Providing information about hospitals is a move in the right direction in this country, where it's virtually impossible for patients to find out everything from the price of a procedure to discipline taken against doctors to how many people died from infections in a certain hospital, says this editorial from the Des Moines Register. But Hospital Compare has a lot of room to grow in providing needed information for consumers, say the editors.
A campaign for Fremont (NE) Area Medical Center has taken a different approach to improving community awareness. By featuring well-known community members and patients, quick facts, and T-shirt incentives, Fremont is improving community knowledge one microsite hit at a time.
"The competition is formidable and active in the market area," says Jerry Hobbs, vice president of healthcare marketing for Fremont's agency, Prairie Dog, in Kansas City, MO. But pressure from a large local competitor wasn't the facility's only challenge. Fremont was also struggling to fight a preconceived community notion that a smaller facility couldn't be as good as a larger one. "We needed to make sure that the community understands all that Fremont can offer,” Hobbs says. “Our challenge is to reveal some of the surprisingly advanced capabilities of the medical center.”
Focus group research confirmed members of the community didn't know about the services and technology at Fremont. The team concluded that the best way to reach out to the community was with members of the community.
The hospital chose patients and well-known community members based on their alignment with service lines and forms of technology. "We chose the service lines based on our strategic plan," says Jackie Beaton, director of public relations, marketing, and volunteer services for Fremont. "Also, robotics are unique to the hospital, so we wanted to make sure to showcase that as well."
The campaign creative included print, billboard, TV, radio, and life-size stand-ups of the featured patients that hold brochures. The language and messages throughout the various materials gave quick facts with the intent of driving curious consumers to the campaign's microsite landing page. The landing page shows all of the featured patients alongside their testimonials.
Visitors can take a quiz on the campaign facts to win a free Fremont T-shirt. "We wanted this campaign to be fun and also wanted to make sure the community was aware of our services," Beaton says. "So we decided to add a fun quiz. Whether you're right or wrong you receive the right answer and still can receive the T-shirt." According to Beaton, it was really about reinforcing the campaign's message.
So far the results have been positive with over 250 t-shirts requests and more than 2,000 hits on the landing page and to the TV spots which are posted on YouTube. Interest and hits will continue to be monitored throughout the campaign.
Kandace McLaughlin is an editor with HealthLeaders magazine. Send her Campaign Spotlight ideas at kmclaughlin@healthleadersmedia.com. If you are a marketer submitting a campaign on behalf of your facility or client, please ensure you have permission before doing so.
An obstetrician and gynecologist is suing Memorial Hospital Los Banos (CA), claiming the hospital retaliated against him because he complained to the state about their standard of care. John Brannigan, MD, says he filed a complaint about conditions in the hospital's labor and delivery area with the California Department of Health Services in 2004. After state officials found that the hospital's quality of care was deficient and told administrators to correct their policies, Brannigan says hospital officials gave him bad recommendations when he tried to find another job.
Concerned Citizens for Spring Hill (TN) Hospital, a group formed to support HCA TriStar's bid to build a 56-bed for-profit hospital in the town, are mounting a campaign and a "citizens rally" in answer to continued opposition from county hospitals. A state panel has twice voted to grant HCA a certificate of need for the hospital, but Williamson Medical Center and Maury Regional Hospital have appealed both decisions. Williamson Medical and Maury Regional say the new hospital would impact them financially and jeopardize their ability to provide quality care.
Richard F. Salluzzo, MD, president and chief executive of Wellmont Health System, has been chosen as the new chief executive of Cape Cod Healthcare Inc. Cape Cod faces a shortfall of revenue in addition to layoffs and cutbacks, and has already undertaken a number of steps to control costs. While with Wellmont, a group of 12 hospitals in Tennessee, Virginia, and Kentucky, Saluzzo was credited with moving the system from a loss to a profit and for efforts to eliminate medical errors.
A day after the administrator of Tarrant County, TX's public hospital was shown the door, experts say sweeping changes at JPS Health Network could continue. The appointment of an interim chief executive is a step in the right direction to improve access of the poor to JPS services and the quality of healthcare for its patients, said Tarrant County commissioners. Under outgoing CEO David Cecero, JPS lost sight of its mission to treat the uninsured and underinsured, some commissioners said. More changes will be also be made as two new hospital board members and a chief executive are chosen, they added.