Hospital Blogs Can Help During Times of Controversy

"[The blogger] can leverage those relationships in times of crisis to help [the hospital] deliver honest, timely, trusted communications," says Whitman. "If [they] wait to establish a blog after a crisis, [they] will not have a trusted community to help you."

The agony of transparency
Of course, the problem with being on the alive-side of the reef is that, every once in a while, a destructive wave will come crashing down. A few times, Jacobs says he has used his blog to defuse a controversy that was a result of what he wrote in a candid post.

In February, Jacobs published a passionate post expressing his frustration that many doctors make late-night rounds so they can avoid interacting with patients. The blog ran in a local newspaper and created a "physician firestorm" because many doctors, including those affiliated with Windber and nearby facilities, took the post personally.

So Jacobs attacked the issue with the best communication tool he has—his blog. "I had to carefully explain to my own medical staff that, regardless of their rounding times, they were superior connectors, and it was not directed toward them," he says. "I apologized, wrote explanatory blogs about it, and sent a few letters of apologies to the physicians who were not part of the problem."

The risk of a blog post turning sour increases if the blogger and the hospital do not have a clearly thought-out plan of the blog's purpose, says Whitman. "If the blog is not thoughtfully planned and executed, as part of a larger communication plan, the wrong messages and reactions to those messages can spread just a quickly," he says.

The benefits of transparency
Despite all of the problems that a forthright blog could cause, Jacobs and Whitman agree that the benefits of that high degree of transparency far outweigh the detriments.

"When we take on issues in the blog, it is the ultimate form of transparency," Jacobs says. "How often do you really know if your quotes will be printed as stated? How many times has the reporter interpreted your explanations a little differently? The blog puts it out there, blemishes and all, in an open, honest way."

Whitman says the honesty that blogging produces helps show the human side of a hospital, which is crucial during emotional times of crisis. Additionally, "information can be shared quickly through a blog and the information can be shared virally throughout the Internet," he says. "In times of crisis a blog can be used to share information quickly and regularly."

Even though properly operated blogs could save hospitals some strife, Jacobs says many organizations still shy away from such transparency. "Maybe it's because there are one million attorneys who are looking for a way to feed their families," he says. "We are regulated, regulated, regulated, and many of my peers hold things close-to-the-vest so as not to expose themselves to litigation, criticism, or, as in my example, misinterpretation."

But Jacobs is happy clinging to the alive-side of the reef, and he hopes that others will join him.

"Maybe if there were more CEO bloggers, we would see a new system of wellness and optimal healing emerge from the ashes," he says.