Hospital Marketing Journal

Prevention is Power

by Jon Headlee Prevention is a pretty simple concept to grasp — find the cause of some undesirable outcome...and avoid it. (Which can also mean taking proactive steps that lead to optimal outcomes.) But, as marketers, we all know this: getting people on board with prevention is not quite so easy. After all, not only do we have to lead the horse to water — but we have to figure out how to get him to drink. Prevention and wellness should be leading the charge in our thinking when it comes to marketing our hospitals, but we've got to know how to inspire our patients to get on-board and be accountable to their own health.   An Ounce of Prevention Personal awareness plays an important role in prevention. But, many times, that's the toughest nut to crack — because many of us just don't have a realistic picture of ourselves, especially in terms of our own health. That's why we need a partner to help us get a clear perspective — that could be a spouse, a parent, sure — but, ideally, this person is a doctor (who has less of a personal bias than a family member). Clinicians are working to develop models that can better predict outcomes so that doctors can see the signs and find opportunities for early interventions. We all know that an increased emphasis on prevention and wellness is going to help with rising health care costs — as well as improving outcomes. And, the birth of the mighty EMR is generating vast amounts of patient information that can give us new insights about prevention in real-time. Providers can focus on population health management and outcomes rather than on episodic care that only looks at the symptoms of the moment. Prevention is a strategy. And it touches every aspect of our hospital and its operations — long-term planning, marketing, our culture and the way we deliver services.   Strategic Planning The Affordable Care Act is no longer this thing looming in the distant future. It's here. And it's real. While this is scary to some folks, luckily, smart marketers like us are armed with the knowledge that, by focusing on prevention, we can come out ahead of the rest of the pack. So, exactly how do we increase patient awareness and get them excited about wellness? Major changes in technology have enabled our staff and patients to access information faster — and to use it more effectively. Mobile diagnosis and even treatment increases convenience and immediacy — and provides that instant gratification our society has groomed us to crave. Our consumers are more mobile than ever — they want to interact with us. They want an experience. So let's give them what they want!   Marketing As hospital marketers, we must position our hospitals as places of prevention and wellness. We must provide an experience that is rooted in prevention, in wellness. This requires a holistic approach to content development and delivery, whether we're engaging patients digitally, traditionally or in person. Smartphones are a vital tool to distributing our marketing messages and even health information. In fact, the ability to interact with doctors and health coaches via text message is becoming increasingly popular, giving patients the health relationship they crave. The experience they are looking for. We can use technology and communication tools to build our reputation as trusted resources.   Culture If we expect patients to take charge of their own wellness, then we should expect the same from our employees. After all, if a patient is holding themselves to a high standard, they certainly hold us to one that’s even higher. Not fair, but it's reality. Our interactions with them have to be relevant. Believable. After all, taking health advice from a physician who could obviously take some of his or her own advice is a pretty tough pill for a patient to swallow. We have to walk the talk — and practice what we preach. This builds credibility — and can inspire patients to make changes of their own. Focusing on prevention will also affect how we interact with our corporate audiences. Our industry partners, from our own physicians to insurance and pharmaceutical companies, will have to work more closely with us to achieve positive outcomes. How will each of our roles change? And how will we benefit?   Operations By focusing our business model on prevention, we can provide an efficient back-office experience that eliminates inefficiencies and frustrations — and helps build a healthier organization, both financially and operationally. It enables us to be more proactive than ever, to achieve the ideal healthy state for our hospital. Prevention is a powerful tool in every hospital marketer's bag of tricks. What does a prevention-oriented future look like for you and your hospital?

Wellness at Witham

Here’s to health (and wealth) in 2013! One of our special long-term clients — Witham Health Services — made us proud by making a commitment to improving the overall health of their community. To start tackling this goal, Witham is providing monthly health screenings, seminars and events; each month focusing on a different health related topic. And, then, they handed the reins to us — looking to Ten Adams to spread the word + share the wellness love. We came back with a fun branded look to use for any + all wellness-related messages throughout the year. That’s where our “Well Hello” came in. “Well Hello” is a symbol — a signal to consumers to keep their eyes + ears open for a wellness opportunity from Witham. We used Witham’s signature bright colors — healthy, lively + full of energy. Print ads were designed to include a simple monthly header, demonstrating the consistency + frequency of the messaging (and the depth of Witham’s commitment). We also used Witham’s hallmark blue block from their logo to promote “Stay Well” — another visual cue to a Witham wellness message. The wellness messaging kicked off with a simple brand ad that shared Witham’s commitment to keeping the community well, introducing just what it means to get a “Well Hello” from Witham. It was quickly followed up by the first screening event ad for January followed by February. We’re moving into March + April’s messaging, ready to start bringing this feel-good initiative to life!

A New Model for Success

Anyone working in the healthcare industry knows a new era is upon us. The challenges we're facing today revolve around critical decisions related to new mandates + how they’re (truly) going to affect how we promote health + deliver services. Effectively. Responsibly. As the industry evolves, Ten Adams has evolved right with it. To serve the changing needs of our clients, we have expanded our business model, incorporating operational refinement as an element of our integrated service offering. Here’s what that looks like — the primary elements that build the Ten Adams service portfolio: Marketing, advertising + communications continue to serve at the core of our business--the foundation of our work over the past 25 years. But, without a solid strategy, even the most dynamic marketing will fail to deliver maximum results. Marketing programs MUST drive business outcomes. We understand + appreciate the importance of service line + operational strategy as elements of an integrated solution that delivers maximum results for our hospital clients. We also understand that, at the end of the day, healthcare is a people business.  The importance of ensuring a relationship between a hospital’s brand + its culture can’t be overlooked. The people who deliver the care hold the power to make or break the brand — a fact which became very clear to us seven years ago when we expanded our business model to help hospitals bring their brand positioning to life within their culture, each and every day. Our newest point of emphasis — helping to ensure operating effectiveness — is a natural next step in our own evolution and one that is vital to our clients. Never has there been a more important time for hospitals to deliver at the highest level of operational effectiveness. This requires a delicate balancing act. Our experience helps reveal significant, practical opportunities to improve the efficiency of the organization specifically through frontline managers and employees — without compromising quality of care. We have expanded our team to include professionals with LEAN-certification and administrative, clinical + financial expertise to assist hospitals in optimizing operating results, while maintaining that crucial balance. Simply put, the integration of strategy, marketing, culture + operations has a direct impact on business performance + results. It strengthens competitive positioning + improves market leverage. And at Ten Adams, we’ve built our business model to create the strongest + most distinctive healthcare brand experience possible. A powerful brand experience is critical as we prepare healthcare organizations to lead the industry's transition from volume-driven to a value-focused model of improving health. Ten Adams invites you to be one of those leaders, as we take on the new era of healthcare together.

The Ten Adams Wellness Plan

Workplace wellness is key to the future of healthcare. That’s why we decided to make wellness a priority at Ten Adams. We believe wellness is more than eating right and exercising regularly. We find it equally healthy to let loose and have some fun: MadMen Mondays: Our preoccupation with this TV series could be bordering on the unhealthy, but we believe taking a lunch hour once a week to remind us how to avoid being a ‘diva’ aka ‘Pete Campbell circa Mad Men Season 1’ keeps us grounded. Monday Morning Breakfast: Every Monday morning we start the week off with a nutritious breakfast provided by one of our own. These breakfasts have involved a donut or two on occasion, but more often than not, fruit is available. Birthday Lunches: Every month, we gather together to celebrate birthdays. Our most recent excursion was to Café Arazu in Newburgh, IN, for henna tattoos and fresh Mediterranean cuisine! Massage and Reflexology: Now that’s what we call a fringe benefit! Massages and reflexology available to all staff every other week with Ten Adams footing half the bill. Creative Workshops: In March, we all attended two Creative Workshops. Together we explored the seven characteristics of monster advertising ideas, made play-doh mouse traps and created imaginary tree houses—all in a hard day’s work! Lunch & Learns: At our most recent Lunch & Learn, a CNHP spoke to us about “You are what your body can do with what you eat.” Let’s just say most of us weren’t hungry for lunch after that! Some Healthy Competition: Our recent Brain Games Office Olympics and our yearly NCAA Basketball Pool keep things interesting around here because “if you’re not first, you’re last!”   Individuals at Ten Adams also like to take wellness into their own hands. Ellen is a Marathon Maniac. Scott, Kathy and Bill are avid bikers. Sarah is currently training for Tough Mudder. And, Kris’ idea of wellness is Skinny Girl Margarita & Spanx. Click here to see how the rest of us stay healthy  Remaining healthy, fit and anxiety-free can be quite a challenge during the work week. At Ten Adams we believe if you take the time to enjoy yourself, your coworkers and what you do, everything else can fall into place. Let us know how your company approaches employee wellness by leaving a comment below.

First Annual Brain Games

Due to our work schedule, we couldn’t make it to London for the Olympic Games, so the Ten Adams office was converted for a few hours last Thursday into an Olympic ground. You might say that office Olympics are much more carefree and considerably less competitive than the real Olympics, but the competition at the Brain Games was stiff this year. (Trash talk was accepted and even encouraged!) However, even with all of the excitement and competitiveness going on, pre-games training was not required—just a good attitude and a good sense of humor. At the opening ceremony for Ten Adams’ first ever office Olympics, representatives of the two sides of the brain proceeded  through the event grounds (a parking lot/our backyard) in colorful uniforms (t-shirts) to boost excitement for the contests that followed. Two teams, the Right Brains (Orange) and the Left Brains (Blue) participated in the following games: Bat Spin Relay Race – The Right Brains and Left Brains spun around in circles with their foreheads (and festive brain caps) touching the end of a bat before taking off on a dizzying and potentially dangerous run down to the other end of the yard. Even though the Orange Team got points for style (Debbie, the team captain, took one for the team and nose-dived into the ground), the Blue Team was the first to cross the finish line, leaving them victorious.  The Brain Race– Lauren from the Orange Team and Kathy from the Blue Team wound up their walking toy brains fast and furiously for a mad dash from one end of the conference table to another, but the brains themselves were not so fast (much slower than our Ten Adams healthcare masterminds!). Again, the Blue Team was triumphant, even though there was some questionable activity from the Blue Team’s participants (Nancy!). The Brain Toss – Our last, and perhaps most grueling event was the Brain Toss. Members of the two teams dueled against one another to throw our Ten Adams splatter brains hoping to hit the bullseye.  Unfortunately, due to the stickiness of the brains most didn’t even hit the wall, much less the target. A few made it down to the second floor, and a couple more stuck to the ceiling (something that has become an increasingly regular occurrence around here). Kris’ catlike reflexes allowed her to actually catch a brain, winning style points for the Orange Team, who came out on top for this event. The MVPs were Nancy from the Blue Team and Chris from the Orange Team. Although the Blue Team was awarded with the most medals, the Orange Team held the MOST valuable player, Naiyana, who did all of the artwork for this event. Thank you, Naiyana! When all was said and done, the first annual Brain Games was a success! Ten Adams was energized by the unity and laughter it brought to the team and plans on continuing the Brain Games in the coming years.  How does your company reenergize and build stronger staff relationships? Let us know by leaving a comment below.