Communities as 'renewable energy' for healthcare services? a multimethods study into the form, scale and role of voluntary support for community hospitals in England.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the forms, scale and role of community and voluntary support for community hospitals in England. DESIGN: A multimethods study. Quantitative analysis of Charity Commission data on levels of volunteering and voluntary income for charities supporting community hospitals. Nine qualitative case studies of community hospitals and their surrounding communities, including interviews and focus groups. SETTING: Community hospitals in England and their surrounding communities. PARTICIPANTS: Charity Commission data for 245 community hospital Leagues of Friends. Interviews with staff (89), patients (60), carers (28), volunteers (35), community representatives (20), managers and commissioners (9). Focus groups with multidisciplinary teams (8 groups across nine sites, involving 43 respondents), volunteers (6 groups, 33 respondents) and community stakeholders (8 groups, 54 respondents). RESULTS: Communities support community hospitals through: human resources (average=24 volunteers a year per hospital); financial resources (median voluntary income = £15 632); practical resources through services and activities provided by voluntary and community groups; and intellectual resources (eg, consultation and coproduction). Communities provide valuable supplementary resources to the National Health Service, enhancing community hospital services, patient experience, staff morale and volunteer well-being. Such resources, however, vary in level and form from hospital to hospital and over time: voluntary income is on the decline, as is membership of League of Friends, and it can be hard to recruit regular, active volunteers. CONCLUSIONS: Communities can be a significant resource for healthcare services, in ways which can enhance patient experience and service quality. Harnessing that resource, however, is not straight forward and there is a perception that it might be becoming more difficult questioning the extent to which it can be considered sustainable or 'renewable'.

Questioning Stakeholder Legitimacy: A Philanthropic Accountability Model.

Philanthropic organizations contribute to important work that solves complex problems to strengthen communities. Many of these organizations are moving toward engaging in public policy work, in addition to funding programs. This paper raises questions of legitimacy for foundations, as well as issues of transparency and accountability in a pluralistic democracy. Measures of civic health also inform how philanthropic organizations can be accountable to stakeholders. We propose a holistic model for philanthropic accountability that combines elements of transparency and performance accountability, as well as practices associated with the American pluralistic model for democratic accountability. We argue that philanthropic institutions should seek stakeholder and public input when shaping any public policy agenda. This paper suggests a new paradigm, called philanthropic accountability that can be used for legitimacy and democratic governance of private foundations engaged in policy work. The Philanthropic Accountability Model can be empirically tested and used as a governance tool.

Successful partnerships with third sector organisations to enhance the healthcare student experience: a partnership evaluation.

There is limited research surrounding academic partnerships and more research is needed to educate universities, and the private, public and third sectors about the benefits and limitations of such partnerships. The aim of this study was to outline the unique partnership between Macmillan Cancer Support and De Montfort University and to evaluate the progress of this partnership. A qualitative approach was employed which involved interviews with nine members of the partnership's steering group. Interviews were transcribed and analysed using thematic analysis. The results showed that a partnership between a university and a third sector charity can have mutual benefits for all those involved, particularly for students and those affected by cancer. Furthermore, the module to develop volunteering among families affected cancer, created through this partnership is now being considered by other universities as a way of providing holistic and non-traditional lecture based learning experiences. Recommendations are made for future partnerships between third sector charities and universities.

Nonprofit Charity Impacts Wounded Combat Veterans And Children Facing Adversity.

Mental and physical health challenges, especially for returning war veterans and their families, is a growing national concern. A grassroots program featuring equine therapy for these patients and their families shows promise in increasing self-esteem and self-confidence, reducing isolation and depression, and improving speaking and writing skills.

A centre that uses alternative treatments to help clients de-stress.

This article explores the work of Lotus, Linking Older People Through UnderStanding and Support, an integrative and complementary therapies centre for older people in Glasgow. It was established in 2003 as a partnership between the NHS, local authority and local housing association. The centre is run by a committee of service users.

Tests on trial. Interview by Charlie Callanan.

A former nurse campaigns against the use of animals in medical research, arguing it is scientifically flawed. A group that defends vivisection argues live animal testing only takes place when no alternatives exist.

Implementation of a patient medication assistance program in a community pharmacy setting.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the establishment of a community pharmacy-based patient medication assistance program to improve access to medications by indigent patients, lessen the burden placed on physicians in obtaining such medications, reduce the amount of money spent on such medications by area charitable organizations, and improve therapeutic outcomes by improving patient adherence with therapy. SETTING: Supermarket-based pharmacy in Ashland, Ohio. PRACTICE DESCRIPTION: Community pharmacy. PRACTICE INNOVATION: A partnership was developed among Buehler's Pharmacy #3, United Way of Ashland County, and United Way Affiliates to establish a community pharmacy-based medication assistance program to help indigent patients obtain needed medications through manufacturer assistance programs and discount card programs. INTERVENTIONS: Following initial screening by a United Way affiliate agency, patients are seen by appointment by a Certified Pharmacy Technician at the pharmacy. An electronic application is completed, printed, and sent to the patient's physician for signatures and medication orders. The paperwork is returned to the pharmacy, where it is completed, signed by the patient, and filed. The patient pays the United Way agency $10 and the pharmacy $15 for these services. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Number of prescriptions dispensed cumulatively from April 1, 2003, to July 31, 2003, within the program, patients' cumulative savings, and community response. RESULTS: Between April 1, 2003, and July 31, 2003, a total of 123 patients and 47 physicians were served, and 512 medications valued at $112,139.00 were applied for and/or procured. The time lapse between filing of paperwork and receipt of medications varies from 1 to 6 weeks. While some manufacturers ship product to physicians or directly to patients, the process works better when the product is sent to the pharmacy, where it can be added to the patient's profile, screened for drug interactions and allergies, and dispensed with proper labels and counseling. CONCLUSION: Establishing a community pharmacy-based medication assistance program is an innovative spin on the traditional physician office, advocacy, or health-system setting and was found to be beneficial to the patients, physicians and other health care providers, and the community it served.