As COVID-19 cases decline and vaccinations increase, hospital marketing teams have the opportunity to broaden their messaging and refocus their strategies.
Below, seven hospital marketing executives share what their organization's marketing focus will be during the second half of 2021.
Editor's note: Responses have been lightly edited for clarity and style.
Jigar Shah. Chief Marketing Officer at Providence (Renton, Wash.). During the pandemic, front-line caregivers in our family of organizations built an unprecedented level of trust with the communities they serve. Providence teams scaled up alternate pathways for accessing care such as virtual care, in a matter of days. As we come out of the pandemic, our focus will be to tap into our brand unification work to tell caregivers’ stories of providing world-class care through a unified network. We will also increase our investment in consumer insights so that we can continue to adapt and serve our communities better.
Karen Wish. Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer at Mount Sinai Health System (New York City). Our marketing and communications team will be working on brand building, supporting volume growth and continuing our commitment to organizational excellence in the second half of 2021.
Sandra Mackey. Chief Marketing Officer at Bon Secours Mercy Health (Cincinnati). It goes without saying that 2020 was the most challenging year for consumers across the globe. Communicating and sharing critical information with our audience as they navigated the many issues related to COVID-19 was of paramount focus for us. Our goal is always to make healthcare easier.
In the first half of this year, we continued to deliver messages of reassurance while encouraging our audience to partner with us to make their health care a priority.
During the second half of the year, we will continue to reassure and serve as a trusted partner for our patients and communities, encouraging PCP visits, screenings and other preventative services. In addition, we are leveraging a variety of technologies to help meet consumers where they are. Offerings like virtual care are no longer revolutionary tools – rather, it’s table stakes! Making sure we continue to utilize data and analytics to get more granular about our patients’ needs, while constantly learning more about people seeking healthcare allows us to meet consumers where they are at a time and place that suits them.
Suzanne Bharati Hendery. Chief Marketing and Customer Officer at Renown Health (Reno, Nev.). Our focus at Renown Health for the remainder of 2021 is to build a better online and in-person experience. Through the pandemic, we’ve seen significant increases in virtual visits, hospital at home tech advances, and MyChart users. Now that more people are returning for care, our goal is to help customers find the care they need quickly, and for it to be an exceptional experience. We are launching a consumer-friendly, state-of-the-art, digital website experience at www.renown.org and adding new convenience features to MyChart.
Mark Geary. Interim Head of Communications at Beaumont Health (Southfield, Mich.). At Beaumont Health, during the second half of 2021, we will focus on continuing to educate people about the importance of getting vaccinated. We will also focus on reminding patients to get regular check-ups, exams and screenings they might have postponed because of the pandemic. In addition, we will devote time and resources to making healthcare more accessible to our patients via new outpatient centers in our communities.
Jennifer Taylor. Senior Marketing Director at Steward Health Care (Dallas). Steward Health Care will be focused on empowering our patients with the education and resources to proactively address health concerns — from annual checkups to more serious screenings or treatments — that may have been delayed over the last year, with our 40,000 front-line heroes coming together to serve our local communities and help our neighbors live longer, happier, healthier lives.
Dan Weaver. Vice President of Communications at UCHealth (Aurora, Colo.). Right now, it is important for us to continue communicating the message that getting the COVID-19 vaccine is important to help protect yourself, your family members and others you’re around. We are providing factual answers to the questions people may have about the vaccines while preparing for the likelihood that booster shots may be needed later this year or in 2022.
We also know that many people delayed visits with their primary care physician or canceled screenings like colonoscopies. Preventive care measures are essential to keeping people healthy, lowering health care costs and avoiding more serious conditions, so UCHealth will continue to encourage people to take care of themselves by scheduling these important visits.