa Beacon, by Mike Camunas; 3/11/24 It’s a one-stop shop for senior medical services — and social activities. On March 4, InnovAge unveiled its new, state-of-the-art Senior Care Center in Tampa, marking the medical service provider’s first facility in Florida. The 33,500-square-foot facility in a renovated building provides doctor visits, dental care, social activities, and even transportation for seniors. The facility ... can serve up to 1,300 patients or participants through PACE, or Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly, a Medicare and Medicaid program that helps people meet their health care needs in the community instead of going to a nursing home or other care facility.

Film Festival and local organizations partner to present ‘Lily’ March 21 Sedona.Biz; 3/9/24Accord Hospice & Palliative Care is continuing their educational efforts by partnering with the Hospice Foundation of America (HFA) to marry theater and Advance Care Directive education through the AD Project – a series of 10-minute plays that feature different relationships and settings to illustrate the importance of putting your medical wishes in writing. ...Playwright Bryan Harnetiaux has worked with HFA for years developing a series of shows that depict real life scenarios involving all different family dynamics. The show “Lily” will present a divorced couple who are embarking on a very real dilemma – who to choose to be your voice when you can no longer speak for yourself.

What are important ethical implications of using Facial Recognition Technology in health care? AMA Journal of Ethics, by Nicole Martinez-Martin, JD, PhD; orig post 2/24, redistributed 3/13/24Applications of facial recognition technology (FRT) in health care settings have been developed to identify and monitor patients as well as to diagnose genetic, medical, and behavioral conditions. The use of FRT in health care suggests the importance of informed consent, data input and analysis quality, effective communication about incidental findings, and potential influence on patient-clinician relationships. Privacy and data protection are thought to present challenges for the use of FRT for health applications.

Change the way you look at things and the things you look at change.  ―  Wayne W. Dyer

Celebrating Hospice & Palliative Social Workers: March is Social Work Month!The National Association of Social Workers' 2024 theme for Social Work Month is Empowering Social Workers! Click here for information and ideas.

Colorado Senate votes to shorten ‘Medical-Aid-in-Dying’ waiting period Colorado Newsline, by Sara Wilson; 3/8/24 The Colorado Senate approved a bill Friday that would alter the state’s medical aid-in-dying law by shortening the required waiting period and allowing more medical professionals to prescribe the medication. ... Senate Bill 24-68 would tweak the law by shortening the waiting period between a patient’s first and second request for the medication from 15 to seven days. ... Statistics from Denver Health’s medical aid-in-dying program show that about 1 in 4 patients died from their illness during the current 15-day waiting period.