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In Wake of Bombings, How Hospitals Are Communicating

 |  By Marianne@example.com  
   April 24, 2013

As I write this, I can hear the helicopters hovering over the Boston Marathon finish line. I live about a half mile away from Copley Square—the bomb site—and the constant drone is an ever-present reminder of the unthinkable events that happened here last week.

If we can be thankful for one tiny shred of luck from last Monday's tragedy, it's that the bombings occurred in a city with some of the best hospitals and medical centers in the country. The medical tents set up for marathon runners were staffed by medical personnel from around the city, which is home to five Level-1 trauma centers.

Three of those hospitals received the majority of patients injured by the blasts. In the 2012 US News and World Report's annual "Best Hospitals" rankings, two of them were in the top 10, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) ranked #1, Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) #9. Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) was nationally ranked in several specialties. These hospitals received the majority of the bombing victims.

In the aftermath of the bombings, each of the hospitals has been using Facebook to communicate with patients, family, and staff and it Facebook is proving to be a powerful tool for communication in a time of crisis.

Let's take a look at how hospital leaders and marketers are putting the social networking tool to use.

Communicating with patients, families, staff and the public
All three hospitals wrote status updates to keep the community abreast of any changes to its security status, operating procedures, and instructions regarding appointment cancellations throughout the week, particularly after the bombing on Monday and during the city-wide lockdown on Friday.

MGH, which has nearly 15,000 likes on Facebook, is also using its page to update the public on the status of the marathon victims being treated at the hospital.

MGH also used Facebook to share its experts' advice on coping with the horrific events.

And Brigham and Women's hospital is using Facebook to communicate with members of the public interested in donating blood.


And MGH is keeping hospital staff updated on scheduling issues:

Sharing Special Visitors
President Obama and the First Lady made quiet trips to MGH and BWH, respectively, and both hospitals reported the visits on their Facebook pages. Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick also made the rounds at Brigham and Women's Hospital.

"President Barack Obama is currently visiting patients, families and staff at Mass General," MGH posted on April 18. "We feel so lucky to have Michelle Obama on our campus today visiting patients, families, and staff," BWH posted on Facebook.

Managing Media Reports
MGH also used Facebook to deny reports that the marathon bombing suspect may have been treated at the hospital.

"As most of you have heard, the second suspect from Monday's Marathon bombing is now in custody," it posted on Saturday. "There had been some speculation by the media that he was going to be brought to Mass General, but we can confirm he is not being treated at our hospital."

Interestingly BIDMC, which is treating the bombing suspect, has not commented about that fact on Facebook. On Sunday the medical center merely posted: "BIDMC is open and fully operational. We thank you for your patience during this difficult weekend.

Saying Thanks, Sharing Kindness
Each of the three hospitals I'm focusing on also used the social network to thank its supporters and share the acts of kindness that were happening in their facilities.

"Thank you to everyone who has posted such kind words on our Facebook page over the last couple of days," BIDMC, which has 7,300 likes, posted on April 17. "We're so proud to have amazing doctors and nurses who dedicate their lives to helping people get well. #BostonStrong"

The medical center also shared a photo of dozens of get well cards children had sent in for the bombing victims.

BWH, which prompted fans to change their profile photo to its Brigham Remembrance Button, shared a photo of a string quartet from Berklee College of Music, which showed up and started playing music outside of its Emergency Department as a random act of kindness.


See Also: Boston Bombing Hurt Hospital Staff, Too


MGH also thanked its staff and all those seeking to donate blood or help in some way.

"We want to thank everyone for their efforts in the wake of yesterday's devastating events during the Boston Marathon," it posted on April 16. "It was an extremely difficult day for Boston, for Massachusetts General Hospital and for the many people affected by the tragedy. Here at Mass General, we treated 31 patients, 10 who have been released at this time."

While the events that happened in Boston last week are unprecedented, the three main hospitals treating marathon bombing victim are using Facebook as one of the primary tools to communicate with patients, family, and staff, solidifying the social network's place in the marketer's crisis communications toolkit.

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Marianne Aiello is a contributing writer at HealthLeaders Media.

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