Resource Library

More than ever before, health care communicators need to have a content strategy that directly contributes to bottom line business results. Orlando Health is doing just that and reaping the benefits of increased exposure by positioning itself as a trusted health care system with compassion.

In a world that keeps sending disruptive innovations like shock waves through the health care landscape, how can health systems better meet the demands of today's time-starved, information-overloaded consumers? Florida Hospital needed to figure it out—and quickly.

In an era when "content is king," storytelling has never been more crucial for setting a health care organization apart from the competition. Here are five tips for finding compelling health care stories in your organization.

Several years ago, Saint Francis Healthcare system launched its first "Pink Up" campaign, which was designed to increase breast cancer awareness, promote early detection, and offer free mammograms to those in need. In 2016 the health system ramped up its fundraising and outreach efforts to turn the population health cancer awareness program into a cancer movement. Read more about their keys to success in this article.

How can marketing and public relations practitioners help their organizations make a measurable difference in population health? At Onslow Memorial Hospital (OMH) in North Carolina, Amy Cain-Sousa, senior vice president of public relations/marketing, has found that creating an online community dedicated to wellness can be an effective first step.

How do marketers at one of the world's most advanced medical laboratories improve upon the services they provide to customers around the globe? Mayo Medical Laboratories developed a digital communications hub called Insights after customers and internal stakeholders alike were voicing concerns about the functionality and usefulness of the MML website.

What's your role in working with and communicating to your physicians? Fresh off a recent lively discussion on the topic with the medical staff at University of Iowa (UI) Health Care, here are ten steps you can take to refresh your physician communications.

Until recently many leaders refrained from taking aggressive public stands on controversial issues. There have always been high-profile leaders in certain industries who aren't afraid to speak up, but healthcare leaders in general tend to be more reserved. If you sensed a change recently, you're not mistaken. Read more about the role of healthcare leaders on social media in this article.

What could have easily turned into a public relations nightmare for a hospital in Massachusetts instead became the rallying cry for action. Read more about how one hospital addressed the opioid epidemic in their community.

In today's environment of limited hospital resources, it's critical to make meaningful and cost effective connections with those we serve.SHSMD's newly updated Bridging Worlds report for healthcare strategists highlights this concept by emphasizing the importance of "integrating and co-creating," whereby organizations find enhanced value when they engage with members of the community who have different points of view, backgrounds, and experiences.

A well told story can be a powerful marketing tool, especially in healthcare. One patient's experience can impact a prospective patient's thinking, actions, and behaviors, enabling them to explore potential healthcare decisions through a highly personal lens. This article explores the success of a campaign that El Camino Hospital implemented to share patient narratives.

As healthcare professionals, you are surrounded by the greatest stories on the planet. Your work isn't just about data and credentials. It's about people. It's about saving lives and changing lives, every single day. Here are a few ways to effectively tell a story.

HealthEast, a four-hospital system serving the Minneapolis-St. Paul region, was determined to make good use of its patient portal—to improve health outcomes by sharing proactive, consistent health information that patients could access anywhere. Read more about their implementation of two digital health tools.

Read more about the internal communications renovation at the University of Texas Medical Branch after a years-long recovery from 2008's Hurricane Ike, which did $1 billion in damage to the headquarters campus.

When a crisis occurs in your community, how should your hospital or health system's public relations/communications team respond? Whether an incident is local in nature or has national or international implications, it is vital for hospitals to have a crisis plan in place that will ensure effective communications to all key internal and external audiences, and stakeholders — and protect the hospital's reputation.

Here are answers to several questions about Spectrum Health's new approach to brand journalism.

As healthcare strategists, we can no longer focus most of our resources on simply growing inpatient volume. Instead, we need to broaden our focus to the entire healthcare experience for patients and their caregivers—from initial research and preparation, to appointment scheduling, to doctor and hospital visits, to rehabilitation, to post-care follow up.

Brooks Rehabilitation leverages video to share compelling patient experiences. Anyone who works in our field could tell you a touching tale of compassion or relate an inspiring story of recovery against all odds. This is what is unique about healthcare. Powerful stories are happening every day. So how do we effectively tell compelling stories that connect us with our audiences? How do we create content that engages by unlocking emotion?

Once upon a time, hospital marketing didn't exist. Public relations functions were focused almost exclusively around media relations and what we called community relations. Then came marketing (with the glamour of advertising), the Internet, Facebook, Tweet, and pins. Community relations (CR) faded, got pushed to secondary priority status and then to the bottom of that "nice to do if we had time" list.