everyday public relations

In the world of public relations there is something to be said for the art of crisis communications. What constitutes a crisis to an organization can vary, from the mild to the severe but the way the practitioner handles the situation is the same or should be. Never has this been clearer to me than recently.

I underwent a major surgery at a well known hospital which is undergoing renovation construction. The work, while an annoyance will ultimately make the hospital bigger and better equipped for handling the large volume of patients and their increasing needs in the community. There are fliers up all over the facility as well as brochures which explain the necessity for the noise and the work crews as well all the other nuisances that come with a major renovation. The literature explains how the construction will benefit the patients and the doctors. I picked up a copy; it was a great piece of pr. It was informative and clear. The public relations director at the hospital and her staff were on the ball.

The rest of the hospital staff however was not all on board, which is often where public relations breaks down. The communication has to be clear, all across the board and the message needs to be disseminated in the same professional manner to all who are inquiring. Most importantly, as a PR professional you need to be prepared to offer options, especially when your changes inconvenience people and even more especially when those people have just undergone major surgery.

So back to me….After a three hour intensive surgery I was taken back to my room. My attentive husband was waiting anxiously for me. No sooner had I opened my eyes then there was this ungodly noise that seemed to increase and spread all around my room. When we asked the nurse about it we were informed that there was work being done directly underneath my room and that they were using a jackhammer. Nice.

My husband politely inquired as to whether this would be a continuous thing and the nurse assured us it would be indeed. A patient representative was sent to our room to explain the circumstances and this is where the communication broke down. She told us that the work would be going on for the next year and said there was nothing she could do. She handed us a pair of ear plugs and smiled as if this would make my bed stop vibrating and the excruciating pain go away. As you may guess, my hubby flipped out and demanded to speak to a supervisor. The Rep stated there was nobody available but herself.

Well to make a long story short, eventually he was able to get a supervising floor manager to come and speak with him and amazingly the story changed. She offered us a choice between a different room on another floor with fewer nurses per patient (not as attentive care) or she could get the crew to hold off for two hours so that I could get some rest. (Plenty of time to knock myself out.) Although this really didn’t help all that much, it was the fact that she gave us options, a choice. As a patient you are a paying customer and should demand excellent service. When a medical facility takes steps to improve their service by taking a step backward they need to be prepared for possible backlash, even if there is not much they can do about it. The best communication plans have room for such contingencies and are flexible. So even if you are working for a small company with little chance for even a minor crisis, be prepared for the worst and make sure your entire staff, even if it is just you, is fully on board.