It takes years to build, but a hospital's reputation can quickly be dismantled with a crisis, especially one that is handled poorly. No "how-to" guide can anticipate every unique problem, intricacy and unforeseen element of a crisis, but communication experts from Jarrard Phillips Cate & Hancock have observed best practices throughout years of experience in crisis management.
In a post from the firm's High Stakes blog, Anne Hancock Toomey shared seven tips to protect a hospital's reputation in a crisis.
1. Develop a hospital crisis communication plan. Organizations that prepare for a crisis and develop a procedure to handle it usually experience the least harm. "Identifying a messenger, key audiences and tactics beforehand can make identifying the right message a whole lot easier when the time comes," writes Ms. Toomey.
2. Stay true to hospital values. It's important to keep the hospital's mission and values in mind when handling the crisis. Ethical principles like integrity, truth and honesty should be at the forefront of the hospital response and help guide the behavior and decision-making of leaders.
3. Tell it first. "An important rule from politics: Never dance to someone else's music," Ms. Toomey writes. "Reluctance to speak first about a situation you are simply hoping will go away has the power to destroy trust you've worked hard to build both internally with employees and your medical staff and with the very patients you serve."
4. Tell it all. Ms. Toomey says that there are no secrets, and hospitals that convince themselves otherwise are putting themselves in danger. "In times of crisis, especially, you earn big brownie points for transparency," she says. She also notes that this can be very difficult and hospitals may be constrained legally to not reveal certain details.
5. Tell it yourself. In a time of crisis, patients, physicians and employees want to hear from hospital leaders. "People trust people, not an institution," says Ms. Toomey. She recommends hospital leaders deliver these messages rather than lawyers, PR teams or nameless statements.
6. Give time to all of your audiences. Rather than rushing to respond to the media, hospitals should aim to keep internal stakeholders, such as physicians, patients and employees, informed. These people can be the strongest advocates of a hospital's brand.
7. Communication doesn't stop when the crisis is over. "A reputation can be destroyed in one day, but unfortunately, it can't be built (or rebuilt) in one day," says Ms. Toomey. She recommends hospitals maintain communication with media, internal audiences, the community and other stakeholders even after the crisis has passed.
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In a post from the firm's High Stakes blog, Anne Hancock Toomey shared seven tips to protect a hospital's reputation in a crisis.
1. Develop a hospital crisis communication plan. Organizations that prepare for a crisis and develop a procedure to handle it usually experience the least harm. "Identifying a messenger, key audiences and tactics beforehand can make identifying the right message a whole lot easier when the time comes," writes Ms. Toomey.
2. Stay true to hospital values. It's important to keep the hospital's mission and values in mind when handling the crisis. Ethical principles like integrity, truth and honesty should be at the forefront of the hospital response and help guide the behavior and decision-making of leaders.
3. Tell it first. "An important rule from politics: Never dance to someone else's music," Ms. Toomey writes. "Reluctance to speak first about a situation you are simply hoping will go away has the power to destroy trust you've worked hard to build both internally with employees and your medical staff and with the very patients you serve."
4. Tell it all. Ms. Toomey says that there are no secrets, and hospitals that convince themselves otherwise are putting themselves in danger. "In times of crisis, especially, you earn big brownie points for transparency," she says. She also notes that this can be very difficult and hospitals may be constrained legally to not reveal certain details.
5. Tell it yourself. In a time of crisis, patients, physicians and employees want to hear from hospital leaders. "People trust people, not an institution," says Ms. Toomey. She recommends hospital leaders deliver these messages rather than lawyers, PR teams or nameless statements.
6. Give time to all of your audiences. Rather than rushing to respond to the media, hospitals should aim to keep internal stakeholders, such as physicians, patients and employees, informed. These people can be the strongest advocates of a hospital's brand.
7. Communication doesn't stop when the crisis is over. "A reputation can be destroyed in one day, but unfortunately, it can't be built (or rebuilt) in one day," says Ms. Toomey. She recommends hospitals maintain communication with media, internal audiences, the community and other stakeholders even after the crisis has passed.
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