Literature Review

Engaging community health workers in Advance Care Planning  Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 10/24/25 Three organizations have developed an advance care planning training program in Illinois for community health workers that could potentially be adapted for other states. The seeds for the project were planted when the Illinois Public Health Association (IPHA) was awarded a grant by the Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA). IPHA proceeded to engage the Illinois Hospice & Palliative Care Organization (IL-HPCO) and the HAP Foundation as subject matter experts to help develop the curriculum, as well as the education company Hospice Media, which filmed and designed the modules and workbooks.

55% of healthcare executives plan to change roles within 3 years: SurveyBecker's Hospital Review; by Kristin Kuchno; 10/17/25More than half of healthcare executives plan to leave their roles within the next three years, according to a report from LHH, an executive search firm. Here are six more things to know from two 2025 surveys...

10 health systems most cited by AIBecker's Health IT; by Giles Bruce; 10/9/25 AI chatbots are increasingly citing health system websites in their answers to healthcare-related questions. But which organizations show up the most in these AI-generated responses? Marketing agency Outcomes Rocket analyzed 5,472 unique citations in August generated by ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Claude and Perplexity. Here is where U.S. health systems ranked among the most popular sources, according to the September report and data shared with Becker’s:

Perinatal bereavement rooms: A narrative review of physical space in perinatal griefArchives of Gynecology and Obstetrics; by Ruby Castilla-Puentes, Azul F. Isidoro, Alfonsina Orosito, Samantha Eaton, Manuela Goyeneche, Liliana González Cabrales, Gabriela Santaella; 9/25 Perinatal loss is a profoundly complex form of grief, often linked to heightened risk of prolonged bereavement and adverse mental health outcomes. Perinatal grief rooms—private, supportive spaces within healthcare settings—aim to help families process their loss, spend time with their baby, and create meaningful memories in a respectful environment. Despite increasing recognition of the importance of bereavement care, dedicated grief rooms remain under-researched and inconsistently implemented. Advancing this field will require rigorously designed studies, development of design standards, and collaborative partnerships among healthcare providers, researchers, policymakers, and design experts to ensure equitable access to therapeutic spaces for grieving families.Assistant Editor's note: It strikes me that those experiencing grief of any kind, not just perinatal grief, could benefit from a grief room--a private, comfortable, inviting space--where loved ones can be together and grieve. Many hospice in-patient facilities have such a room. Wouldn't it be wonderful if every hospital, nursing home, assisted living facility, etc., had a grief room?! Perhaps hospice organizations could explore a multi-facility collaboration to make that happen. 

The pitfalls that derail home health providers’ new palliative care efforts Home Health Care News; by Joyce Famakinwa; 10/14/25 ... Though home health-operated palliative care is a rarity, companies like Visiting Nurse Health System, Contessa Health and Compassus have managed to successfully incorporate these services into their broader care delivery model. When structuring an effective palliative care services program, there are some common pitfalls home health providers should avoid. “One of the biggest ones is positioning palliative care as early hospice,” Nikki Davis, senior vice president of palliative care programs at Contessa, said at Home Health Care News’ FUTURE conference. “And just make sure that there’s also clear eligibility and referral pathways, so that when you’re partnering with your home health and hospice teams, you have those processes in place, so that it’s very clear who’s eligible for palliative care.”

North Carolina hospitals wipe out $6.5B in medical debt Becker's Hospital Review; by Andrew Cass; 10/13/25 North Carolina’s medical debt relief program has surpassed its initial financial projections, relieving more than $6.5 billion in medical debt from 2.5 million residents over the past year. ... The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services partnered with Undue Medical Debt — formerly RIP Medical Debt — to support participating hospitals and help them identify medical debt that is eligible for relief. Hospitals are continuing to work with Undue Medical Debt to facilitate full implementation of relief over the next year. 

CFO tenures at the 10 largest health systems Becker's Hospital Review; by Andrew Cass; 10/9/25 Healthcare CFOs’ tenures last an average of 4.7 years, according to a September report from Crist Kolder Associates. Here are the tenures of the CFOs at the 10 largest health systems in the U.S. (Health system size is determined by the number of hospitals, based on organizational data as of December.)

Evaluation of a flexible artist-facilitated storytelling intervention on a palliative care unitJournal of Pain and Symptom Management; by Kyle J. Drouillard, Regine Krechowicz, Kim Kilpatrick, Shirley H. Bush, Cory J. Ingram, Kaitlyn Boese, Jaya Rastogi, Jessica Roy, Carol Wiebe, Jenny McMaster, Claudia Hampel, Sarina Isenberg; 9/25A professional storyteller facilitated sessions with patients, caregivers, and healthcare professionals on a palliative care unit, starting with an open-ended question (e.g., “What story do you want to tell?”). From 18 sessions, patients (n=6), caregivers (n=8), and healthcare professionals (n=6), found the storytelling session acceptable, appropriate, feasible, meaningful and worthwhile. The storyteller perceived participants as enthusiastic and appreciative. Patient and caregiver stories described the palliative care unit as a calm site of reflection, and framed illness as a journey. Healthcare professionals’ stories reflected pride in and gratitude for their work.

Critical care physicians’ perspectives on nudging in communicationJAMA Network Open; by Derek R. Soled, Christy L. Cummings, Laura M. Berbert, David N. Williams, William B. Feldman, Robert D. Truog, Emily B. Rubin; 9/25Our qualitative study on the experiences and perspectives of nudges by critical care physicians identified multiple themes relating to the appropriate use and ethics of nudging patients in clinical decision-making. In the decision-making context, a nudge is defined as “any aspect of the choice architecture [the intentional arrangement and presentation of options to subtly guide people towards certain choices] that alters people’s behavior in a predictable way without forbidding any options or significantly changing their economic incentives.” While nudges preserve a person’s choice set without restricting options, they make it more likely that a person will choose some particular option by triggering decision-making heuristics and biases. Many physicians described nudging as an inevitable and natural part of communication—but one that must be used thoughtfully for it to be ethically justifiable. Assistant Editor's note: As a clinician, I can see where nudging may be appropriate at certain times, and when the clinician knows the values, concerns and goals of the patient/family. However, often the critical care clinician does not have that intimate knowledge of their preferences. In these situations, a better choice than nudging might be to request a palliative care consult, so that goal concordant decision making can be explored. 

Milton Village Open House builds community to support caregivers of individuals with Alzheimer's, dementia, or other cognitive conditions GreatNews.Life; by Lauren Grasham; 10/6/25 To help healthcare providers better understand the numerous resources available, Milton Village hosted an open house on Tuesday, September 30. Milton Village is a collaborative effort between Milton Adult Day Services (a program of the Center for Hospice Care) and Alzheimer’s & Dementia Services of Northern Indiana (a REAL Services program) to provide comprehensive care and support to individuals living with Alzheimer’s or other cognitive conditions and their caregivers. “Inviting healthcare providers to see our facility and learn more about our programs is a great way to help them understand our unique model,” said Sarah Youngs, director of Milton Adult Day Services. “As providers tour the facility and hear how our guests engage in the programming, it’s so satisfying to see them recognize what this can mean for their patients and the patients’ caregivers.”

Not everything is delirium at the end of life: A case reportAnnals of Palliative Medicine; by Daniel Gilbey, Eduardo Bruera, Patricia S Bramati; 9/25In this report, we highlight the challenges faced by clinical teams diagnosing and managing delirium, in particular when a language barrier is present. Case description: A patient in his late sixties with low English proficiency with a metastatic neuroendocrine tumor was transferred to a palliative care unit on non-invasive bilevel ventilation. He appeared to become delirious and agitated, trying to remove the face mask, wriggling in bed, and tapping the bedrails. Haloperidol and lorazepam were required when non pharmacological interventions failed to calm him down. The following morning, the patient was able to explain that the positive-pressure facemask was suffocating him and that he could not breathe. So, he was transitioned to high-flow oxygen via nasal cannula, and within a few hours, his respiratory distress significantly improved, and he regained his previous self.

Emergency physicians and hospice & palliative medicine: A growing trend in fellowship trainingJournal of Pain and Symptom Management; by Alexander Zirulnik, Caroline Meehan, Daniel Markwalter, Jennifer Gabbard, Alyssa Tilly, Paul Zimmerman, Jensy Stafford, Justin Brooten; 9/25Emergency Medicine (EM) has played a foundational role in Hospice and Palliative Medicine (HPM) since the subspecialty's formal recognition. EM is one of the fastest-growing sources of applicants to HPM fellowships, reflecting rising recognition of palliative care's value in acute care. This trend has important implications for workforce planning, specialty integration, and the future of dual-trained EM-HPM clinicians.

Nevada hospital wins half-billion fraud verdict against Universal Health Services Reno Gazette Journal; by Jason Hidalgo; 9/29/25, updated 9/30/25 Saint Mary’s Health Network earned a big win in court after a jury awarded it half a billion dollars in its case against Universal Health Services. A jury in Washoe County awarded the Prime Healthcare affiliate $510 million after it found Universal Health Services liable for fraud against Saint Mary’s during the COVID-19 pandemic. The verdict included punitive damages. "This verdict affirms that the weaponization of corporate power, betrayal of physician trust, theft of proprietary information, and reckless endangerment of patients will not be tolerated,” said Saint Mary’s Health Network CEO Derrick Glum in a statement. “The verdict restores justice and allows our hospital’s mission to serve our community with compassion and dignity to endure.”