Literature Review

‘We did it!’: West Penn nurses celebrate their new contract Pittsburgh Union Press, Pittsburgh, PA; by Steve Mellon; 9/12/24 Before Joanne Germanos had a chance to approach a podium to make her announcement, someone in the crowd called out, “We did it!” ... What Germanos and her fellow union nurses at West Penn did was win a new contract that raises pay and addresses staffing and burnout issues that the nurses say have been pushing experienced nurses out of the profession. Ninety percent of the hospital’s union nurses voted to approve the contract Wednesday. Under the three-year deal, pay for nurses will rise an average of 24%, with some seeing increases as high as 35%. By contract’s end, all nurses will make at least $40 an hour; nurses with 20 years of experience will make at least $50 an hour. ... Pay, however, isn’t the only issue. At rallies, union nurses have called on hospital administrators to address staffing and scheduling problems that can affect patient care and cause nurse burnout. They took those concerns to the bargaining table and, on Thursday, said they were thrilled with the outcome.

Two decades after 9/11, Tarrant County interfaith group brings women together Fort Worth Report, Fort Worth, TX; by Marissa Greene; 9/10/24 Janice Harris Lord remembers Sept. 11, 2001, crystal clear. ... In late 2001, it struck Harris Lord that there was something she could do: pull women of different faiths together. By January 2002, Harris Lord formed Daughters of Abraham, a discussion group made up of local Muslim, Jewish and Christian women. The group serves as a venue for women to learn about and build friendships with women of different religions. In its 22-year history, the group has grown from 18 women to various regional groups in Fort Worth, Arlington, northeast Tarrant County and Dallas. ... In the group’s two-decade history, the most poignant thing Harris Lord learned was the tradition that Jewish and Muslim families undergo when preparing a deceased loved one for burial. Muslim and Jewish families participate in a tradition called ghusl in Arabic or tahara in Hebrew, which involves washing and purifying a body before burial. It is considered one of the greatest good deeds someone can do for another in the faiths. When Harris Lord’s husband tragically died ..., she knew she wanted to honor him in that way. “(The hospice nurse) gave me some soap and water, and we shaved him, and I washed his hair and got it combed right, like he wanted it,” Harris Lord said. “It was beautiful. I think it helped me more with my grieving than anything, because I knew I had done the very last thing I could do for him.” 

On a culture of physician leadership development Forbes; by Leon E. Moores, MD, DSc, FACS; 9/9/24 ... How do we create a culture of continuing physician leadership development? Over a decade ago, I was tasked with answering this very question. As a senior army surgeon, I approached the two-star general in the Army Medical Corps. I asked if I could put together a comprehensive program for physician leadership development for the 4200+ doctors in the US Army. ... We concluded that four distinct LOEs (lines of effort) needed development and implementation to create a culture of physician leadership. These LOEs, it turns out, are just as applicable in civilian healthcare as they were in the armed forces.

Hospice patient’s final life wish comes true at Colts game WISHTV.com-8, Indianapolis, IN; by Kyla Russell; 9/8/24 Indianapolis hospice patient Calvin Simmons is terminally ill and had one final life wish: to attend a Colts game. “It was one of those things that you say, ‘I gotta do this, I gotta do this,’” Simmons said Saturday morning. “My dad used to tell a story about me being about three years old, running back and forth in the house wearing a Colts helmet.” The Marine veteran lives at the Abbie Hunt Bryce Home on the northeast side of the city. The home is run by nonprofit Morning Light, Inc. and offers end of life care for free to those in need. The lifelong Colts fan started his day out in his decked out Colts hospice room. Soon enough, his dream came true when he traveled to Lucas Oil Stadium to see the Colts face the Texans for their season opener. 

At 106, Suffolk woman ‘could just bounce like a ball’ WAVY, Norfolk, VA; by Keagan Hughes; 9/5/24 Dorothy Southall has it all, and she’s another year older and another year wiser as on Thursday, she turned 106 years young. Dorothy, or Dottie as her family calls her, was born in 1918 and is enjoying another year around the sun. “I could just bounce like a ball, you know? Bounce up and down with the way I feel,” Southall said. “In other words, I’m happy.” Blessed and grateful. That’s how Dottie feels marking her 106th birthday. ...  Dottie lived on her own until she was 103. Now, she is in a residential care home in Norfolk with hospice support, and she says it feels like home. Her caretakers from Sentara Population Health say she is talkative and a joy to be around.

Netsmart announces acquisition of HealthPivots to support value-based care transition for healthcare providersPress release; by Natalie Caruso; 9/4/24Netsmart announced it has acquired HealthPivots, an Oregon-based market intelligence company for the post-acute care continuum. The combination of the Netsmart CareFabric® with the HealthPivots DataLab will lead to consolidated, robust data and advanced analytics, providing an industry-leading platform that will help enhance post-acute care providers transition to value-based care.

A wave of change is coming for healthcare benefits — are hospitals ready? Becker's Hospital CFO Report; by Jakob Emerson; 9/3/24Surveys of employers are making one thing clear: Healthcare costs are rising faster than they did before the pandemic, and those costs are being driven by inflation, the increasing use of weight loss medications, and higher overall medical expenses.  ... As financial pressures mount, many employers are exploring or expanding alternative payment and coverage models, a trend that could significantly alter hospital's revenue streams. ...  The average cost of employer-sponsored coverage is expected to jump 9% from 2024 to 2025, according to estimates from Aon published in August. Healthcare costs per employee are projected to surpass $16,000 per employee in 2025, driven by rising employment levels, inflation and rising pharmaceutical costs. In 2024, employers budgeted an average of $14,823 per employee for healthcare costs. These costs have risen by more than 20% over the past five years and by 43% over the past decade.

How to get people to do what you want and still like you in 3 steps, from a leadership expert CNBS - Make It - Leadership; by Tom Huddleston, Jr.; 9/2/24 One of the biggest challenges for any leader is figuring out how to hold people accountable for their mistakes without creating bad blood. In those situations, playing the blame game is always a losing strategy, according to leadership expert and bestselling author Michael Timms. The secret to calling out poor performance while maintaining a positive relationship with employees is to own up to your own mistakes first so you can inspire others to do the same, Timms said in a TED Talk in January. It’s a strategy called “modeling accountability.” Timms ... noted that he and other leaders often fall into the same trap: “blaming other people for a problem without considering my part in it.” ″[This is] something I teach management teams: You can’t inspire accountability in others until you model it yourself,” he said. 

A tale of two leaders: What leadership has taught meBaker Women Newsletter; 8/24Showcasing how leaders come in various shapes and sizes is the common thread throughout this issue. We interviewed two Baker Donelson women leaders – Martha Boyd, chair of the Firm's Labor & Employment Group, and Jennifer Dunlap, vice-chair for the Firm's Labor & Employment Group – to see how they approach leadership, empower others, and what they have learned about themselves within their leadership roles.

I discovered my calling in a cemetery. We talk about death but aren't preparedNewsweek; by Allyse Worland; 8/29/24My journey as a funeral director started early. My Catholic grade school shared a street with a cemetery in my small rural Indiana hometown. At recess, I'd often see funeral processions drive by, only at the time I thought it was a parade. It wasn't until my teachers explained it to me that I realized it was, in fact, a funeral procession. At that moment I knew I wanted to lead that parade... Death and grief are no different. A recent first-of-its-kind survey from the National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) sought to uncover generational differences relating to end-of-life matters, especially as Gen Z comes of age and enters early adulthood. The survey found that while cremation is still a top preference for Baby Boomers, Gen X, and Millennials, Gen Z stands alone with traditional burial as their top preference, bucking decades of preferences trending toward cremation... As a millennial who is fifteen years into my career as a funeral director, I am inspired by this next generation, not only by their willingness to approach death differently, but also as they redefine work and success. I think both these generational characteristics make many Gen Zs ideal candidates for a job path they may have never even considered: funeral director.

The DEI Dilemma: Separate teams or embedded methods? Clinical Leader; by Denise N. Bronner, PhD; 8/28/24 In recent years, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) has become a focal point in many industries, with the pharma sector being no exception. As political forces shift the societal climate to be increasingly DEI-averse, pharma sponsors face critical decisions regarding the implementation of DEI initiatives: Should DEI efforts be managed by a separate, dedicated DEI team or woven into the fabric of existing processes and departments? To answer that question, we must examine the advantages and drawbacks of both strategies, focusing on key factors like resource allocation, implementation efficiency, cultural integration, and the long-term impact on trial inclusivity. ... Integrating DEI into all aspects of a business is a complex task that requires careful planning and coordination. Without a clear strategy, efforts can become fragmented and ineffective.Editor's Note: While this DEI discussion is written to the pharma industry, its DEI structures, strategies and outcomes apply to hospice and palliative care services. 

Healthcare leaders navigate pushback to health equity programsModern Healthcare; by Mari Devereaux; 8/27/24Brewing opposition to health systems' programs on equitable care for patients of color could make health systems need to justify or reframe their efforts. A nonprofit conservative law firm earlier this month filed a federal civil rights complaint with the Health and Human Services Department against Cleveland Clinic, alleging its minority stroke program and minority men’s center discriminate against other patients. The center and program offer treatments, prevention services and specialist referrals tailored to meet the needs of Black and Latino patients... [Alternatively...] “There's a war on DEI and health equity right now, because people don't really understand what's happening in these programs,” said Dr. Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association. Health equity programs aren’t giving more care to one patient versus another based on race or ethnicity, Benjamin said. Instead, they are identifying high-risk patients with a likelihood for poor outcomes, who are often people of color, and putting together resources to help those individuals get the same care as others, he said.

What is C-level (C-suite)? TechTarget - CIO; by Rahul Awati and Mary K. Pratt; 8/27/24... In recent years, positions like chief diversity officer (CDO), chief compliance officer (CCO), chief risk officer (CRO) and chief information security officer (CISO) have also emerged as part of the C-suite. Officers who hold C-level positions are typically considered the most powerful, influential members of an organization; consequently, they set the company's strategy, make high-stakes decisions, and ensure that daily operations align with fulfilling the company's strategic goals. ... Depending on the company type, size, country of operation and industry, the C-Suite might include some or all the following positions: [Explore this article for long-standing roles and new, emerging C-suite roles: CEO, COO, CFO, CMO, CIO, CTO, CHRO, CCO, CSO, CISO, CDO, CAO, CXO, CGO, CITA, CKI, CLO, CMIO, CPO, CPIO, CPO, CRO, CSS, CSO, CTO.]