After consumer marketing, cultivating lasting relationships with physicians is considered to be a hospital marketer's greatest task. But often the decision about where to refer a patient is not made by the doctor alone—and sometimes the doctor isn't even involved at all. With this in mind, Kindred Healthcare created a strategic marketing effort that targets the entire patient care team.
Commuters driving by a large academic medical center in Cleveland last fall and winter probably noticed a billboard advertising Kindred Healthcare's postacute care services. To most drivers, the ad may not have meant much. But to doctors, nurses, case workers, and discharge planners, the billboard may influence where they refer patients for additional care.
The billboard was part of the Continue the Care campaign to reach out to referrers in a wide range of job titles for the 83-hospital Louisville, KY, system.
"Depending on the level of referral, the physician is going to be the ultimate decision-maker—but a nurse could have a lot of influence on suggesting options to a patient or family,"said Danny Fell, executive vice president of Neathawk Dubuque & Packett, a Richmond, VA-based agency, in the August issue of HealthLeaders magazine.
It's worth reaching out o anyone who interacts with a patient and his or her family to educate them about the services your organization offers, said David Mikula, vice president of sales and marketing for Kindred Healthcare's hospital division.
"The last thing we want is the patient to ask a question to [a referral source] and have them say, 'Gee, I don't know,'"he said. "When a patient or family is faced with that uncertainty, that's the last thing you want. Anytime you have the chance to educate anyone, it's a good thing because hopefully it results in a better patient experience."
When crafting messages to reach a certain group within the patient care team, it's important to understand each audience and what motivates individual referral decisions, Fell said.
"We know physicians are interested in clinical outcomes, transition for the patient, and what kind of feedback they'll get,"he said. "Nurses may be a little more attuned to the family needs and communicating with the family. And case workers and discharge planners will be more sensitive to the cost factors. Obviously they're interested in clinical care as well, but the messages will be a little different."
It is crucial to communicate quality outcomes data to all key groups—especially if your hospital's statistics have recently improved.
"Ours is a message of quality care and we're communicating our outcomes,"said Susan Moss, vice president of communications for Kindred Healthcare. "Since most of the individuals we're talking to are clinicians, we communicate our quality metrics and our outcomes measurements to all of our referral sources."
Choosing a delivery method to reach referrers is as important as tailoring information-packed marketing copy. For Kindred, a mix of consumer marketing channels and traditional referral methods works best.
In addition to placing outdoor ads around referring hospitals, Kindred ran Continue the Care ads on National Public Radio and in trade publications. Overall, admissions increased 12% in the markets where Kindred ran the campaign.
Ultimately, the goal is to educate the whole patient care team so each member can have all the information needed to help patients make the right decision for them. The next time you're looking for ways to increase referrals, remember to reach beyond physicians to the whole patient care team.
Marianne Aiello is a contributing writer at HealthLeaders Media.