Literature Review

Ransomware spikes after Change hack Becker's Health IT; by Naomi Diaz; 6/13/24 Following Change Healthcare's admission that it paid off hackers after its ransomware attack, there has been a spike in healthcare-related cyber incidents, Wired reported June 12. In April, cybersecurity firm Recorded Future identified 44 instances of cybercriminal groups targeting healthcare organizations with ransomware attacks. These attacks involved stealing data, encrypting systems and demanding ransom payments while holding networks hostage. This marks the highest number of healthcare ransomware victims recorded in a single month during Recorded Future's four years of data collection, Allan Liska, a threat intelligence analyst at the company told Wired. 

Daughter stole $25K using [dying] father's credit, debit cardsLatrobe Bulletin, Latrobe, PA; by Joseph Bell; 6/6/24 A Vandergrift woman is facing multiple felony charges after she racked up over $25,000 in credit and debit card debt using her father’s accounts. According to court records, 44-year-old Kimberly Sue Shaw of Hancock Avenue is accused of using three of her father’s credit and debit cards for unauthorized purchases, in addition to transferring a sum of money from one of his bank accounts to another while he was hospitalized and later under hospice care. The defendant’s father, Dennis Lee Barger of Washington Township, died May 2.Editor's Note: Often, we think of elder abuse as being physical harm. However, it includes much more, and your interdisciplinary team members must be trained to signs, assessments, interventions, and safety (for the patient and self). Definitions are available on the CDC's "About Abuse of Older Persons" webpage. These definitions include physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional or psychological abuse, neglect, and financial abuse.

Rural pharmacy owners say it's getting harder to stay open Times West Virginian; by Devi Shastri; 6/5/24 Rural pharmacies can be a touchstone for their communities. The staff knows everyone’s names and drugs, answers questions about residents’ mail-order prescriptions or can spot the signs of serious illness. But their business models face unrelenting pressures to the point that sometimes they have to close. An AP analysis of data from 49 states and the National Council for Prescription Drug Programs shows that several largely rural states have some of the lowest number of pharmacies per ZIP code. Editor's Note: This trend for closures in rural areas is rampant for hospitals, emergency departments, physicians, and more. Click here for a letter from NHPCO and numerous hospice providers to Congress, Jan. 5, 2024: Protect rural and frontier American's access to hospice and palliative care.

Empathetic AI: How Genai virtual agents will be leveraged Informa; by Josh Streets; 6/3/24 Imagine you're shopping online or in a store and have a question about a product. But you don’t want to find a store employee or call into their contact center to speak with a salesperson while you wait for answers. With a simple snapshot of a QR/UPC code on the product or a tap on your mobile device within an application, you're instantly connected to a virtual agent via video chat. This AI assistant not only understands your questions but can also pick up on your facial expressions and body language via your video discussion, to respond with empathy and some level of emotional intelligence. "I can see you're a bit frustrated," the virtual agent says with a warm, reassuring tone. "Let me walk you through the product details and address any concerns you might have."Editor's Note: This AI solution might be great for shopping, but is it ethical for hospice care, especially when the person calling might be elderly and assumes they are talking with a person? How would you feel, especially if you're calling when your loved is actively dying, or has just died moments before? 

St. Vincent Hospital nurses and the MNA file fifth in series of complaints with state and federal agencies about dangerous patient care conditions that continue to compromise the care and safety of patients admitted to the Worcester-based facility Massachusetts Nurses Association (MNA); 5/29/24 As patient care conditions continue to deteriorate at St. Vincent Hospital, the registered nurses and the Massachusetts Nurses Association (MNA) have filed yet another round of complaints to state and federal agencies seeking immediate intervention to protect patients and staff, a situation so dire the complaints include a direct appeal to the Department of Public Health to assign onsite inspectors on a daily basis to ensure hospital administration is providing the resources needed to ensure the safety of all concerned. In fact, the nurses report that DPH has recently been at the hospital investigating yet another serious patient safety incident. Editor's Note: As reported in numerous articles in our newsletter, patient safety and workplace violence/safety issues continue to be key causes for healthcare professional resignations, unionizations, and strikes (ie., nurses and/or physicians). It's time to review your organization's patient safety and workplace violence Policies and Procedures, staff and volunteer trainings, caregiver resources to ensure patient safety in the home, topics like "Abuse and Neglect," and your community's data on workplace safety concerns and community response resources.

Tech solutions for better patient care: How modern tools are transforming hospice management NerdBot; by Nerd Voices; 5/30/24 Hospice care, fundamentally centered on providing comfort and support to terminally ill patients, has traditionally been a deeply personal and human-centric field. However, as technology advances, it is clear that modern tools can significantly enhance the quality of care. Integrating technology into hospice revenue management allows caregivers to streamline operations, reduce errors, and focus more on delivering compassionate care.

Hospice CAHPS scores updated 5/22/24CMS CAHPS® website; multiple updates posted 5/22/24 CMS has posted numerous CAHPS® Hospice Survey updates. Click on the title's link to access the CMS site. Click on "Care Compare Reporting Updates" or the following 5/22/24 updates:

Experts urge Legislature to pass bill preventing for-profit and private equity hospice in New York Spectrum News 1; by Susan Arbetter; 5/21/24The FBI has issued public warnings about hospice fraud in four states — Texas, Arizona, Nevada and California. The bureau is alerting consumers to a wide-spread scam in which patients are enrolled in hospice without their knowledge by recruiters who “sell” hospice care to people who aren’t actually eligible. ...  One reason fraudsters have yet to gain a foothold in New York is that new hospices here go through a “Certificate of Need” process (CON) which reviews applications, provides for public comment and ensures that hospice operators don’t have a history of fraud or abuse. But according to Jeanne Chirico, president and CEO of the Hospice & Palliative Care Association of NYS (HPCANYS), and Kara Travis, president and CEO of Mountain Valley Hospice & Palliative Care, and a trustee of HPCANYS, there’s more that New York can do to protect consumers. They are urging lawmakers to pass a bill carried by state Sen. Liz Krueger and Assemblymember Amy Paulin that would prohibit the establishment of new for-profit hospices in the state (A6032 - Paulin / S6460 – Krueger).

Healthcare sees highest Chapter 11 bankruptcy filings in 15 years: reportMcKnights Senior Living; by Kathleen Steele Gaivin; 5/20/24Chapter 11 bankruptcies in healthcare, including senior living reached a multiyear high in the first quarter of 2024. That’s according to the newest Polsinelli-TrBK Distress Indices Report, published Wednesday. “We continue to see intense stress in senior living,” Jeremy R. Johnson, a bankruptcy and restructuring attorney at Polsinelli and co-author of the report, said in a press release issued in conjunction with the report. ... The Southeast continues to outpace the rest of the country as the busiest region for bankruptcy filings, according to the report. The Southeast region reported 33.4% of the filings in the first quarter, followed by Northeast and Delaware at 30.8% and 16.1%, respectively. Since the benchmark period of 2020, the Northeast has shown the biggest increase in filings.

When doctors withhold futile treatments, that isn’t ‘assisted dying’ The Guardian; by Dr. James Haslam; 5/15/24 [Commentary / Letter] I write in response to Dr Jagat Aulakh’s letter (A form of assisted dying already happens in hospitals, 8 May). It must be made clear that withholding or withdrawing futile treatments is not and never has been assisted dying. Stopping – or not starting – treatments that are not wanted, are not working or are not worthwhile is good medicine and the law of the land. Whereas “assisted dying” is the modern euphemism for physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia, both forms of medicalised killing [the author's choice of words]. ... Intentions are important. ...Editor's Note: This thoughtful response puts forth ethical support against Medical Aid in Dying (MAiD), also known as "physican assisted suicide." Likely, different opinions can be inflammatory among your hospice and palliative employees, board, community, and more personally among your family and friends. As hospice and palliative leaders, we must address this issue with respectful dialogue, critical thinking, case studies, personal beliefs and values, empathy, and humanity.

Making AI actionable in healthcare – a high-level guide Becker's Hospital Review; by Calum Yacoubian, MD, Director Healthcare AI Strategy, IQVIA; 5/14/24 Never has there been more interest and excitement around the potential of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in healthcare. The advent of Generative AI and LLMs, popularized by OpenAI with ChatGPT, has opened many people’s eyes to what might be possible. Yet, the translation of this promise to patient impact is only in its infancy, and while it is a path with huge potential, as healthcare professionals, we must tread carefully and responsibly. In this article, we discuss the importance of the ecosystem in which healthcare AI must exist, to be successful. That ecosystem is made up of people, process, and technology.

House Committee vote gives hope to extending telehealth, hospital at home waivers Health Leaders; by Eric Wicklund; 5/9/24 The House Ways and Means Committee has voted to advance the Preserving Telehealth, Hospital and Ambulance Access Act (HR 8261), which would, among other things,  continue pandemic-era Medicare waivers enacted by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) for telehealth access and coverage through 2026 and extend the CMS Acute Hospital Care at Home waiver for an additional five years, to the end of 2029.

Van Duyne, Blumenauer, 38 lawmakers push CMS on hospice integrityVanDuyne.house.gov; Press Release; 5/8/24Today, Congresswoman Beth Van Duyne (R-TX) and Congressman Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) led a bipartisan group of 38 lawmakers demanding answers from Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on the implementation of recent reforms aimed at combatting hospice fraud and abuse. “When electing to receive hospice care, individuals and their families must be confident the provider is committed to delivering individualized, compassionate care that optimizes quality of life; however, we continue to hear about instances of pervasive fraud and abuse,” the lawmakers wrote.  ... To better understand the steps CMS has taken to increase program integrity, the lawmakers continued the letter with detailed questions on the implementation of reforms. Read the full letter here.  ...“Thank you, Representatives Blumenauer and Van Duyne, for your leadership in holding CMS accountable and safeguarding hospice patients and families from fraudulent activities,” said Ben Marcantonio, Interim CEO of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization. “Preserving the integrity of the Medicare Hospice Benefit is paramount to ensure high-quality care for Americans with serious illness and end-of-life care needs.”