Your job depends — at least in part — on communicating with doctors, right? You need to make sure you know what your physicians want, see that your business goals are matched with theirs and make sure you win as much loyalty as possible. And you certainly need to make sure every deal you do with them is kosher, legally and financially, something that requires just a bit of trust.
And how do most healthcare organizations establish this warm-and-fuzzy connection? Well, we’re probably talking about a few meetings, a few e-mail messages, some paper mail and maybe a party or two. It’s irresistable!
OK, sarcasm off. The truth is, while healthcare organizations do a decent job of reaching out to consumers, I’d give most a C-, at best, at communicating with clinicians. Executives may attempt to speak to doctors, but it’s from some sort of ivory tower which, as I see it, usually isn’t compatible with straight talk.
So, what to do? Well, I’ll admit it: as a media and community dev specialist, I’d argue that it’s time to bring some professional media smarts to the doctor-exec relationship. A few on-point newsletters with zero fluff, a complete and intelligently designed Web site, thoughtful tweets or a slick magazine — any of these can work.
The bottom line is that whether you go the media route, or just get someone with a gift for plain speech to take a look at your communications strategy, it shouldn’t be an afterthought. There’s just no excuse for trying to rule by fiat — or pomposity.
And another thought…
You can find videos like these all over the Web:
But how often do you see a video that addresses physicians’ daily needs? Their business plans? Their professional expectations? Seems to me that the communications department doesn’t touch that stuff.
