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President-elect Obama has indicated that health care reform will be a top priority in his administration. Former Sen. Tom Daschle, (D-SD) who has accepted Obama's offer to serve as Health and Human Services Secretary, is the leader of the Transition's Health Policy Team. Daschle is asking Americans to help with reform efforts by sharing their health care experiences and concerns.
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Change is never easy, but the toughest type of change is behavior or culture change within a hospice, says Susan Levitt, executive director of CNS Home Health and Hospice in Carol Stream, IL. As hospices face more regulation, fiscal responsibility will become an important part of every staff member's mindset, she says.
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The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a notice to update the Home Health Prospective Payment System (HH PPS) for calendar year 2009.
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The annual number of patients discharged from U.S. community hospitals to home health care rose 53% between 1997 and 2006, while the number discharged to long-term care and other facilities rose 30%, according to a new report from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ).
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The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) and the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) have created the advanced certified hospice and palliative social worker credential (ACHP-SW).
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Intravenous patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) allows patients to control their own pain medication, but a new study published in the December 2008 issue of The Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety shows that errors related to this practice are four times more likely to result in patient harm than errors that occur with other medications.
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When treatment options dwindle or are exhausted, terminally ill patients often opt for pain management and comfort over life-extending therapies. However, researchers report that a lack of thorough understanding about the laws governing end-of-life care might leave providers with an ethical dilemma and cause some terminally ill patients considerable, unnecessary pain.
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Hospice nurses, aides, and therapists do a wonderful job caring for their patients, so it is natural that the patients and families want to thank them with gifts. Unfortunately, the size and type of gift can put the employee and agency into the uncomfortable position of being accused of theft if strict guidelines are not developed and followed.
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"Hospice nurse arrested for theft." ... "Family accuses hospice nurse of stealing from patient."
