2011 CCCC Logo                                

A statewide resource on end-of-life issues                UPDATE   
 
September 12, 2011Volume 5, Number 4                  

HomeCCCC In Action

Thinking Ahead Now in Korean

The Thinking Ahead workbook is now available in Korean, thanks to an in-kind donation from Good Samaritan Hospital in Los Angeles. Thinking Ahead contains words, symbols and pictures that facilitate decision-making by persons with developmental disabilities regarding their goals and treatment preferences at the end of life.

 

Snapshot of Death & Dying - 2012

CCCC, in conjunction with the California HealthCare Foundation, is updating the 2006 Snapshot of Death & Dying in California. The update, which will be released next February, will include a series of micro-documentaries and the results of a survey of over 1,600 Californians' views on issues related to end-of-life and palliative care.

 

Compassionate Care Leadership Awards - Now Accepting Nominations

Nominate an individual, organization, company or facility for the first annual Compassionate Care Leadership Awards. Recipients - one individual and one organization - will be honored during the CCCC annual conference on February 15, 2012, in San Diego.

Read more.

 

Top 

HomeCCCC Trainings & Events

POLST: Beginning the Conversation - October 19 in Fresno

Enhance your skills in facilitating conversations with patients and their families about goals of care. Attend this one-day workshop and learn how POLST fits into the continuum of advance care planning. Learn more

 

Save the Date: Creating a Culture of Compassion

February 15, 2012

Save the date for CCCC's 4th annual conference and membership meeting, Creating a Culture of Compassion. Join friends and colleagues in San Diego at the Catamaran Resort & Spa on February 15th for a day devoted to improving care for people with an advanced or terminal illness.

Top 

Public Policy

Health Care Reform and Palliative Care Webinar

Diane Meier, MD, a recent Health and Aging Policy Fellow in Washington DC, will share her insights after having spent a year entrenched in the world of health care policy.

Sponsor: Center to Advance Palliative Care

Date: September 14, 10:30 - 11:30am

Cost: $89 (phone line only) & $99 (includes mp3 audio file and PowerPoint presentation)

More information.

 

Top

News

Hospice Medicare Spending Rising in SNFs

Medicare spending on hospice care for beneficiaries in nursing homes increased by 69% between 2005 and 2009, according to an audit by HHS' Office of Inspector General. Medicare hospice spending overall increased from $2.6 billion to $4.3 billion during that period.  

 

Californians Provide Billions in Unpaid Care

According to a recent report from AARP, Californians provide about $47 billiam worth of unpaid care annually to family members or friends with serious health conditions.

 

IOM Report: Relieving Pain in America

In June, the Institute of Medicine released Relieving Pain in America: A Blueprint for Transforming Prevention, Treatment and Research, outlining the state of pain care in the nation. A consensus statement endorsed by the American Pain Foundation and 35 other consumer, health professional and advocacy organizations stated they were encouraged that the report identifies pain as a major public health problem.

 

Palliative Care in Hospitals Continues Rapid Growth

According to the Center to Advance Palliative Care, the number of U.S. hospitals with a palliative care team increased from 24.5% (658) to 63% (1,568) from 2000 to 2009 - a steady 138% increase.

  

Top

Resources

End-of-Life Care in England

Read The Commonwealth Fund Brief to find what the U.S. can learn from how England has built patient choice and palliative care into its health care system.

  

 

Five Wishes Now Online

Five Wishes is now available to individuals through a secure online system. When done, the document can be saved, printed and emailed to your doctor and loved ones. Available in 26 languages.  More information.

 

Top

People in the News

CA Researchers Receive NPCRC Grants

The National Palliative Care Research Center has awarded grants to three California researchers: Susan Enguidanos, PhD, MPH, Davis School of Gerontology at USC, to study hospital re-admissions among palliative care patients; Steve Pantilat, MD, to assess the impact of a palliative care intervention on cardiac outpatients; and Rebecca Sudore, MD, to test a guide to improve patient engagement in advance care planning.

 

Top

Education

Beyond Kubler-Ross: New Perspectives on Death, Dying & Grief

Available on DVD, this program explores the most current theoretical perspectives on death, dying and grief, emphasizing areas where understanding of these issues has been challenged and developed since the 1969 publication of Kubler-Ross' On Death and Dying.

Includes DVD, site coordinator's manual, 35 program guides and more. Available November 10.

   Sponsor: Hospice Foundation of America

   Cost: $135 until September 14

   More information.

 

Choices: Deciding the Medical Care You Want

A free seminar with James Walter, PhD, The Bioethics Institute, for those concerned about making informed decisions about their medical treatment.

 

Sponsor: San Gabriel Valley End-of-Life Coalition and CCCC

Date: 6:30-8:00pm, November 3. 

 

RSVP Huntington Hospital Senior Care Network 626-397-3110 #4401 or email [email protected] by October 25, 2011.

 

CAPC National Seminar: New Trends. Proven Solutions.

Designed to help develop solutions to specific issues and challenges faced by those developing palliative care programs.

Sponsor: Center to Advance Palliative Care

Dates: November 10-12

Location: Manchester Grand Hyatt, San Diego, CA

 

Cost: $825-$900 before September 21. Check brochure for details.

 

Top 

Newsletters are available on the CCCC Website (www.CoalitionCCC.org) in PDF format for anyone who is having trouble reading this email version.
In This Issue
CCCC in Action
CCCC Trainings & Events
Public Policy
News
Resources
People in the News
Education
Quick Links