Research shows that LGBTQ people face discrimination, which impacts their physical and mental health. The Health Equity Index defines industry best practices and recognizes progress achieved by health care organizations. // By Althea Fung // Health care is a necessity. But not everyone has equal access to medical services, which can negatively impact a person’s Read More
Assuring timely access to care — an individual’s ability to obtain health care services — has always challenged payers, providers, and without doubt, consumers. The industry’s constant back-and-forth blame game over cost and access must end. Customers are listening, and so are competitors. Recent market moves are making care more widely available than ever before. Read More
Telemedicine technology connects community hospitals with specialized experts, closing gaps in knowledge and keeping care local. // By Jane Weber Brubaker // When patients in a rural community get sick and need access to intensive care or specialized care, the typical small community hospital — if there is one — doesn’t have experts on-site to Read More
Retail providers are expanding, and health insurers are profiting, but timely access to needed care remains elusive for many. // By Lindsay R. Resnick, MHA // Assuring timely access to care — an individual’s ability to obtain health care services — has always challenged payers, providers, and without doubt, consumers. The industry’s constant back-and-forth blame Read More
Remote patient monitoring — inside and outside the four walls of a hospital, with real-time connections between patients and providers — offers benefits to both. During the pandemic, hospitals needed to efficiently provide care to more patients without compromising safety, doctor-patient engagement, quality of care delivery, and patient satisfaction. Higher consumer expectations, increased digitization, and Read More
Real-time connections between patients and providers — inside and outside the four walls of hospitals — offer benefits to both. What are the strategic implications? // By Chintan Prajapati // Higher consumer expectations, increased digitization, and the Covid-19 pandemic have all contributed to the trend toward monitoring patient health remotely. This new frontier has ushered Read More
We’re all storytellers these days. Well-told stories have the power to influence behaviors and decisions. We tend to “lend an ear” to our neighbors. Community experiences matter, which is why tapping former patients from small towns and cities across a vast geographic service area made perfect sense to Geisinger for its health care brand journalism Read More
Patients speak from the heart about their health care experience at Geisinger in unscripted videos shot from their hometown. “What’s more powerful than that?” asks the health system’s marketing chief. // By Marcia Simon, APR // We’re all storytellers these days. Well-told stories have the power to influence behaviors and decisions. We tend to “lend Read More
In most industries, digital transformation is more than a simple buzzword. It’s a connected experience for customers looking for access, convenience, on-demand service, and an expected good outcome. In health care, a two-plus-year pandemic accelerated the forces underlying these challenges, continuing to raise consumer expectations in an industry that historically struggles with real change for Read More
“Growth means different things to different organizations at different times,” says Daniel Fell of Optum. “One thing is very clear, though. The role of marketing has never been more critical.” Here’s an excerpt from Fell’s new article: We recently turned to several leading health care marketers across the country, representing a variety of health care Read More
// By Brian Griffin // Two tragic events sparked Johns Hopkins Medicine to strengthen its commitment to racial justice and HEDI through microsites and community outreach. In May 2020, the killing of George Floyd rocked the nation and sparked civil unrest and cries for racial justice that continue to reverberate today. At Johns Hopkins Medicine Read More
University of California at San Francisco (UCSF) Health Creates a Coordinated Patient Experience with Persistent Cross-Functional Teamwork // By John Marzano // Incredible advances in health care over the past 20 years have dramatically improved patients’ outcomes and lives. Yet care remains difficult to access, expensive, inequitable, and falls short of consumer expectations despite advancements Read More
// By Daniel Fell // Growth means different things to different organizations at different times. One thing is very clear, though. The role of marketing has never been more critical. In part one of our feature series on health system growth, The Growth Imperative and Why Marketers Must Lead, we explored why growth is essential Read More
“Growth is important for every organization,” says Daniel Fell of Optum. “Whether it’s for-profits or not-for-profits, start-ups or established market leaders, every business depends on some level of growth to succeed in the near term. Growth is also essential to long-term sustainability, especially when navigating dynamic markets and overcoming unforeseen market disruptions.” Here’s an excerpt Read More
UCLA Health is emerging as a national leader in addressing racial inequities in health care and across society. In light of growing local and national awareness, the health system became one of the first health care organizations in the country to form an Office of Health Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion. “It’s perhaps the most visible Read More
// By Daniel Fell // Growth is far from one-dimensional and shouldn’t be thought of in terms of new patients and new revenue only. Growth is important for every organization. Whether it’s for-profits or not-for-profits, start-ups or established market leaders, every business depends on some level of growth to succeed in the near term. Growth Read More
As diversity, equity, and inclusion continue to increase in importance, Advocate Aurora Health has been making strong progress in connecting online with the more than 2.2 million Hispanics who live in its service area. The Illinois and Wisconsin provider launched a market-wide social media initiative at the end of 2019 designed to “position the organization Read More
// By Brian Griffin // A prominent West Coast health system is building a care environment, work culture, and community presence that takes health equity, diversity, and inclusion to the next level. UCLA Health is emerging as a national leader in addressing racial inequities in health care and across society. In light of growing local Read More
// By Brian Griffin // One of the Midwest’s largest health systems is effectively using social media to reach its Spanish-speaking population with information about COVID-19 and important health services for the community. As diversity, equity, and inclusion continue to increase in importance, Advocate Aurora Health has been making strong progress in connecting online with Read More
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in West Virginia, with more deaths each year than breast, cervical, and colorectal cancers combined. According to the 2019 West Virginia Cancer Burden Report, lung cancer accounts for 18 percent of all new cancer diagnoses in the state. Only 22 percent of those receiving a lung Read More
// By Althea Fung // In a rural state with the highest smoking rates in the country, lung cancer screening is a critical need. WVU Cancer Institute built on its legacy of finding new ways to serve remote areas and offer patient education. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in West Virginia, Read More
COVID testing. Vaccines. Health equity. Do they fall under public health or clinical care? In most cases, it’s both, or should be. The gap between hospital-based clinical care and public health is shrinking, as community health initiatives increasingly focus on wellness and prevention. Health systems typically function as separate entities. Nationwide, the drive for revenues and Read More
// By Marcia Simon, APR // “Medicine and public health share a common mission … however, important differences have prevented their integration and effective working collaboration,” says the author of a 2020 NIH publication: Covid-19: An Imperative to Bridge the Gap Between Medicine and Public Health. The work of the King County Hospitals for a Read More
Getting a cancer diagnosis is bad enough. Having to jump on the freeway and drive two hours each way to access care adds significantly to the stress. But that’s what many residents of Orange County, California did when they needed highly specialized cancer care. “Your first shot is your best shot, because it’s really important Read More
// By Jared Mauskopf // Health care organizations are increasingly under enormous pressure to offer the best digital tools to their patients. But before you set out to develop a health care application, you’ll need to make a number of key decisions — not least whether you should opt for a mobile app or a Read More