Keywords

hospital, performance, volunteerism, profit margin, patient satisfaction, cost savings

Abstract

Volunteers have been present in healthcare settings for centuries, however there is little empirical evidence supporting the impact that volunteers make on hospital performance. Since the 1990s, hospitals in the United States have had a great deal of pressure to produce high quality care at minimum expense. With the pressures of managed care and accrediting agencies, the benefits of using volunteers in a hospital setting are multiplied. Furthermore, as the population of the United States grows and the aging population creates more healthcare needs, the need for volunteers in hospitals may increase. This study utilized multiple regression analysis to explore the belief that the volunteer workforce is cost effective and can greatly enhance quality in a hospital setting. Hospitals throughout the state of Florida were invited to participate in the study by completing a brief questionnaire about their volunteer programs. Performance indicators of profit margin, volunteer cost savings, and patient satisfaction scores were analyzed using American Hospital Association and Agency for Health Care Administration data sets along with data obtained from the questionnaire. Results indicate that the use of volunteers offer significant cost savings to hospitals. Furthermore, the assignment of volunteers in patient settings can enhance a hospital's patient satisfaction scores. It also suggests that there is a need to further explore the impact of volunteers on other performance measures. Future research opportunities and policy recommendations are suggested.

Notes

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Graduation Date

2007

Semester

Fall

Advisor

Fottler, Myron

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

College

College of Health and Public Affairs

Department

Health Professions

Degree Program

Public Affairs

Format

application/pdf

Identifier

CFE0001846

URL

http://purl.fcla.edu/fcla/etd/CFE0001846

Language

English

Length of Campus-only Access

None

Access Status

Doctoral Dissertation (Open Access)

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