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Aloha Kōkua Mau, As the twin storms of Iselle and Julio approach, our thoughts are with our friends on Hawaii Island and Maui. I know that everyone is taking precautions for themselves and those they care for. Let's hope the winds drop off and everyone stays safe. Welcome to our newest Kokua Mau Organizational member - The Cancer Center of Hawai'i. We thank them for their financial support for our work and welcome them as a member. All of our members are listed on the Kokua Mau website and we thank them publicly and in written publications when possible. Interested in membership for your organization? Visit the website and contact Jeannette Koijane, Executive Director. You can read more about The Cancer Center of Hawaii on their website: The physicians and staff of the Cancer Center of Hawaii are dedicated to taking care of cancer patients and their families. Specially trained nurses provide care that is responsive to the cancer patient's needs, concerns, and feelings. The cancer treatment staff includes radiation oncologists, radiation therapists and physicists, nurses and other specialists. |
Fri 8/15 A Remembering Walk
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St. Francis Hospice invites you to join their Bereavement Services team in a morning of connection, grief awareness, and nature walk.
Friday, August 15
9:30 - 11:30 a.m.
Hoʻomaluhia Botanical Garden
45-680 Luluku Road, Kāneʻohe
Free and open to the public. Family members throughout Oʻahu will gather together to share, reminisce and support each other as we take in Hawaiʻi's natural beauty.
Be prepared for rain or sunshine. The park is open until 4:00 p.m. for those who want to remain after our event.
For more information and to RSVP, please contact: Felicia Marquez-Wong, LSW, QCSW, CT, Bereavement Services Manager
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Mon. 8/18 Open Discussion Forum
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What's on your mind about hospice and palliative care? Please come to our Open Discussion Forum. This is a free event with free parking - We request a small donation to the meditation center to help cover their expenses. Bring something for the potluck and we hope you can join us.
Monday, August 18th -- 5:15 to 7:00
Bodhi Tree Meditation Center
654-A N. Judd St. Honolulu
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Thur. 8/28 Kōkua Mau Meeting
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Please join us for our Monthly Meeting. We will have a speaker and have an opportunity for networking and updates. Please let Jeannette know if you have items for the agenda.
Thursday, August 28
3pm-5pm
Conference Room 224
Weinberg Building
St. Francis Healthcare System of Hawaii
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Save the date: 8/30 Quality of Care Issues, Late-Stage Dementia & Caregivers
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The Executive Office on Aging, Kōkua Mau, Alzheimer's Association, and St. Francis Healthcare System is co-sponsoring a series of presentations on Quality of Care Issues for People with Late-Stage Dementia and their Caregivers.
The second of the series on Legal and Ethical Issues will take place Saturday August 30 from 11am - 1pm.
The series is free, but registration is required. To register, email Jody Mishan or by phone (808) 295-2624. Please help us to publicize the event to your networks. |
Caregiver Orientation Series - Alzheimer's Assoc.
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Caring for someone who has Alzheimer's disease or a related disorder is perhaps one of the biggest commitments a person can face. The Alzheimer's Association - Aloha Chapter offers several educational programs for family members caring for loved ones with Alzheimer's. Most of these programs are free of charge. |
Free Library Resource
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Are you looking for articles on palliative care and end-of-life issues? Here is a great FREE resource to get copies of articles sent to you. You can email requests to library@hospicewr.org or visit their website. The End-of-LIfe Library and the Katie Dolesh Family Reference Collection at Hospice of the Western Reserve provides an on-line catalog, virtual library services and professional library assistance.
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Early Bird registration: HPGS "Imagine 2030" Conference 9/29 & 30
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Imagine 2030... what will Hawaii look like as we are getting older as a society? There will be 369,000 adults aged 65 and over-150% of its current size-whom will constitute 23% of the total population (currently 17%). The number of people aged 85 and over will double to 59,000. Most adults prefer to stay in their home of choice as they age. What will a community supportive of purposeful aging in place look like? How do we get there?
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POLST legislation signed into law as Act 154!
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Please help us publicize the changes to POLST by submitting an article to your newsletter at work or for your professional organization. We have created a sample article for your use that you can cut and paste off the Kokua Mau website page. If you would like a copy of the article for lay audiences, a pdf of the POLST form in small for a visual in the article or additional information, let Jeannette know.
All POLST materials on the Kōkua Mau website have been update to reflect the main i mprovement that APRNs will be able to sign a POLST - now called Provider Orders for Life Sustaining Treatments. FAQ: - All POLST forms filled out and signed by a physician before July 1, 2014 remain valid!
- The 'old' POLST forms with the word 'physician orders' are still valid. We recommend that you only use the new POLST form (Provider Orders) after July 1, 2014. It has a new added section E and quite a few wording changes and clarifications.
Thanks to a great collaborative effort, including many Kōkua Mau members, in getting the new expanded POLST legislation signed into law! Gov. Abercrombie signed the bill (HB2052) on June 30 and Act 154 went into effect on July 1. moreMany individuals and organizations represented and actively supported the POLST Task Force so this was truly a statewide hui. Thank you for your support, testimony, expertise and countless last minute emails! Please visit the Kōkua Mau website (including a picture with the Governor) for the new POLST forms and handouts. Our Kōkua Mau website is the central source for (up-to-date) POLST information for Hawai'i. |
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Revised Part D Hospice Guidance: Regulatory Alert
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Kōkua Mau heard from a variety of providers about the confusion surrounding Medicare Part D and Hospice Medications. On Friday, July 18, 2014 CMS issued revised guidance (PDF) to replace the March 10, 2014 guidance to hospices and Part D plan sponsors regarding payments for medications. NHPCO is very pleased with the changes in the revised guidance, and that we accomplished our primary of goal of removing hospice patients and their families from the confusion surrounding the previous policy. You can read more on the NHPCO website. The revised guidance changes the prior authorization (PA) requirement to ONLY the four classes of drugs referenced in the OIG 2012 Report - analgesics, anti-emetics, laxatives, and anti-anxiety medications. In the revised guidance, CMS cites these four categories of drugs as being most often used to treat symptoms of patients at the end of life.
This guidance does not change the responsibility of the hospice to pay for all medications related to the terminal illness and related conditions, weather or not they are included in the four classes identified above. That responsibility remains.
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| Senior Fall Prevention Campaign |
Great new resources from the Hawaii Department of Health - Senior Fall Prevention Campaign.
Falls are the most common type of unintentional fatal and nonfatal injury in Hawai'i each year: - fatal unintentional injury averaging over 108
- nearly 21,000 emergency room visits for nonfatal unintentional injury
- and 2,700 hospitalizations (nonfatal)
More than three quarters of the people are aged 65 or older and the risk of fatal falls increases dramatically as people age. The emotional and fiscal burden associated with fall injuries is significant.
Our local Fall Prevention Consortium has pulled together
great resources to help you and those you care for prevent falls, including wonderful videos by Kokua Mau's own filmmaker Janette Sargent-Hamill.
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Best wishes,
Jeannette Koijane
Executive Director
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| Featured Article | 
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Join Kōkua Mau as a members now for 2014!
Membership is the backbone of Kōkua Mau's budget and helps us to be a financially sustainable organization. Just follow the steps outlined on our website. |
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