Each week we email a tip or news that we are covering in Strategic Health Care Marketing. You can view the archives of this weekly ezine below.
“In a health sector bombarded with labels such as InsurTech, HlthTech, FemTech, and AgeTech, it’s no surprise that confusion and mis-categorization run rampant,” says Lindsay Resnick, executive vice president of Wunderman Thompson Health. “And now there’s another category being promoted by consumer-centric health companies bringing a tightly integrated financial and clinical health care experience to Read More
The pandemic forced massive change on the world in a very short space of time. The health care industry shouldered its share of the disruption — and benefited from it, as provider organizations found new ways to safely connect with patients and deliver care. “Change and disruption can be an incredibly positive force in our Read More
When asked in an interview with StartUp Health founders earlier this year if he thought more physicians would pursue business training along with their medical training, Toby Cosgrove, MD, executive advisor and former CEO and president of Cleveland Clinic, said, “Well, I hope so, because health care has become a very big business, and I Read More
Increased economic pressures caused by the pandemic and other factors are making it more important than ever for marketers to partner with their chief financial officers to develop a deeper understanding of finance and demonstrate return on investment for marketing spending. In this COVID-19 age of tight budgets and heightened expectations to produce results, it Read More
People living with HIV live longer, healthier lives when regularly taking antiretroviral medication. But a few decades ago, the fear and judgment for those who contracted this deadly disease were high. Recently a team of health care professionals at Mount Sinai Beth Israel in New York City created a documentary to chronicle the experiences of Read More
Consumer expectations have changed since the pandemic, and patients are shopping for health care much like they shop for retail goods. They want a seamless, Amazon-like digital experience and they expect to schedule an appointment, check in, pay a bill, or see a doctor virtually, all from a mobile device. Moreover, they pay attention to Read More
Infectious-disease specialists are beginning to give the all-clear signal to bring patients and families back for routine care. But luring valued community members back to health care facilities is proving to be a communications challenge. Consciously or not, families have created their new normal, which may include telehealth instead of office visits, reducing the frequency Read More
Things are changing when the CEO of a major health system comprising 14 hospitals — soon to be 18 — tosses around phrases like “health care at any address” and says things like, “We want to be the partner for those people who want to thrive without health care getting in the way.” The definition Read More
“Physicians travel around the globe to donate their time to help others less fortunate, sharing their knowledge and skills while expecting nothing in return except the self-satisfaction that comes from their acts of unselfishness,” says Ross K. Goldberg, president of Kevin/Ross Public Relations and member of the SHCM editorial advisory board. “But what about those Read More
Among all the health care marketing and strategy conferences that had to upend their plans for in-person events in 2020, one had the distinction of being on the leading edge twice. The Healthcare Marketing & Physician Strategies Summit (HMPS or the Summit) was the first conference to make the difficult decision to cancel its live Read More
With more patients using online reviews and social media to air complaints about health care providers, it’s more important than ever for marketers to be at the forefront of this trend and be ready to respond in ways that optimize their organization’s brand. “From reviews on sites such as Google and Yelp to posts on Read More
If necessity is the mother of invention, COVID helped us invent news ways of staying connected virtually. Is it possible to maintain a strong culture if remote work becomes part of the normal landscape? Read an excerpt from our new article by Jean Hitchcock, president of Hitchcock Marketing & Communications, which explores this question. 2020 Read More
As COVID indicators in the U.S. continue on a positive trend and we ease back into normal life, the opportunity for industry colleagues to gather in person again has finally arrived with the Society for Health Care Strategy & Market Development (SHSMD) annual conference. This year, conference attendees have two options. SHSMD Connections will convene Read More
Rod Hochman, MD, president and CEO of Providence, kicked off the Becker’s Healthcare 11th Annual Meeting Virtual Experience in May with a discussion of issues of greatest concern to health care leaders. The conversation between Hochman and Rhoda Weiss, Ph.D., conference co-chair and president of Rhoda Weiss Consulting Group, provided insight into strategies employed by Read More
An industry leader recently used a phrase we hadn’t heard before: “The NEXT Normal.” What has the pandemic taught us? How did it stretch us as an industry, and how can we use what we’ve learned to shape strategies in the future? We asked our editorial advisory board members to weigh in on one question: Read More
Telehealth usage has skyrocketed across the country. In the past year of the pandemic, the weekly number of behavioral health visits increased 25 percent on average compared with before COVID-19. This is due to expanded use of audio and video technology. But a study of insured patients published in Health Affairs found that in poorer Read More
COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy has become the new challenge in conquering the pandemic. Getting vaccines into the arms of vulnerable populations, including underserved communities of color, is a priority despite systemic distrust of the medical field resulting from generations of disparities in health care. “Medical institutions really have to find a way to speak the language Read More
“Disrupt or be disrupted.” That’s the advice Shari Campbell offers to anyone in traditional health care who is concerned about losing market share to retail health care stores as Walmart, Amazon, CVS, and others move into the business. Campbell, marketing director, retail health at MultiCare Health System in Tacoma, Washington, says MultiCare Health began to Read More
COVID forced organizations to adapt quickly. Communicators’ skills were essential in navigating the crisis, and marketing led the way, meeting the extraordinary demand for information. Over the past year-plus, health system marketing departments radically shifted their priorities. The question is: Which COVID-era changes actually moved the industry forward and should remain? Which strategic initiatives have Read More
The status for diversity, inclusion, and health equity initiatives across America? It’s complicated. How do you train your staff about biases toward patients and colleagues when they don’t believe they have any? We all grow up with assumptions and stereotypical views of the world and the people in it. For the health care industry, fair Read More
One organization with too many names leads to an identity crisis and confusion for all involved. It’s a story we’ve heard many times, usually driven by the rapid pace of mergers, acquisitions, and consolidation in the health care industry over the past 10 to 15 years. Brand has become increasingly important as a way to Read More
“The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed a persistent challenge in health care: sharing public health and general health care initiatives with hard-to-reach and historically underserved communities,” says Matthew O’Connor of AdQuick. Here’s an excerpt from O’Connor’s new article: As health care systems and public health departments at the state, county, and local level look to gain Read More
Health systems activate their hospital incident command systems (HICS) during a crisis, but usually the crisis doesn’t last for more than a year as the coronavirus pandemic has. From the start of the pandemic, hospital incident command centers became the temporary headquarters for crisis management. Leaders had to adapt day-to-day to keep their organizations and Read More
If you have been paying attention for the past couple of years, you know there’s been growing talk in health care about health care consumer experience, consumerism and digital health. Telehealth, wearable devices, online portals and scheduling, and other technological advances have caused significant changes in how consumers receive their medical care. It is a Read More
In Peter Hochstein’s new story, he explains how a radio-focused advertising campaign enabled a regional hospital system to significantly increase its telehealth and urgent-care traffic, with relatively low media and production costs. Here’s an excerpt: Radio tends to be a medium that reaches people while their minds are on something else. There are exceptions, of Read More