Since our October roundup of research, we’ve found some new research to share as we draw closer to the end of 2018. This month’s roundup highlights a few pieces of research—including some we missed from earlier in the year—covering issues like public health, reasons for retention in the nonprofit workforce, and some results of a public perception poll gauging the health of democracy.
Care Comparison Reports
Back in September, the American Hospital Association released a care comparison report to project whether current site neutral payment proposals Congress is considering would pose a financial burden to the most vulnerable patients in America, particularly those enrolled in Medicare. The study found some differences in studying patients who receive care in hospital outpatient departments (HODs) and those who receive care in independent physician offices (IPOs). Patients in the former type of site are more likely to be people of color, more likely to be enrolled in Medicare, and have a lower median household income than those treated in IPOs. As such, HODs attract a patient population of higher complexity, which means they likely need a greater level of care. The report concludes that because these differences may have resulting cost variations for patients, site neutral payments may have unintended adverse effects on patient access to care.
TIAA 2018 Nonprofit Survey
Also back in September, TIAA published the findings of its 2018 Nonprofit Survey as part of its 100-year anniversary. The study on job satisfaction found that three in four employees and eight in ten managers at nonprofits cite their commitment to improving people’s lives at the reason they stay at their job for years. Compared to the mean tenure of workers in other industries, nonprofit employees tend to stay at their jobs about two years longer. Nonprofit employees are also twice as likely to feel that success is not defined by their compensation, and almost three-quarters of millennial managers think nonprofit sector jobs are more interesting than for-profit jobs.
More on the report:
• Study: Nonprofit Workers Stay Because They Want to Make a Difference
Every Woman Study Summary Report
Late in October, the World Ovarian Cancer Coalition (WOCC) published the results of an online survey of more than 1,500 women conducted between March and May of this year. The results demonstrate a common ignorance about the condition among patients in all 44 countries surveyed. Notably, two-thirds of the women surveyed said they had either never heard of the disease or were only familiar with the name but otherwise knew nothing about it until their own diagnosis. The disease is the eighth leading cause of cancer and, according to WOCC, one in six women with the disease will die within three months of diagnosis and fewer than half will be alive in five years. WOCC’s report includes recommendations from an Expert Advisory Panel for ensuring that there is better data on those affected by the disease, and better public information on the disease.
More on the report:
• Report: Women Everywhere Don’t Know Enough About Ovarian Cancer
2018 American Institutional Confidence Poll
Days before this year’s midterm elections, the Knight Foundation and Georgetown’s Baker Center for Leadership & Governance released the results of a 2018 poll on institutional confidence. The results of the poll, which was conducted in June and July, revealed differing attitudes toward democratic institutions that varied strongly by partisan identity. Divided by race, age, region of the country, or education level, a consistent half of the respondent sample viewed American democracy positively. However, divided by partisanship, 76 percent of self-identified Republicans reported satisfaction with American democracy compared to 44 percent of Democrats and 39 percent of independents. Last month in the Washington Post, the poll’s analysts described the trend as one worth watching, and not necessarily a disparity that should be immediate cause for alarm in the context of civic health.
More on the report:
• Should you worry about American democracy? Here’s what our new poll finds.
Add Your Voice
The research summaries above are by no means an exhaustive list of the newest information out there to help us better understand the nonprofit landscape. So if we missed a report you think we should know and share about, let us know by leaving a comment!
