TELEHEALTH PROGRAMS AND TECHNOLOGY FOCUS OF NEW STUDY

University Park, Pa. --A Penn State professor will research telehealth technology and factors that lead to successful programs, thanks to support from The Nonprofit Sector Research Fund of The Aspen Institute.

Dr. Kathryn H. Dansky, associate professor of health policy and administration in Penn State's College of Health and Human Development, received a $25,000 grant for her study, "A Stakeholder Analysis of Telehealth Programs: Does Ownership Matter?"

"Despite the growth of telehealth technology, little is known about its impact or the factors that lead to successful programs. Ownership may be a key factor through its influence on organizational performance," says Dansky.

Her study will investigate differences between for-profit and not-for-profit telehealth programs; and determine if these differences are explained by differences in stakeholder influence. The study is one of 23 research projects around the country recently awarded support from the Nonprofit Sector Research Fund of The Aspen Institute.

The Nonprofit Sector Research Fund was established in 1991 to expand knowledge of nonprofit activities, impacts, and values, and to promote the use of new knowledge to improve nonprofit practices and inform public policy. The Fund's core grant-making program encourages the study of nonprofits at universities and elsewhere, thereby helping to build the nonprofit research field.

The Nonprofit Sector Research Fund is a program of The Aspen Institute, an international nonprofit educational institution dedicated to enhancing the quality of leadership through dialogue and inquiry. The Aspen Institute convenes people who represent diverse viewpoints and backgrounds from business, labor, government, the professions, the arts, and the nonprofit sector to relate timeless ideas and values to the foremost challenges facing societies, organizations, and individuals.

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Editors: Dr. Dansky is at 814-863-2902 or . For more information on the Nonprofit Sector Research Fund of the Aspen Institute, contact Winnifred Levy at 202-736-5814 or via e-mail at