Literature Review

Survey: Nearly half of healthcare workers witness discrimination against patientsMcKnights Long-Term Care News, by Foster Stubbs; 2/20/24Healthcare workers (HCWs) are likely to witness discrimination in their workplaces, according to a new report from the Commonwealth Fund and the African American Research Collaborative. This can contribute to negative health outcomes for patients as well as emotional distress for both patients and healthcare workers.Editor's Note: What Policies and Procedures do you have in place for your hospice interdisciplinary teams,  volunteers, and non-clinical staff? What diversity education and competencies do you regularly require and update? 

Ascension posts $708M quarterly turnaroundBecker's Hospital CFO Report, by Alan Condon; 2/19/24Ascension reported a net income of $359.5 million in the fiscal second quarter ending Dec. 31, which is a $708 million improvement on the $238.1 million net loss it reported during the same quarter in 2022. "We remain focused on improving hospital operations, ensuring sustainability for the future and making purposeful decisions that improve the health of individuals and the communities we are privileged to serve,"CFO Liz Foshage said. "Our Q2 quarterly results are a demonstration of this commitment and a signal that we continue to move in the right direction."

Medicare home health patients more likely to eventually receive hospice care, study finds McKnights Home Care, by Adam Healy; 2/20/24Patients who use home health later in life tend to be more likely to enter hospice for end-of-life care — particularly those without dementia. This underscores the need for better home health staff training and enhanced care continuity for Medicare patients, according to a recent study. ... Those beneficiaries who received home healthcare were more likely to enter hospice during their last year of life compared to those who did not have any home health, the study published Feb. 15 in the Journal of Palliative Medicine found.

Hospice experts advocate for early admission to hospice The Herald-Mail, by Hospice of Washington County; 2/19/24“Former President Jimmy Carter’s months-long time in hospice has helped tens of millions of Americans realize that hospice isn’t a brink-of-death service, that it helps patients and families focus on quality of life and not just length of life,” observed Hospice of Washington County CEO Sara McKay. Editor's Note: How is your hospice organization responding to news about President Jimmy Carter's extended hospice care? This article provides a great example.

How palliative care could help break the SNF-to-hospital cycle Hospice News, by Molly Bookner; 2/20/24A dearth of coordination or integration between rehab teams and palliative care teams routinely forces some patients into a cycle between the hospital and the nursing home in their last year of life. ...  Nursing homes are incentivized to hospitalize residents eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid because those patients can later return to the nursing home with a higher-paying Medicare benefit before transitioning back to long-term care with lower Medicaid day rates.

Funerals becoming a thing of the past as end-of-life rituals change County Life, by Sharon Harrison; 2/16/24As times are changing, more and more people don’t want a traditional, religious funeral and instead are seeking alternatives to align with present day values. 

NorthStar Care Community partners with Centrica Care Navigators affiliate, creating one of the largest not-for-profit providers in the United StatesHospice of Michigan; retrieved 2/19/24Centrica’s community-leading presence in southwest Michigan will be a strong complement to the capabilities that Hospice of Michigan and Arbor Hospice bring to the state. By joining the NorthStar Care Community, they can ensure that a strong not-for-profit provider is an option in southwest Michigan for those needing serious illness care for years to come.

Most Pa. workers can’t take paid leave to care for sick loved ones. State law could change thatWESA Pittsburgh's NPR News Station, by Kristen Mosbrucker-Garza; 2/18/24About 66% of workers statewide don’t have paid family and medical leave benefits, according to a U.S. Census compensation survey from March 2022. And the brunt of that unpaid work often falls on any women in the household, said Meghan Pierce, CEO of the Executive Forum of Women in Philadelphia. ... The Executive Forum of Women, created in the late 1970s, is one organization in the coalition of nonprofits and businesses pushing to get paid family medical leave as a state law in Pennsylvania. 

9 health systems newly approved for 'hospital at home'Becker's Health IT, by Giles Bruce; 2/15/24As of February, CMS has authorized 312 hospitals in 37 states spanning 131 health systems for the programs, where patients with such conditions as heart failure and sepsis are treated at home via nurse visits and virtual physician appointments. The top health systems are caring for dozens of patients per day at home. [Click on the title's link above for] nine new health systems that have been OK'd for the CMS hospital-at-home waiver in the past six months (and their approval dates).

McKnight’s Women of Distinction Hall of Honor gains 24 in 2024McKnight's Senior Living, by Lois A. Bowers; 2/15/24Twenty-four women working in senior living, skilled nursing or home care are being announced today as 2024 inductees into the Hall of Honor in the annual McKnight’s Women of Distinction awards program, a joint effort of McKnight’s Senior Living and sister media brands McKnight’s Long-Term Care News and McKnight’s Home Care. ... The Hall of Honor category honors women who are at a level equivalent to vice president or higher and who have had a significant effect on their organization or industry.