Hospital Community Leadership For Ongoing SARS-CoV-2 Information. The Time Is Now.

Well, in all honesty, the stupid was held back for eight weeks when the pandemic was early in the community spread of COVID-19 with the economic shutdown, shelter-in-place, and the wearing of facemasks messages. During the initial outbreak, hospitals did a remarkable job communicating with patients, community, government, employees, leading as a credible source of news and information regarding COVID-19.

Image by Fernando Zhiminaicela from Pixabay

These efforts faced significant headwinds due to officials in Washington and state capitals around the country gaslighting the public, contradicting health experts, and spreading false information. Unfortunately, this continues today with an added chorus of celebrity and “conspiracy news” websites declaring the pandemic a hoax and the wearing of facemasks futile.

Phase I of the pandemic is not over.

The grim reality is that the community spread of COVID-19 is resurging again, with new records for positive tests set daily. Hospital ICUs in COVID-19 hotspots are over capacity, and PPE supplies are dwindling.  Even states that took a carefully planned approach to reopen are beginning to experience an increase in COVID-19 cases.   

I get it that we all want to move along and send marketing messages that the hospital has reopened for business.  The need to revive utilization needs to be balanced with the health and wellness mission of the hospital in the community. It’s about taking responsibility and being the leader. The hospital as the source of credible news and information regarding COVID-19, in preventing community and countering false information and promote safe practices such as wearing a facemask and social distancing

The hospital could be returning to pre-reopening conditions.

Amid the seemingly unending tragedy and despair of the pandemic, people need the right potentially life-saving information, not the stupidity of gaslighting officials, the scientifically illiterate, and conspiracy theorists.

While the hospital is reopening, the community engagement practiced during the pandemic must continue with the reposing messages.

It is about continuing education and crisis communication messaging.

The marketing and PR messaging of the hospital and health system should flow along two simultaneous lines. One is educational by providing information and teaching what the individual and the community role in slowing the community spread of COVID-19. The other is treating every message as part of your crisis communications.

The hospital efforts all come down to continuing the educational and crisis communication activities. 

1.       Use social media for continuous communication for updates on the hospitals or health systems activities related to Coronavirus virus preparations and things the public should know. 

2.       Work internally with your employees, admitting physicians, Broad members, and volunteers to share what the hospital and health system is doing. 

3.       When you hear or become aware of stupid related to the Coronavirus, put out a statement to correct the misinformation. 

4.       Create easy to read and digestible educational information sheets on the Coronavirus for use in the community. 

5.       Back to heavy digital and social media use as it’s the fastest method of information distribution and sharing to reach large numbers of people. 

6.       Run print ads, cable spots; radio ads were available and compatible with your messaging. 

7.       Message your community with status updates regularly in the messaging. 

8.       Become the trusted and reliable source of news and information in your community related to the Coronavirus. 

9.       Don’t be afraid to ask the community for help.

For the second mission, PR crisis communications, remember. 

1.       Effective crisis communications are grounded in credible sources. Credibility is about trustworthiness and expertise, as well as a perceived sense of morality. 

2.       Be honest to reduce rumors. Effective crisis communications are frequent, accurate and it does not over-reassure. 

3.       Aim for meaningful actions. Effective communications during a crisis involve persuading people to take harm-reducing steps. 

4.       Draw from experts, not amateurs. Effective communications during a crisis draw on the knowledge of subject-matter experts. 

5.    Be consistent. Consistency of messages is the final and maybe the most critical factor. 

Image by skeeze from Pixabay 

As Charles Dickens writes at the beginning of A Tale of Two Cities, “It was the best of times. It was the worst of times.” 

Tomorrow will never be the same, but it can be different from the past when we are were all caught unprepared.

Michael is a healthcare business, marketing, communications strategist, and thought leader. As an internationally followed healthcare strategy blogger, his blog, Healthcare Marketing Matters, is read in 52 countries and is listed on the 100 Top Healthcare Marketing Blogs & Websites ranked at No. 3 on the list by Feedspot.com. Michael is a Life Fellow, American College of Healthcare Executives. An expert in healthcare marketing strategy, digital marketing, and social media, Michael is in the top 10 percent of social media experts nationwide and is considered an established influencer. For inquiries regarding strategic consulting engagements, you can email me at michael@themichaeljgroup.com. Connect with me on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook. Opinions expressed are my own.

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