How PR skills can enhance healthcare experience for patients

Public relations skills and strategies are much more than just a business generation tool for the healthcare sector. Kelly Calhoun, vice president of communications at Cincinnati Children’s, said her team looks at those principles as a way to improve patient experience. 

Her 12-person group of PR professionals doesn’t just build awareness; they craft stories and information via video, print, social media and other mediums focused on engaging with its young patients and their families. From tailoring messaging to age-appropriate levels to ensuring digital screens in patient rooms offer comfort, the focus is on creating an approachable and empathetic environment.

Calhoun’s staff includes a dedicated patient and family communications team that reviews all content to make sure Cincinnati Children’s is being “incredibly thoughtful” about things such as reading level and representation.

Similar approaches are taking place at hospitals, dental offices and primary care centers across the country.

“We aren’t just talking to parents, we are also talking to the kids that entrust us with their care,” Calhoun said. “We take that responsibility very seriously.”

Using PR to cut through red tape

Blair Primis, chief marketing officer at Flagship Specialty Partners, views finding ways to make patient interactions simpler one of the biggest patient-centric needs in the healthcare industry. The North Carolina-based company works primarily with dental and oral surgery practices in the southeastern part of the United States.

The goal, Primis believes, should be to make the experience similar to other “low friction,” everyday activities like renewing your driver’s license online or using an app to schedule a haircut.

Part of that process is operational in nature. But Primis believes the communications team should ride shotgun because of their understanding of storytelling and “human condition.”

PR pros working in the medical field also have a more in-depth understanding of current trends in emerging technologies, namely social platforms and AI.

“(Communicators) can think about processes concisely, understand the human condition and have insight into what people want and we’re the voice of the consumer where the voice of the patient inside your organization,” Primis said.

Patient education is key

Both Calhoun and Primis highlighted the impact communications can play in care delivery, especially as it relates to education. By leveraging storytelling techniques and digital tools, healthcare systems can offer patients direct, concise digital or written resources that may ultimately cut down on the amount of time they need to spend with their provider.

That approach only frees up time for physicians and other medical personnel. But it also empowers patients by providing them with a clearer understanding of their care options and how to access them.

Storytelling can also help break down the scariness of what’s occurring through education, Primis said, especially in dentistry.

At Cincinnati Children’s, they use animations, play or games to help explain medical procedures and treatments to their young patients. An example is “Twisted,” a brief animated video on pediatric stroke. Geared toward children in elementary school, the video takes the viewer on a “Magic School Bus”-like tour through their veins and brain. It then explains the condition and treatment for it in very simple language.

The approach there isn’t so much about winning a client as it is calming down a potentially frightened child.

“When you don’t know any better, you tend to defer to it being scary versus being pleasant,” Primis said. “Hopefully through education we can really help change people’s lives.”

Building client-doctor trust 

Selecting a healthcare provider is extremely personal.

Referrals from friends and neighbors are still important, but in many cases, people are turning to Google to find a doctor or dentist. In those cases, the difference-maker will likely make their choice based on how comfortable they feel with the medical team.

One way to get a jumpstart on building that relationship is by sharing thoughtful stories about past patients or testimonials about how their treatment changed their life for the better, Primis said.

“(Patients) need to feel like the provider they’ve chosen is the right one,” he added. “When they see these stories and see the outcomes that patients have, they tend to feel good about the provider and the doctor they’ve chosen.”

Casey Weldon is a reporter for PR Daily. Follow him on LinkedIn.