By Peter Hochstein I once knew an advertising creative director who said his constant prayer was, “Grant me the luxury of a tightly written creative strategy.” The following strategy would most certainly have answered his prayer: Position UC Irvine Health as Orange County’s top destination for cancer care. Leverage our status as Orange County’s only Read More
Consumers want ease, convenience, and price transparency when purchasing health care—all the things they have when purchasing everything else. This means they are now assuming a more active role managing their health care decisions through participation in consumer-directed health plans (CDHPs), which have been around for about 10 years, and more recently through public and Read More
by Jane Weber Brubaker A seven-minute home video titled If Air Travel Worked Like Health Care made its debut on YouTube in 2010 and subsequently went viral. The video features a hapless customer struggling to book a round-trip flight through a fictitious airline, Air Health Care, and nail down the cost. The man’s frustration level Read More
While many hospitals grapple with how best to use their social media efforts, Advocate Health Care in Illinois leads by example. This faith-based health delivery system has developed a comprehensive social media strategy that supports its broader communications goals on multiple levels. As the largest health system in Illinois, and one of the top five Read More
Hill Country Memorial (HCM) in Fredericksburg, TX—a nonprofit organization serving a rural area with a population of just 10,000—might seem like a long-shot for a prestigious national award. Nonetheless, HCM was one of just four organizations nationwide to receive a 2014 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award for achieving excellence in its efforts. Back in 2007, Read More
by Lisa D. Ellis Hill Country Memorial (HCM) in Fredericksburg, TX, is a small community hospital that’s accomplishing big things. It was one of four organizations nationwide to receive a 2014 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award for achieving excellence in its efforts. Now, Hill Country Memorial plans to use this national recognition as a platform Read More
In a new SHCM article, Stewart Gandolf, CEO of Healthcare Success Strategies, writes that: Clinical service department profitability is a constant challenge for hospitals. That’s nothing new. What’s changed, however, is just about everything else. He explains how patients, newly empowered, now regard medical services through the critical eyes of retail shoppers. Health care reform, Read More
by Jennifer Busick At a health care center in Florida, patients who were undergoing radiology procedures believed they were receiving injections of a narcotic painkiller, fentanyl. What they didn’t know was that a radiology technician at the clinic was injecting himself with the fentanyl and then refilling the syringes with saline solution. Although fentanyl is Read More
by Lisa D. Ellis While many hospitals are grappling with how best to use their social media efforts, Advocate Health Care in Illinois seems to be leading by example. This faith-based health delivery system has developed a comprehensive social media strategy that supports its broader communications goals on multiple levels. Better yet, it includes an Read More
by Stewart Gandolf Clinical service department profitability is a constant challenge for hospitals. That’s nothing new. What’s changed, however, is just about everything else. The newly empowered patient now regards medical services with the critical eye of a retail shopper. The dynamics of health care reform, facility mergers and acquisitions and increasingly intense competition have Read More
While it may seem like any time of year is a good time to spread the word about your health care system, the open enrollment period under the Affordable Care Act presents a particularly prime opportunity. This is a time of year when even people in good health have reason to pay extra attention to Read More
by Peter Hochstein Is there a best time of year for health care marketers to advertise? In light of current events, the answer may be yes. That special time is the open enrollment period under the Affordable Care Act. During open enrollment season, even people in good health have reason to pay extra attention to Read More
Many hospitals are acquiring physician groups at a rapid pace. But in the operational process of incorporating new practices into the larger organization, it’s crucial that hospitals don’t lose sight of their end goal: getting a good return on their investment. Daniel Weinbach of the Weinbach Group, Inc., in Miami, FL, points out that all Read More
by Lisa D. Ellis Many hospitals are acquiring physician groups at a rapid pace. But in the process of incorporating new practices into the larger organization, it’s crucial that hospitals don’t lose sight of their end goal: getting a good return on their investment. Thinking strategically Daniel Weinbach of the Weinbach Group, Inc., in Miami, Read More
Satisfied patients are a powerful marketing tool for health care organizations, as one hospital learned when it overhauled the scheduling and management of its operating rooms (ORs). The efforts led to increased efficiency and patient satisfaction and helped boost profitability. Dr. Adam Blomberg, Vice Chief of Anesthesiology and Co-Medical Director of the Surgical Services Executive Read More
Welcome to the fifth and final installment in our welcome series. (You can read the previous installments here.) Over the past several days, we’ve tried to give you a small sampling of all the great information we provide, from exclusive stories on brand management to in-depth case studies of successful health care marketing campaigns around Read More
Hello! Thanks for continuing to follow along in our ezine welcome series. If you missed any of the previous installments, you can check them out here. Brand management is a huge concern for many health care organizations these days, particularly given the trend toward consolidation of facilities and service lines. So we’re giving you a Read More
We’re back—and today we’ve got something special for you. (If you missed the first or second installments in our series, you can read them here.) Peter Hochstein is a veteran New York copywriter, and he’s written for some of the biggest and best in the industry. Over the years, his employers have included Ogilvy, Benton Read More
Hello again! We’re back with Part 2 of our welcome series. (If you missed Part 1, you can read it here.) Today, I’m asking for a favor. Will you tell me about your work? Specifically, I’d like to know: What are the 3 biggest challenges you face in your health care marketing efforts? Even if Read More
I’m pleased to welcome you to the brand-new Strategic Health Care Marketing weekly ezine. As you may be aware, my company, Plain-English Media, acquired Strategic Health Care Marketing and eHealthcare Strategy & Trends this summer from Health Care Communications. (If you’re interested, you can read the official press release about the acquisition.) For over 30 Read More
by Cheryl L. Serra Satisfied patients are a powerful marketing tool for health care organizations, as one hospital learned when it overhauled the scheduling and management of its operating rooms (ORs). The efforts led to increased efficiency and patient satisfaction and helped boost profitability. Dr. Adam Blomberg, Vice Chief of Anesthesiology and Co-Medical Director of Read More
// By Susan Dubuque // Last year, Strategic Health Care Marketing published a series of three articles on Racing to Wellness. This year, we delve further into the evolution of our profession in a rapidly changing environment. As we move away from conventional promotions intended to drive volumes, we will explore the reinvention of marketing Read More
by Peter Hochstein It all starts with mysterious-sounding music, images of equipment and people you can find at any hospital, and a young child’s voice. All together, they make magic. There’s a picture of a hospital bed with a teddy bear lying on it. “Secret lair,” confides a little girl’s voice, barely above a whisper. Read More
by Patricia Chaney With reimbursement cuts, increasingly price-sensitive consumers and payers, and the development of accountable care organizations, independent outpatient facilities stand to take market share from hospitals. Outpatient imaging and ambulatory surgery centers pose steep competition for hospitals in certain markets, but with all providers struggling to balance reimbursements and payer negotiations, there’s more Read More
by Cheryl Haas Whether the cause is super-sized portions, pedestrian-unfriendly suburbs, or too many hours in front of the computer (or some combination of the above), Americans are becoming bigger at an alarming rate. The growing numbers of morbidly obese adults and children are fueling an increase in weight-loss surgery and medical weight-loss management services Read More