While CMS has not announced any permanent policy changes, provisions to expand telehealth are likely to continue long-term, with many hospice leaders and advocates in full support. Hospices will have to work out several kinks as they navigate the telehealth landscape post-COVID-19. During this period of national disaster, the U.S. Department of Health and Human […]
Hospice providers have been redesigning bereavement care programs due to the need for social distancing during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, shifting from in-person to virtual grief support. As summer picks up steam, some organizations are also taking their grief camp programs for children online. LifePath Hospice and Good Shepherd Hospice took their annual weekend grief […]
Advance care planning has remained a priority for hospice and palliative care providers during the coronavirus pandemic as they strive to reach patients sooner in their illness trajectories and ensure goal-concordant end-of-life care. Research has shown that reaching patients sooner in the care continuum can be beneficial for providers and patients alike, as well as […]
Hospice providers have increasingly focused on dementia care among the rising demand to support these caregivers and the unique challenges they face. Interim HealthCare is among the providers boosting support for dementia caregivers with a recently launched guide addressing the specific complexities of these patients’ needs. As the number of seniors with dementia and Alzheimer’s […]
Paul Chiang, M.D., is a senior medical and practice advisor at the Home Centered Care Institute (HCCI) and medical director for a suburban Chicago practice, Northwestern Medicine HomeCare Physicians (HCP). Chiang has focused on delivering care to medically complex patients in the home, including those on hospice and palliative care. In addition to these professional […]
Hospice of Southern Maine (HSM) recently partnered with Granite State College to offer its employees reduced tuition in pursuing higher education. While the coronavirus pandemic has been a large concern for hospice providers in 2020, staffing has also remained among the top challenges. With the industry facing widespread staffing shortages across all professional disciplines, hospices […]
Under the CARES Act enacted in March, many hospice providers nationwide received federal relief funding to provide monetary support as they reeled from the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic. As the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) distributed millions of often unsolicited dollars from the Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund, legal […]
Hospice providers have increasingly adopted predictive analytic systems to identify patients in need of their services further upstream in their disease trajectory, as well as to demonstrate their value to payers and referral partners, including Medicare Advantage plans. The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will begin allowing hospices to participate in Medicare […]
Some hospice providers saw a drop in admissions as a result of disruptions in the larger health care space during the coronavirus pandemic, but expect to see numbers trend upwards as the system stabilizes. Hospice admissions throughout the nation have been impacted by the pandemic’s upheaval effects, particularly among hospitals that were strained to their […]
Hospices have struggled to access patients in nursing homes since the initial stages of the novel coronavirus pandemic. As visiting restrictions start to lift with states reopening, many hospice providers remain cautiously optimistic about minimizing COVID-19 exposure risks for staff. Closing doors to visitors and clinicians was a crucial move for many nursing homes working […]