Viewpoint: Strategies for Success

Developing Teams During Turbulent Times

By The SHSMD Team posted 7 days ago
To say health care teams have been through turbulent times over the last few years is a gross understatement. No one could have predicted the intensity of the COVID pandemic. Looking back, it may seem nearly impossible to have been able to foster employee development and team engagement while constantly working in crisis mode. Christine Albert, Chief Marketing and Experience Officer at LCMC Health, knows one key priority during times of crisis or sustained crisis is communication. “There has to be a through line of that. Not neglecting to communicate frequently in a bunch of different ways with your teams, but especially during this moment connecting on a ...
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The Future of the U.S. Health System: A Strategic Perspective, SHSMD Blog Exclusive

By The SHSMD Team posted 14 days ago
Paul H. Keckley, Ph.D., Managing Editor, The Keckley Report ( www.paulkeckley.com ) As Yogi Berra famously said “it’s hard to make predictions about the future.” Applied to the U.S. health system, it’s not so hard in the near term but daunting in the long-term. The near-term for the industry a.k.a. the next 3-5 years is predictable: Health care marketing and planning professionals in our $4.3 trillion industry can operate with confidence because the industry’s regulatory constraints, financial models and structural restrictions make radical change difficult. These are the safe bets for the near-term: · Affordability, price transparency and business ...
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Reimagining Workplace Flexibility Amid the Great Resignation

By The SHSMD Team posted 21 days ago
The “Great Resignation” has hit all industries, but health care has been particularly susceptible to its impact. Its important for hospital leadership to understand the challenges behind this new era of workplace mentality—and work towards viable solutions. Rose Glenn, Chief Communications and Marketing Officer, and Denise Beaudoin, Director of Digital Strategy and Engagement at Michigan Medicine, have been surveying staff to gain insights. They weren’t quite expecting the answer they’d get upon asking, “How many days would you like to be here?” The answer? Zero or one. “We were a little taken aback by that. I did really expect people to say two, maybe even ...
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Primary Care Transformation Planning within an Integrated Delivery System

By The SHSMD Team posted 28 days ago
Anyone can design a plan, but what does it take to make sure it gets executed in the way it was intended? At WellSpan Health, there’s a significant focus on engagement all along the planning process. “We set off our planning process with a multi-hour retreat and we engage the service line leadership. Then, we actually engage a variety of our colleagues and stakeholders across the system to be right there at the table with them. We've got our marketers and our communicators and our innovations colleagues join our service line teams as they start thinking about their plans for the future,” states Kelly Dearman, Vice President of Strategy Management. ...
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Why Content Strategy Is So Important for Healthcare Marketing

By The SHSMD Team posted 01-04-2023
The term “strategy” can mean a number of different things to different people. From the C-suite’s perspective, strategy needs to generate results—whatever those desired results may be. Yet, there’s a lot that goes on behind the scenes. Health system leaders need to be able to understand how the visibility, promotion, and engagement of marketing content creates business growth and loyalty. Otherwise, there’s a risk they may not keep investing in content strategy. “I think there's a really big opportunity for us to spend more time with the C-suite so they understand what we do,” states Lisa Williams, Senior Director of Growth and Loyalty at Peace Health. “I don't ...
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Power of the LiveWell App: Liberating the Consumer Identity to Drive Engagement and Transform Outcomes

By The SHSMD Team posted 12-13-2022
In years’ past, “healthcare” really involved going to your doctor’s office or hospital to receive care. In today’s world, it means an entirely different and diverse thing. We have access to care via our phones or tablets, urgent care or walk-in clinics, and even with diagnostic technology like continuous diabetes monitoring. While some of these advances foster convenience, it can also create a very disparate experience for healthcare consumers. Or, as Kelly Jo Golson, Chief Brand and Consumer Experience Officer at Advocate Aurora Health coins it, “discombobulated.” Golson’s goal, along with Jamey Shiels, VP of Consumer Experience at Advocate Aurora Health, ...
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How to Build Your Future Workforce Pipeline

By The SHSMD Team posted 12-06-2022
Hospitals and health systems continue to face acute workforce challenges. Competition for labor remains intense, particularly for nurses. Staffing costs are skyrocketing, especially in small rural hospitals that often find it hard to attract workers. But as the AHA’s recently released 2023 Health Care Workforce Scan points out, member organizations are finding innovative ways to recruit, retain staff and build a robust worker pipeline for the future. The report also offers ways to reconnect clinicians to purpose and how to provide the support, training and technology clinicians need to thrive in multiple care delivery environments. 1 | Collaborate to expand ...
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The Importance of a 10-Year Plan for Professionals in Health Care

By The SHSMD Team posted 10-28-2022
Having a 10-year plan for career growth is essential in almost every industry for professionals to intentionally thrive and maximize their impact and upward mobility. This is especially true in fields that are ever evolving and require strategic navigation like health care. BENEFITS While the downsides of having a 10-year plan are nearly nonexistent, the benefits are nearly endless! Here are some of the most appealing ones. GUIDED DECISION MAKING Having a 10-year plan means that you’ll be operating in your career with intention and purpose. This is crucial to maximizing your overall work experience. Guided decision making will enable ...
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4 Keys to Combat Health Care Workforce Shortage

By The SHSMD Team posted 10-25-2022
Reprinted with permission from AHA’s MarketScan. Subscribe here to receive ongoing MarketScan news. As a school nurse, Valerie Frohwein enjoys her flexible schedule. It matches her 8-year-old daughter’s school day, allowing her to pick up additional hospital experience during summer break and helps fulfill her ambition to one day return to full-time nursing at a hospital. But even though Frohwein has wanted to pick up as-needed hospital work, it hasn’t been a viable option because the hours hospitals offered didn’t match her availability. Then she heard about an Morning Consult survey from last September. Meanwhile, 34% of nurses surveyed by the online ...
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#SHSMD22 Virtual Connections Conference Delivers Expert Insights and Actionable Information

By The SHSMD Team posted 10-18-2022
This blog was written by Alan Shoebridge on Linkedin I had the pleasure of attending SHSMD’s virtual conference on October 12. Overall, it was a terrific extension of the in-person conference that took place the month prior. The one-day virtual conference was filled with useful information on a wide variety of topics. Here are just a few key takeaways from the sessions I attended. ⭐💡🎤 Keynote: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion: A Global Perspective – Dr. Toni Flowers “Information changes perspectives. More information often changes what we think about something that is right in front of us.” “In healthcare – our ...
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How to Reconnect with Patients as the Pandemic Slows

By The SHSMD Team posted 10-11-2022
Research from the consulting firm Oliver Wyman’ s sister company Lippincott has found that many people during the pandemic lost trust and felt increasingly disconnected from other individuals, the media and the federal government. At the same time, there’s been an upswing in connections with employers, businesses and brands, notes Amit Sabharwal, a Lippincott senior partner. This shift creates an opportunity for hospitals and health systems to fill a void, Sabharwal explained at the recent Oliver Wyman Health Innovation Summit . Health care leaders, executives from health care startups and others who spoke at the conference shared ways that provider ...
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During Hispanic Heritage Month, Raul Yzaguirre Reminds Us of the Untold Stories that Must be Heard

By The SHSMD Team posted 09-27-2022
Hispanic Heritage Month is Sept. 15 through Oct. 15, an annual time to celebrate the history, culture, legacy and influence of the Hispanic and Latino communities in the United States. UnidosUS , the nation’s largest Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization (and a strategic partner of the American Hospital Association), hosted a ceremony on Sept. 14 honoring the life and legacy of civil rights activist Raul Yzaguirre. The event was held in Washington D.C. and over 200 attendees gathered to pay respect to Yzaguirre, who dedicated his life to fighting for justice and equality during a time when state-sanctioned discrimination against Latinos was legal ...
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Insights and inspirations from SHSMD Connections 2022

By The SHSMD Team posted 09-19-2022
This blog was reposted with permission from Alan Shoebridge, SHSMD president-elect, and Associate Vice President for National Communication at Providence. Many of us said it repeatedly during the four days of SHSMD Connections 2022, but it was wonderful to see everyone in person at this year’s conference. After two years of disrupted live events, the agenda in Washington D.C. was packed with amazing speakers and inspiring content. All the sessions I attended lived up to my expectations, but a special mention needs to be made to recognize the keynote speakers who inspired the audience and encouraged us to help drive change in healthcare and in our ...
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CVS Health adds home health services. What’s next?

By The SHSMD Team posted 09-14-2022
Shortly after announcing its $8 billion purchase last week of home health care provider Signify Health , CVS Health CEO Karen Lynch proclaimed that the house call is undergoing a “renaissance.” That’s a huge bet on the revival of a care delivery model that not long ago many considered a relic. But with technology changes and the growing flexibility of physicians and nurses to care for aging patients where they are most comfortable, CVS Health saw opportunity. And in the process, the retailer significantly expanded its care delivery reach. 4 ways the Signify Health purchase expands CVS’ reach 1 | More physicians to coordinate care. With the Signify ...
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Modern Space Planning: Eyes on the Horizon

By The SHSMD Team posted 08-30-2022
There’s more to facilities planning than selecting textiles and furniture. This nuanced field is charged with planning for a future they can’t see. Understanding how to navigate the unknowns can set the facilities planner up for success. Facilities of the Future “Keep your eyes out on the horizon and look out ahead,” advises Angelique Kennison, Director of Regional Clinical Planning at Maine Health. “A few months ago, I was at a conference and happened to sit next to a former fighter pilot. She shared with me that anytime she became overwhelmed with the noise and stimuli right in front of her, her mentor would remind her to stay focused on the ...
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Effective Leadership Through Communication

By The SHSMD Team posted 08-22-2022
When you consider your favorite world leaders, many of them were likely excellent communicators. Even on a smaller scale, those considered to be good leaders and bosses are often skilled at communication. Terri Flood, Vice President of Business Development at Wayne Healthcare, notes that “the ability to communicate as leaders, it helps us gain trust and confidence in our teams, and it also helps us to lead better from an employee engagement and patient outcome standpoint, which is important in healthcare leadership.” Not everyone has a natural aptitude for communication. Fortunately, this skill can be developed and improved so you’re equipped with the ...
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Five Thoughts on the State of COVID-19 Vaccination and the Road Ahead

By The SHSMD Team posted 08-11-2022
This is a confusing time in the public health emergency. Americans are thinking less about COVID-19 on a daily basis and many are eager to move on. But COVID-19 hasn’t gone away, as evidenced by quick spread of the new variant, and it will continue to be part of our lives for the foreseeable future. Getting more Americans vaccinated against the virus will help to move us out of the pandemic stage. We can do this by sharing the right message and using trusted messengers on multiple platforms. This is the focus of the AHA’s vaccine confidence initiative, supported by $3 million in grant funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). ...
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Overwhelmed: How to Work, Love, and Play When No One Has the Time

By The SHSMD Team posted 08-09-2022
In America, productivity is valued. We get our sense of identity from work; how much we earn. Some might argue technology is to blame, because suddenly everyone had instant access to the office via their smartphone. But, this phenomenon was present even in the 1980s. That said, technology has certainly contributed to the endless busyness pervasive in Americans’ lives. “Some people think about it as almost a price of admission. That you have to be busy to show you're valuable and worthy,” states Brigid Shulte, Director, Better Life Lab at New America. Physical and Mental Health Impact Shulte notes that some of the most powerful research today ...
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Keep the Goodwill Going: Post-Pandemic Engagement

By The SHSMD Team posted 07-29-2022
The COVID-19 pandemic changed the face of business around the world. In the field of healthcare marketing, it created a unique and timely opportunity to expand and strengthen community reach. Amy Stevens, Vice President of Marketing and Communications at Tidelands Health, reinforces this sentiment. “We weren’t just healthcare providers in the pandemic, we were ordinary people living this unprecedented time. There was an overload of information and misinformation. In the early days of the pandemic, we didn’t know what we didn’t know. Everything was scary, and the information was changing so rapidly it was hard to trust anything. I think that heightened ...
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Creating an Environment for Retention with Internal Communications

By The SHSMD Team posted 07-25-2022
Health care systems are facing a crisis in retaining great employees and recruiting new ones. This perennial problem has only worsened through the pandemic. Internal marketing plays an important role in improving this situation, as well as the working lives of health care professionals. “Corporate communications are key to building workplace culture where teammates feel heard and seen,” according to Diette Casey, Corporate Communications Manager at Roper St. Francis Healthcare. “Corporate communications set the tone for the organization. It’s the voice of the organization. So, we need to see ourselves as playing an integral role in creating culture and therefore ...
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