The fiscal and calendar year ending December 31, 2007, marked another tremendously successful year for INS. We enjoyed an increase in membership, an expansion of our educational offerings, and continued financial growth. We are enormously proud of our accomplishments and extremely thankful to our entire membership for their support.
We are delighted to report that 2007 resulted in an increase in net assets of $352,551. At a time when many organizations are experiencing numerous financial challenges, INS enjoyed one of the most financially successful years in its 35-year history. In addition to our financial success, our impact and influence on the infusion community continues to expand, and our membership continues to grow. As is the case each year, our success is built on the support and dedication of our membership and for that we are extremely thankful. With your continued assistance, we can carry on our mission of setting the standard for excellence in infusion nursing.
The following factors had a significant impact on the bottom line and merit further explanation.
MEMBERSHIP
The INS membership experienced triple-digit growth for the fourth consecutive year. An additional 179 members brought the INS membership total to 5829 at the end of 2007. Membership has grown by 750 members, or 15%, over the past 4 years. Our ability to provide our members and others in the infusion community with much-needed information and resources is a major reason for our continued growth.
Revenue within the membership category grew by 5% while expenses were reduced by 24%. In fact, direct expenses associated with membership have decreased by an astonishing 49% since 2003. The use of electronic communication has helped to greatly decrease expenses associated with membership retention and promotion. We continue to reach more people, in less time, at a lower cost than in any previous time in our history.
Lastly, in keeping with what has become a welcome tradition for INS, we are once again pleased to report that membership dues remained at $90 in 2007. This marks the 11th consecutive year that we have been able to keep your dues at this rate. Our last dues increase was $5 and came back in 1996. If you were to apply the consumer price index formula, it would show that you would need $126 today to purchase what $90 could purchase in 1996.
Our ability to keep a tight control on expenses, while continuing to increase the membership rolls, will enable us to keep the $90 dues rate in place for the foreseeable future.
If you look at all the benefits you receive from your membership, I think you will agree that there is no better value.
MEETINGS
Both the Annual Meeting and the National Academy continue to draw large numbers of attendees and rave reviews. In addition to the critical educational content of each of our 2007 meetings, we were fortunate to draw record numbers of exhibitors and specialized sponsorship support last year. Our commercial partners play an integral role in the success of our meetings. Their participation through exhibit booths and sponsorship opportunities is evidence of their support. They also recognize the key role that our members play, as it is your expertise and opinions that they continue to seek at our meetings.
Twenty-six percent of the INS membership attended one of our meetings in 2007, which is a true testament to your commitment to continuing nursing education and to INS.
Meetings revenue represented 51% of our total organization revenue. This figure has remained above 50% for the past several years and remains a key financial component for INS.
A tremendous amount of work goes into the educational development of these meetings. We are most fortunate to have the talents and dedication of the clinicians who comprise the National Council on Education. On behalf of the INS Board of Directors, I would like to express our deep gratitude and thanks to NCOE for their continued excellence in making INS meetings the premier infusion events in the world.
INFUSION EDUCATION SERVICES
The year 2007 also brought about an expansion of our services through the development of a separate business segment within the organization, called Infusion Education Services, or IES. IES was developed as a means to focus on the creation of unique educational programming and consulting services. IES has helped us increase our visibility and scope of services while creating and expanding new business development opportunities. The program was put into place during the last quarter of 2007 and has already created revenue streams that previously did not exist. INS' webinar programming and value-added membership resources such as Counseling Points and Nursing Practice Management are the direct result of IES.
Already, 2008 has yielded some exciting opportunities and results and we look forward to increasing our educational offerings to our membership.
JOURNAL OF INFUSION NURSING
The Journal of Infusion Nursing provides up-to-the-minute clinical information on new practices, techniques, and policies that affect the infusion nursing profession. It also serves as the leading resource for infusion nurse specialists and other healthcare professionals involved in infusion therapy. In addition to all of the clinical expertise that it offers, it has also provided record revenues for INS in 2007. Revenue increased in almost every category, most notably advertising, reprints, licensing, and permissions. Special thanks go out to our publisher, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, and their entire team for their tireless efforts in making the Journal the most sought-after journal in the infusion specialty.
CERTIFICATION
INS continues to serve as an advocate for infusion nursing certification by supporting the INCC certification program through a $120,000 grant. This grant program remains an integral component of INS' mission and strategic plan, and we are pleased to continue this support.
In conclusion, an independent accounting firm audited the INS financial statements for the year ending December 31, 2007, and issued a clean opinion.