For nearly 20 years, CHA has been a leader in the community benefit field, helping not-for-profit health care organizations fulfill their community benefit mission.

VHA is dedicated to the success of not-for-profit, community-based health care. As a health care provider alliance we deliver industry-leading supply chain management services and facilitate the development of networks that bring members together to solve key clinical and operational challenges.

The Association for Community Health Improvement (ACHI) is a national association for community health, healthy communities and community benefit.

ACHI convenes and supports leaders from the health care, public health, community and philanthropic sectors to help achieve shared community health goals, and work with hundreds of members to strengthen community health through education, peer networking and the dissemination of practical tools.

The Advancing the State of the Art in Community Benefit (ASACB) demonstration brings together a diverse group of 70 hospitals in California, Texas, Arizona, and Nevada to develop and implement a series of uniform standards to align hospital governance, management, and operations, and to make optimal use of limited charitable resources to address unmet health-related needs.

Patsy Matheny's primary focus is on (a) assuring creditable community benefit reporting in line with federal and state guidelines, including the gray areas of "what counts", and (b) strategically aligning community benefit within the organization.

Caron Lanouette has extensive experience with start up operations. She specializes in helping hospitals design and develop community benefit programs that are the best fit for them. Having served as the Chair of the Connecticut Hospital Association (CHA) Community Benefit Workgroup she is acutely aware of the extensive and diverse challenges hospitals face in implementing this initiative.

Joan K. Lindenstein, MHA, FACHE is recognized leader in the creation of healthier communities and community benefit. She is an innovative and versatile healthcare executive with successful leadership and managerial experience.  Joan has unique expertise in community benefit, coalition building, integrative health and wellness, behavioral healthcare, rural healthcare, and project management.

Holleran is a national research and consulting firm that specializes in community health needs assessment research, strategic planning, and stakeholder research. Holleran partners with hospitals, public health agencies, and others not only to conduct community research, but to also successfully integrate that research into strategic planning, community benefit initiatives, and community health improvement activities.

The Needs Assessment Report system from the Healthy Communities Institute is a web-based information system that can be embedded within your hospital or health system websites, or used as a stand alone community website. The system helps hospitals and health systems meet IRS 990 and Health Care Reform requirements related to community needs assessment. Specifically the system provides a constantly updated dashboard of over 100 indicators for your service area, links to promising practices to plan evidenced-based community benefit, and provides customized reports and other tools to improve community health.

Via Christi Health System in Wichita, KS, has created a document to help their CBISA™ users recognize community benefit programs that "count" for their health system. Renee Hanrahan, Director of Community Benefit, has graciously agreed to share this document with anyone who may find it helpful, or to use as a template in creating a similar document for their own hospital or health system.

Click here to download a copy of this document.

Mary DeMois, from Catholic Health Partners, Cincinnati, OH has shared the template letter they use for restricted donations.

Click here to download a copy of this document.