In many health-care organizations, fundraising is a skill that is often expected, but not explicitly taught to the new dean or the new executive. Only recently has there been a focus on the need for academic administrators in nursing and health care to possess fundraising skills in addition to their administrative skills and scholarly contributions to the discipline. To this end, authors Fitzpatrick and Deller have combined their expertise on fundraising for health-care organizations to produce Fundraising Skills for Health Care Executives.

The book describes the three basic principles of development: research, donor cultivation, and the solicitation of potential givers. Highlighted are the various structures of gift-giving typically used by health-care institutions engaged in fundraising, including direct-mail campaigns, challenge grants, unrestricted funds, and bequests. Subsequent chapters discuss the importance of appealing to individual donors, foundations, and corporations, making the best use of volunteers, and the critical aspects of stewardship and donor recognition. There is also a lengthy chapter devoted to the tremendous, yet often overlooked potential of planned giving. The authors provide details on the first steps necessary to establish a planned-giving program, along with ways to market the program, and identify various instruments and methods of planned giving.

Fundraising Skills for Health Care Executives was written to formalize and systematically communicate the key components of successful fundraising to those in the employ of health-care institutions. The straightforward writing style of the book lends itself to serve as a practical guide for novices in the field, though the effective strategies and work models also make it an appropriate resource for experienced deans, executives, and development officers of health-care institutions. Included in one of the final chapters are case studies related to donations to nursing schools, and the appendices at the back of the book contain an annotated list of organizations —— useful contacts for grantseekers —— along with a complete bibliography of print and electronic resources, which are discussed throughout the volume.

As one of the few books that provides pragmatic advice and fundraising strategies specifically to the health-care community, this is a helpful manual that not only dispels the myths and misconceptions about fundraising, but also covers the elements important for the success of the entire grantseeking process.

For citations to additional literature on this topic, consult Literature of the Nonprofit Sector Online, using the subject heading "Fundraising — health."