Literature Review

New ASCO Guidelines stress importance of early palliative care Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 8/26/24 The 2024 update to the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s (ASCO) clinical practice guidelines place renewed emphasis on palliative care. The guidelines are updated periodically by a multidisciplinary team, including a patient representative and experts in medical and radiation oncology, hematology and palliative care. For the 2024 revisions, this panel reviewed 52 randomized controlled trials that evaluated outcomes among cancer patients who received palliative care, ASCO reported. “This is a pivotal time,” the panel’s co-chair Betty Ferrell of City of Hope Cancer Care told the ASCO Post. “This guideline is a call to action for everyone to think about how they are integrating palliative care for all patients with cancer. There are great advances in cancer care, but none of these will be fully effective unless we fully integrate palliative care.”

Cancer treatment 101: A primer for non-oncologists Medscape; by George D. Lundberg, MD; 8/22/24 Each year in the United States, approximately 1.7 million Americans are diagnosed with a potentially lethal malignancy. Typical therapies of choice include surgery, radiation, and occasionally, toxic chemotherapy (chemo) — approaches that eliminate the cancer in about 1,000,000 of these cases. The remaining 700,000 or so often proceed to chemotherapy either immediately or upon cancer recurrence, spread, or newly recognized metastases. ... I'm speaking in generalities, understanding that each cancer and each patient is unique. [Dr. Lundberg summarizes in user-friendly language:]

3 keys to palliative care marketing Hospice News; by Jennifer Murtoff; 8/16/24 While palliative care is an important part of medical care for many patients and providers, marketing messaging for these services must be carefully crafted. ... Given the rampant misconceptions about palliative care, education is an essential component of a marketing strategy, including for patients and families, referral partners and payers. A key point is to distinguish palliative care from hospice, according to Tony Kudner, chief strategy officer for Transcend Strategy Group. ... [Marketers] need to educate patients, family members, and payers as to the specific suite of services their organizations offer and how they can benefit patients. 

CMS unveils services available to patients in the GUIDE Model, integrates palliative care principles Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 8/12/24 The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has outlined the range of services that will be available to patients aligned with the agency’s Guiding an Improved Dementia Experience (GUIDE) payment model. The payment model is designed to improve quality of life for dementia patients and their caregivers by addressing care coordination, behavioral health and functional needs. While the model does not use the term “palliative care,” it does incorporate principles and practices traditionally associated with those services, such as interdisciplinary care and caregiver support, among others. ... Nearly 400 health care organizations are developing Dementia Care Programs (DCPs) to potentially serve hundreds of thousands of Medicare beneficiaries nationwide, the CMS stated in a fact sheet. 

Standing out in the palliative care competitive landscapeHospice News; by Holly Vossel; 8/96/24Palliative care providers need to focus on their specific organization’s specific strengths in order to stand out from a broad range of competitors. Seriously ill patients often have multiple chronic conditions that require a flexible and individualized palliative care delivery approach, according to Rachel Dedes, senior director of palliative care at NorthStar Care Community. Marketing and outreach efforts need careful consideration when differentiating how a palliative care program can help address a wide range of patients’ physical, psychosocial, emotional, spiritual and practical needs, Dedes said during the Hospice News Sales & Marketing webinar series.

VNS Health develops AI methodology for palliative care patient assessmentsHospice News; by Jim Parker; 8/5/24Research by VNS Health has found that generative AI systems can help clinicians better assess and predict patients’ palliative care needs.

Palliative care benefit work group Office of the Insurance Commissioner - Washington State; 7/23/24 The Washington state Legislature has directed the Office of the Insurance Commissioner, in consultation with the Health Care Authority, to convene a work group to design the parameters of a palliative care benefit and payment model for fully insured health plans. The work group must submit a report to the Legislature detailing its work and any recommendations by November 1, 2025. The work group must consider the following elements of a palliative care benefit: 

End-of-life care is a profound and essential aspect of medical practice Market.US Media, New York; by Samruddhi Yardi; 7/19/24 According to End-of-Life Care Statistics, End-of-life care, also known as palliative care, refers to the comprehensive medical, emotional, and psychological support provided to individuals who are nearing the end of their lives, often due to terminal illnesses or conditions. [This article includes data on the following:]

Palliative provider Thyme Care secures $95M in funding round Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 7/17/24 The oncology-focused value-based enabler Thyme Care has completed a $95 million funding round that includes $55 million in equity funding. The company offers palliative care in addition to other services. In May, Thyme Care launched a new palliative care telehealth offering, branded as Enhanced Supportive Care. Thyme Care will use the new infusion of investment dollars to expand to new geographies, build new partnerships with oncologists, primary care practices and health plans, according to a press release.

In response to ‘Garnet lays off 26 people citing cost saving Warwick Advertiser, Letters to the Editor; by Ethel Hemsi; 7/15/24 For the past seven years I have been a volunteer with the Palliative Care team at Garnet Health Hospital. The whole team has been laid off to save costs. The article says it can be replaced by the hospitalist team of internal medicine providers. In my opinion this team can in no way be replaced by other doctors. Palliative care is a very complex and respectable practice in itself with specially trained doctors and nurses. It does much more than manage a patient’s pain. The palliative care providers are focused on helping patients and their families understand the patient’s condition and come together to make important decisions that patients with serious illnesses face. This includes weighing the pros and cons of various medical treatments as they pertain a patient’s quality of life. ... 

What is palliative care, and can you get it at home?

Duke University names five new Trustees [incluing Amy Abernethy]Press Release; 7/2/24Five new members joined the Duke University Board of Trustees on July 1, university officials announced Tuesday. The new trustees are Amy Abernethy, Melissa Bernstein, Michael Stone, Andrew Greene, and Rickard Stureborg... Abernethy M.D.’94, HS’94-’01 is co-founder of Highlander Health, an organization focused on advancing evidence generation for the new era of medical innovation. An internationally known oncologist, health data expert, and digital health leader, Abernethy is a champion for accelerating the pace at which safe and effective treatments reach patients. She is the former principal deputy commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, where she led initiatives in advancing clinical evidence generation and personalized health care and served as the agency's acting chief information officer. More recently, Abernethy served as chief medical officer and president of product development at Verily, Alphabet’s precision health business. Earlier she was Flatiron Health’s first chief medical officer and chief scientific officer. She was also previously professor of medicine at the Duke University School of Medicine and director of the Center for Learning Health Care in the Duke Clinical Research Institute and the Duke Cancer Care Research Program in the Duke Cancer Institute. A hematologist/oncologist, palliative medicine physician, and recipient of the 2021 Distinguished Alumna Award from Duke University School of Medicine, Abernethy has authored more than 500 publications.Publisher's Note: Congratulations Amy!

Anxiety and resilience in palliative medicine physicians BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care; by Cristhian Alexis Velásquez Marín, Carlos Javier Avendaño-Vásquez; 7/2/24, online ahead of printTo identify the relationship between the degree of anxiety and the capacity for resilience in palliative care physicians ..., [we] included 42 Colombian Palliative Care Physicians and administered a sociodemographic questionnaire, the Zung Anxiety Scale and the Resilience Scale. Results: 42 palliative care physicians with an average age of 41 participated in the study. Anxious symptoms were present in 100% of the physicians evaluated. Mild or moderate anxiety was identified in 93.7% of the population and 6.3% of people with severe anxiety symptoms. ... Our results reflect that the population of palliative care physicians has a higher risk and exposure to developing anxiety and its adverse outcomes. We found higher anxiety levels compared with other studies so this population requires greater vigilance and intervention in treating and preventing mental health difficulties.Editor's Note: Executive leaders for palliative care services, use this research to be aware of possible stress-related tolls on your palliative physicians and team members. Ask. Generate dialogue. Do not assume that this applies, but rather use it to tune into and improve the support your physicians need. While this research was in Columbia, it resonates a U.S.recurring trend of the unionization of physicians, often related to burnout and stress overload.