Literature Review

How personalized medicine empowers patients and cuts healthcare costs Becker's Hospital Review; by Mary Sirois; 10/1/25 ... How do we unlock a new era of healthcare excellence? The answer lies in a fundamental shift: personalized care delivered within a truly patient-centered framework that improves satisfaction for patients and clinicians while enabling better clinical, operational, and financial outcomes across the healthcare ecosystem. ... Imagine a healthcare system where:

Hospice of Santa Barbara’s No One Dies Alone Program ensures that those who are alone and actively dying, have someone at their bedside Santa Barbara Independent, Santa Barbara, CA; by Hospice of Santa Barbara; 9/29/25Hospice of Santa Barbara’s (HSB) No One Dies Alone (NODA) program has partnered with local senior living facilities in Santa Barbara for over a decade, providing compassionate volunteer support to seniors in their final 24 to 72 hours when family or friends are unavailable. Currently, NODA has 21 trained volunteers serving in the program. Before becoming a NODA volunteer, applicants must graduate from a six-week patient care training and serve as a patient care volunteer for a minimum of 9 months before attending a NODA specific training. Most NODA volunteers have been with the program for years and feel a strong commitment to the work they do.

Danbury hospice gets $2 million to expand care for children with life-limiting illnesses Shelton Herald, Bridgeport, CT; by Cris Villalonga-Vivoni; 9/30/25 A Danbury-based nonprofit hospice center is receiving $2 million in state funding to expand its pediatric care services and help more families access specialized end-of-life care. Founded in 1983, Regional Hospice and Home Care of Western Connecticut is the only nonprofit hospice in the state providing hospice care to children under 21 with life-threatening conditions. However, its capacity remains limited amid rising demand. In 2020, there were an estimated 7,800 children in Connecticut with complex medical conditions that limit their life expectancy and could benefit from palliative and hospice care, according to the National Survey of Children’s Health.

Melinda Mullet: Hospice helps us die well. But barriers and misconceptions prevent access to services. The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, WA; by Melinda Mullet; 9/28/25 Hospice helps us die well. But barriers and misconceptions prevent access to services. ... To read an in-depth analysis of the barriers to hospice and the steps needed to ensure a robust end-of-life care in the future, my full report, “The Hope of Hospice: Reimaging End-of-Life Care in an Aging America,” is available at cpjustice.org/flipbook/2025-hatfield-prize-reports.

Best use of emerging tech in health systems from 50 leaders Becker's Hospital Review; by Scott King; 9/25/25 Emerging technologies have greatly improved efficiency at most health systems. Over 50 healthcare leaders spoke with Becker’s about their best uses of tech in the past year. ... As part of an ongoing series, Becker’s is connecting with healthcare leaders who will speak at the event to get their perspectives on key issues in the industry. ... Question: What’s your system’s best use of tech in the past year, and why?

Avow recognizes World Hospice and Palliative Care Day Priority Marketing; Press Release; 9/25/25 Avow joins organizations around the globe in observing World Hospice and Palliative Care Day on Saturday, Oct. 11, a day dedicated to raising awareness of the critical role hospice and palliative care play in supporting patients and families facing serious illness. Editor's Note: For information to honor hits at your organization, visit our 7/15/25 post, World Hospice & Palliative Care Day 2025 - Achieving the Promise: Universal access to palliative care 

Hospice home for veterans named after philanthropist in Nevada Audacy.com - Connecting Vets; by Julia DeDoux; 9/22/25 A Reno, Nevada-based nonprofit dedicated to ensuring veterans have access to the medical care they need has named its newly opened hospice home in honor of a philanthropist whose gifts have been critical to its efforts. Veterans Guest House said the facility, which opened in June, will be known as the Cynthia Lake House. Lake has been instrumental in expanding access to both medical and end-of-life care for veterans across northern Nevada. In 2022, she founded Veterans Guest House’s Patient Advocacy Program, which connects veterans with transportation, post-operative care, and personal support. The impact of the program inspired Lake to scale the vision to 24/7 personalized care, making the hospice house possible.

Morphine shortage impacts Massachusetts patients, hospice care and pharmacies GBH; by Marilyn Schairer; 9/16/25 Pharmacists and hospice care providers in Massachusetts say the industry is experiencing a shortage of morphine, a powerful prescription opioid painkiller. And while the causes of the shortage are unknown, it’s already affecting people who use the drug to treat severe pain, including cancer patients and people in hospice care. “There is a shortage,” said Dina Breger, pharmacy manager at Greater Boston Long Term Care Pharmacy in Walpole. She said it’s been at least a few weeks since the pharmacy was able to get morphine to patients that need it. Guest Editor's Note, by Drew Mihalyo, PharmD: Massachusetts’ morphine shortage highlights a worsening national crisis. These shortages stem from multiple factors—from DEA production quotas (with 2026 levels expected next week) to fragile supply chains and thin profit margins that discourage manufacturing. Without strong pre-arranged access systems, even hospice and cancer patients can be left without essential pain relief. Healthcare is not just about treatment—it’s about preserving dignity for those who need us most. Fixing this requires systemic change: national reserves, better incentives to sustain production, and stronger oversight—transparency in manufacturing, smarter quota setting, and rapid-response mechanisms to ensure patients are never left without care at the end of life.

Transforming healthcare: A conversation with Rita E. Numerof Teleios Collaborative Network (TCN); pod/videocast by Chris Comeaux with Rita E. Numerof; 9/17/25 Are we headed for a healthcare train wreck?  The warning signs are flashing: skyrocketing premiums, looming Medicaid cuts, significant reductions in home health funding, and major insurers experiencing substantial stock losses.  These aren't isolated issues but symptoms of fundamental structural flaws in our healthcare system. Rita E. Numerof, co-founder and president of Numerof & Associates, returns to TCNtalks with a powerful analysis of the healthcare industry's trajectory and a bold vision for transformative change.  As an "equal opportunity critic" with over 30 years of experience spanning the entire healthcare ecosystem, Numerof offers a uniquely comprehensive perspective on why our current system is failing and what must change. 

How Tampa Bay is rethinking healthcare for long-term growth Capital Analytics Associates (CAA); by Andrea Teran; 9/16/25 Tampa Bay continues to attract tens of thousands of new residents each year, while Florida’s senior population is on pace to double by 2050. In response, healthcare leaders across the region are being pushed to rethink how care is delivered, expanded, and made more equitable. ... [A session titled] "Future-Proofing Health: What Tampa Bay’s Rise as a Global Healthcare Hub Means for Communities" ... brought together executives from Tampa General Hospital, Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital, Empath Health, and Gulfside Healthcare Services. Over the course of the discussion, panelists explored five central themes: collaboration, access, innovation, workforce development, and the region’s evolving healthcare identity.

Hosparus Health breaks ground on region’s first standalone hospice care center Hosparus Health; Press Release; 9/16/25 Hosparus Health proudly announces the groundbreaking of its new Hospice Care Center, the region’s first and only standalone inpatient hospice facility, following the successful achievement of its $9.2 million fundraising goal by raising nearly $9.6 million to launch construction. The Hospice Care Center is a critical expansion of compassionate end-of-life care for families across the region. Designed to serve patients with complex needs in a peaceful, homelike setting, the nearly 30,000-square-foot facility will offer 21 private patient suites, family gathering spaces, a chapel, and serene gardens for quiet reflection. “When families can no longer care for a loved one at home, this facility will offer a supportive space that blends expert care with dignity and comfort,” said David W. Cook, President and CEO of Hosparus Health. 

New Salem-based hospice opens with focus on nursing staff wellness Salem Reporter, Salem, OR; by Hailey Cook; 9/11/25 After 12 years working as a hospice nurse, Christie Rivelli reached her breaking point. The pressure had built since the pandemic, when her workload went from 15 patients at a time to 28. ... By opening a new, locally-owned hospice company, they’re bucking a trend. ... Solterra currently has a staff of 19, with a range of one to three decades of experience in hospice care. As a nurse herself, Rivelli said she’s prioritized her staff’s workload and benefits. Everyone starts by getting training about post-traumatic stress disorder, and she said new hires have had trouble adjusting to a slower pace of work. ... Rivelli said. “Downtime in your workday should be built in … but boy, that’s not how it’s been in hospice.” She said some companies will assign 40 patients to one nurse, which forces the nurses to do pop-in check-ups rather than getting to know their patients. It can also mean the patient will see a rotation of unfamiliar faces rather than one nurse.

Perspectives of hospice medical directors on challenges and solutions for improving care for persons living with dementias (PLWD) and their caregiversAmerican Journal of Hospice and Palliative Care; by Taeyoung Park, Abhay Tiwari, Elizabeth Luth, Yongkang Zhang, Simone Prather, Micah Toliver, Giancarlo Chuquitarco, Veerawat Phongtankuel; 8/25A larger proportion of PLWD [persons living with dementia] outlive the 6-month hospice eligibility requirement compared to other terminally ill patients, which leads to high rates of hospice live discharge. Hospice medical directors (HMDs) are physicians with unique insights into both the clinical aspects of care and the administrative and regulatory guidelines of hospice care delivery. To address these challenges, HMDs suggested (1) establishing a dementia-specific hospice program, (2) extending hospice benefit availability for PLWD, and (3) creating a step-down service for families experiencing live discharge from hospice. HMD participants suggested providing additional supports and/or reforming the current Medicare hospice benefits to better address end-of-life care for PLWD, who may require prolonged and intensive end-of-life support.