ROLES OF NONPROFIT HEALTHCARE SECTOR
With the growing old people population, the need for health care got projected to rise. In the present, the gross domestic product rate is at a historical 17.8 percent. For quality health care to get enjoyed by all Americans, there is a need for an efficient health care system lead by a straight public health unit. The American health care unit got made up of several clinics, hospitals, and other healthcare-associated facilities and organizations. Some of these are either in the private or public sector. Also, some are for-profit, whereas others are nonprofit organizations. The nonprofit health care sector owns the largest share in the health care system. They play a significant role in the funding and distribution of health care services. The nonprofit healthcare sector does not pay national income taxes or local and state property duties. It composes of the members of society as their leaders. They are mandated by the law to carry out functions that benefit the community at large. Profits from their finances are not used to help private individuals in the sector but instead used to improve other areas of society.
All in all, the nonprofit health care sector makes up the most significant portion of the federal health services. The following health facilities are estimated to have a not-for-profit health care status. They include all society health facilities, sixty percent of society hospitals, approximately thirty percent of the nursing centers, and roughly seventeen percent of the home-based health care organizations. Owing to the magnitude of their size, they have various roles and functions that they play. The nonprofit health care sector plays a significant and crucial role in maintaining the health standards of American citizens.
The creation of employment is one of the significant roles played by the nonprofit health care sector. In 2015 statistics, over 58.5 percent of all hospitals in the states were owned by the nonprofit health care sector. With many of the hospitals being from the nonprofit industry many of the doctors, nurses, and other health workers work for the nonprofit sector. Besides health care providers, other professionals also work in this sector. These are those who work at the administrative positions in both the hospitals and the organizations. They may be monetary or marketing agents or managers. Their main work is usually to spearhead the dreams of nonprofit health care organizations. In 2012, it got estimated that 68 percent of all nonprofit employment got made up of health care and social assistance practitioners. The hospitals, also comprised of over 35 percent of all charitable work. The number of employees per unit included 4 million employees in the hospitals, one million employees in the ambulance services, four million employees in the social assistance unit, and lastly two million employees in the nursing and residential care unit. In the states of Indiana, seventy-two percent of all nonprofit employment or allocated to the health care unit. Workers in the nonprofit sector are getting a better wag as compared to those in the for-profit sector. According to research carried out by the BLS, this gap is on medium at $6.45 per sixty minutes, and the total reimbursement is at 11.28 dollars per hour.
The main aim of universal health care is to provide for all affordable health care where no one will suffer to attain it. The purpose resembles the governments and the World Health Organization’s aim in ensuring affordable health care for its citizens. The nonprofit organizations, in most cases, provide health care in instances where the government is not able to provide such. An example of such an organization is the Medicins San Frontiers and some other religious institutions. America, according to studies carried out, is the largest spender with a massive budget in the medical sector. Despite this, the country still gets faced with problems not faced by those other fewer spenders. For example, there life expectancy and mortality rates are not as high as those in countries that spend less. Costs are enormous, but citizens don’t get quality health care as compared to countries that are spending less on health care.
Currently, most of the Americans’ medical bills get paid through medical insurances. When the policy gets used, the employer pays the major part of the law, whereas the employee pays a smaller portion. If losses get incurred during payment of the bill, both employer/company and the employee carry the loss burden. This plan, however, has several shortcomings. It is because those who are unemployed, elderly, or disabled get excluded from the cover. As a result, there was a formation of the nonprofit healthcare unit whose role was to cover the disadvantaged population. It gets achieved through the creation of Medicare insurance plans by the government for the old, and provision of Medicare grants for those who are below a guaranteed level income. Despite these efforts, the number of those who are not insured is skyrocketing with millions of people. The majority of those in this bracket are above the government cut for grant assistance and get excluded from their employer’s health coverage. The cost of medical care for these individuals is very high and disadvantageous. The use of outside employment insurance plan is sometimes so expensive for them to meet.
With even the universal health care coverage, the federal government still is the primary health care provider in the country. It is because of the magnitude and number of nonprofit organizations that exist in the country. The health care budget coverage in 1965 was less than 5 percent, but this rose to 15.8 percent by 1990. In the year 2010, this rise got estimated to be at 28.8 percent. The cost also at the state level has risen for the number of those getting catered for has increased. To match the Medicaid grant received from the federal government, there is a need for the rise. It was vivid that the American health care system was not up to per with the delivery of quality health care to its citizens. As a result of the rise, researchers looked into viable operations in the other developed countries that have universal health care coverage or a single-player coverage health care system. The Britons system was where the government provides health care to all its citizens except for the wealthy people who could afford their private coverage. The Canadian operation was almost equivalent to Britain’s health care system. Both systems were composed of very many shortcomings as compared to the German’s health care system that got entirely based on the employer and employee. The collection of the health tax revenue was a solemn mandate placed on nonprofit organizations. They collected the tax on behalf of the government and then availed it to the health care sector. They also regulated the cost of hospital care together with physician’s payment. The use of this system was not optional for the American government, considering the level of problems in their health care system. With this high health care costs rise, there is a need for bringing the nonprofit health care sector to run the funding and payment of the bills in the hospitals.
With the increase in the number of senior American’s, there is a need for replacement in their past positions due to high retirement rates. These though are proving to be hard for the country at large. It is as a result of the present minor generation being composed of people who prefer less demanding jobs. As shown by studies and reports, this is a significant challenge that needs to be taken into account by most of the health sector organizations. Nonprofit organizations being more charity oriented to have a substantial step to take to ensure there is no or less lack of practitioners in the hospitals. It is also one of their biggest problems, obtaining and retaining highly skilled talents. The health workforce is one of the backbone components of the labor demanding health care system. Workers in the healthcare system are not just employees but an inside part for the functioning of the health care teams that each perform different duties and functions for a common goal. Without the achievement of this, health organizations become handicapped, unable to achieve their mission. Not only the nonprofit health care sector and any other organization should look at retention and replacement of employees in the organization as a very critical role. The loss of an employee to an organization is more expensive than his retention. With the high number of retiring health practitioners, the need for improved strategy by the nonprofit health care sector arises. An up to standards healthcare is hard to achieve, especially when the health sector is understaffed. It will result in staff working with a huge number of people than the required and also, they may be working for longer hours. These conditions result in fatigue and displeasure among the employees. The lack of individual practitioners sometimes results in an indefinite closure of the service. The vacancies left behind result in limited and expensive healthcare to those living in the community as a result of working overtime. Also, there will be an avoidable cost in the transportation of medical professionals from other areas and in the recruitment process.
Nonprofit organizations being community-based, have assured the retention and recruitment of these practitioners into local hospitals and health facilities. Their primary focus is on attracting the current working health professionals to a vacant position or any future vacant position. Also, they focus on retaining those employed in the facilities for as long as possible. It gets carried out through the use of rightful retention and recruitment strategies that reduce the duration of staff vacancies. With the reduced length of vacancies, there is increased savings and improvement in terms of healthcare delivered. With the help of nonprofit organizations such as the National Rural Recruitment and Retention Network, the nonprofit organization can improve further on their retention and recruitment strategies. The use of their websites where job seekers may log in freely to seek the community healthcare vacancies may assist in the recruitment of new practitioners. The 3RNET also provides a database to the community nonprofit health sector with over 60000 outlines of health care practitioners, health and related fields students, and those interested in the rural healthcare unit. The 3RNET also provides education to the webinars and also, organizes an annual conference for these employees.
Recruitment and retention of health practitioners are terms that are closely linked. Recruiting employees without a retention plan is a very costly task. With the help of the nonprofit organizations, there is the recruitment of practitioners that are highly suited for the job, more so those in the field working as nonprofit employees. The employees working in such conditions and terms have a true calling to the medical assistance. These employees usually have an aligned mission to that of the nonprofit health care unit. They also have a higher liking of the area in which they get suited to work. Others work because of the availability of family recreational times and facilities. The size, together with the number of other social and main amenities in the town or area, matters to some practitioners. An example of a strategy in place is a tool employed by the Collaborative members of the Idaho nonprofit healthcare unit called the Community Apgar Program. The program is usually suited for uprising the retention and recruitment capabilities of the community-based healthcare sector. It weighs on the crucial aspects that entail the retention and recruitment of practitioners. The nonprofit healthcare sector has also come up with various methods with which they use to attract health workers. It gets achieved by the use of specific technologies to lessen the works carried out by a practitioner. For example, the Avera health eCare located in South Dakota has implemented the use of dual way equipment in its service delivery. The equipment conveys communication between the field agents and the central hub hospital. The system in the state of Alaska has enabled the field agents to communicate with and get help from Anchorage ICU staff that aid in nursing and dealing with patients. With this great and increasing use of technology in the nonprofit healthcare sector, many young practitioners will be encouraged to join and be part of this organization.
One of the many roles of nonprofit healthcare sector organization is the funding of medical research. As shown in the navigator article, here are some of the examples of nonprofit health sector organizations that take part in funding medical research. National Pediatric Cancer Foundation is one of the leading nonprofit healthcare organizations that got established in 1991. Its main goal is to fund research on finding the cure for cancer. The organization also supports several other activities and charities taking place in the state of Florida. It also has a developed project named the Sunshine project. The project is a groundbreaking union of the highest-ranked national researchers and doctors to come up with new treatment models that would come in handy in assisting the young suffering from cancer. They have been at the forefront since the year 2005, in advocating for the introduction of less toxic and more potent medicines into the market. The trials are ongoing with a view of changing the standard treatment protocol subjected to children who have cancer in the present.
The Cure Alzheimer Fund is a nonprofit healthcare sector organization that started with the aim of funding research in finding the cure for Alzheimer’s disease. Their research mostly gets aimed at finding all the genes and genetic mutations that may be associated with Alzheimer’s disease. They use this vast research in the prediction of those with a higher likelihood of suffering from the disease. The projects under this foundation include Alzheimer’s Genome Map, Brain-genetic Study, among others. Another nonprofit health organization was the Arthritis National Research Foundation, founded in 1970. Its main goal since its establishment is to get informed on the causes, preventive measures, and creation of new ways that may get used in the treatment of all kinds of arthritis and other autoimmune diseases. This organization provides financial assistants to various doctors and researchers in different universities all over the country. The grant is usually for 2 to 3 years to improve and sharpen the newer scientists’ research skills. The Lustgarten Foundation for Pancreatic cancer research is another type of nonprofit healthcare organization funding healthcare research. It promotes the scientific research and study carried out in the finding, treatment, and avoidance of pancreatic cancer. Their goal is achieved through the increase of financial support of studies carried out regarding biological methods, and clinical protocols carried out regarding the prevention, treatment, and diagnosis of pancreatic cancer. They also enable secure communication between scientists and medical practitioners. The organization is usually at the forefront fighting for the increased funding into cancer treatment and research by the federal government. They are also at the forefront of educating the population regarding pancreatic cancer. These among many kinds of organizations show how the nonprofit healthcare sector has invested a lot in medical research.
The 2005 Katrina Hurricane was one of the most devastating storms that ever hit the United States of America. More than 800000 individuals across the whole of the United States were relocated. A big part of the land close to the size of Great Britain was affected by this hurricane. Owing to the magnitude of the storm, most nonprofit organizations were not prepared for this kind of environmental catastrophe. Most of these organizations got destroyed as a result of this hurricane. The few that remained had to up their game to meet the demand for charity. They engaged in invigorating verdicts and worked on forthcoming needs that may be operated on by the organizations. The managers of these organizations had to be making superficial verdicts in implementing, scheduling, and adapting to the change. The nonprofit health care organizations were at the forefront in the provision of the essential needs. These organizations take part in educating the community on the importance of being prepared at any time for an emergency.
Disaster preparedness entails a large magnitude of pre-disaster events that one needs to take to increase the chances of escaping disasters. This is brought out clearly by the Catholics Charities USA, which has an institute dedicated to disaster preparedness. It offers disaster plan creation, teachings on disaster preparedness, and online works. Another type of nonprofit healthcare organization is the Christian Reformed World Relief Committee Disaster Response services. Its main task is to create a preparedness procedure in case of any disaster striking the churches. Save the Children is also another type of organization involved in disaster preparedness. It mainly focuses on the children involved in an emergency. It moves around learning institutions and other children’s social and recreational areas, educating the children on disaster preparedness and management. Training on disaster management is also another task carried out by the nonprofit health care sector. Several organizations have taken part in the preparation of individuals on how to manage a disaster. The ACS Disaster response, for example, takes part in the training of individuals, families, and churches in disaster management. The ACT World relief also avails training in homeland security and CERT courses in emotional and religious care, psychological first aid, and event control. The American Red Cross also has taught for the volunteers and the community on the teaching capacity equipment, transportation, and personal properties. These are among the many nonprofit healthcare sector organization that have taken part in disaster training and preparedness together with the relief of those affected by the disaster. These organizations are usually at the core center of disaster management. They assist the federal and state government in carrying out campaigns entailed at informing the citizens on disaster management.
Being the biggest unit in the health care sector, there is a very high need for improvement in the healthcare system. Colombia in Georgia region is home to almost 85,000 people of which as other rural places in America, has most of its people being old. The residents of the rural area are usually served by four nonprofit hospitals and other outpatient clinics. With most of the population being composed of the old, there is an evident high need for improved health care. A portion of the 2012 Oregon’s reforms in the medical aid, leaders were unusually assembled from the community. There was the creation of a nonprofit organization to govern the board and other works related to the organization. The main work of the organization was to guarantee the safe and quality health care providers to the elderly and the area’s population at large. The move was a show to express how the nonprofit healthcare system plays a role in uniting the health care system. Several meetings and arrangements apart from these have been set up and similar agreements put in place together with the focus on the changing role played by the nonprofit organizations in America.
The nonprofit healthcare sector plays a very crucial role in improving medical healthcare, reducing the poverty levels, availing job opportunities to the job seekers, stretching a helping hand to the healthcare system, and raising the arts. The correct and healthy running of this nonprofit healthcare sector organization is a key role. When organizations face problems, the disadvantaged population in society suffers the most. It is, therefore, of great assistance that those who are privileged in the society to assist in terms of contributions and if possible, join the organizations. Also, the federal government and state governments should come up with better tax reform on the nonprofit organization to assist in the growth of these organizations. Funds and grants from the government should be ready to support these organizations during these hard financial times that these organizations are undergoing. With the proper care and running of these organizations, Americans are assured of a healthier health care system.
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