Question: When and how should we count the time of our employees and physicians when they are involved in community benefit activities?
Recommendation: Employee and physician time spent on hospital community benefit activities can be quantified as a community benefit expense if the employee and/or physician:
- Have been assigned to represent the organization, not just invited or encouraged to participate
- Are participating on paid time (thus the physician presumably must be employed or under contract); and
- The time represents a true cost to the organization.
If these conditions are not met, the employee/physician's time:
- Should not be quantified as an expense for that community benefit activity
- Should be reported only in the narrative section of the organization's community benefit report
- Should be considered the personal volunteer time of the individual. These personal contributions of time, including the number of volunteer hours, can be highlighted in the narrative portion of the community benefit report to "tell the story" of how the organization's employees and physicians have contributed to the community.
Employee and/or physician time should be listed under the individual community benefit activity or under Category E3. In-kind Donations for time spent that is not captured under a specific community benefit activity.
(Updated November 2015)