Humanising healthcare through COVID-19 and beyond
Abstract
COVID-19 has transformed the world of healthcare, while acting as a catalyst for change on an unprecedented scale. Healthcare and hospital leaders have had to reinvent processes and develop new solutions to combat the virus and adapt to the new reality. In this paper, healthcare brand strategists and management consultants explore how the pandemic has driven innovation that is humanising healthcare on a structural, organisational and experiential level. Drawing from a series of in-depth qualitative interviews (IDIs) conducted with healthcare experience executives across the United States during Fall 2020, this contribution outlines how the industry’s leaders are implementing strategic changes in their organisations to embrace a more empathetic, human model. Supported by the 2020 Humanizing Brand Experience report quantitative survey data from more than 25,500 healthcare consumers, readers will consider the spectrum of shifts that have occurred and will learn about why these changes are likely to stay relevant in the post-pandemic era. This paper concludes with a set of strategies and considerations, including defining strategic brand experience objectives, creating cross-functional experience coalitions, focusing leadership on important experiential areas, hiring for ‘soft skills’, including empathy and communication, aligning incentives with targeted changes, and so on. These recommendations are designed to continue building on pandemicdriven management and leadership innovations in order to foster improved healthcare experiences for consumers, physicians and employees.
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Author's Biography
Christine Holt is Executive Vice President (EVP) and Chief Operating Officer (COO), Life Care Division. Combining creativity and humanism, Chris loves inspiring people to deliver a resident care experience that aligns with their individual sense of purpose and the organisation’s values, creating a seismic cultural shift. Chris has 25 years of healthcare experience, including as Director, Marketing, for Rothman Institute and Nazareth Hospital prior to working as Vice President, Marketing, and then CXO for Redeemer Health. Chris began her career as a post-acute care administrator after earning a bachelor’s degree from Saint Joseph’s University in finance and marketing and a master’s degree in healthcare finance and a master’s degree in business administration from Temple University. Chris believes her role as EVP/COO for Life Care is the culmination of all her experiences providing her with a solid understanding of the interconnectivity between brand, experience and operations.
Cindy Rose has a wealth of experience in marketing, communications experience and brand development. Currently, she serves as Interim Chief Experience Officer at Redeemer Health, where she is responsible for experience, education (non-clinical) and marketing. She has more than 35 years of healthcare experience, including executive management positions at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital, The Cleveland Clinic, Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Ohio, and the Tampa-based Pediatric Health Alliance, where she was Vice President of Marketing and Network Affiliations. She is the President of Rose Development and Marketing, and was previously the Vice President Marketing, Brand and Communications and served as a corporate officer on the board for All Children’s Health System. She holds a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in community and public health from Kent State University. Ms. Rose is a member of several not-for-profit boards in the Tampa Bay area.
Justin Wartell is Managing Principal of Monigle. His more than 15 years of building hard-working brands have made Justin a ‘why do we do that?’ kind of person — challenging clients to think differently about how brands are made and experienced. Justin’s expertise is in insights, analytics and strategy with extensive work mapping experiences around the world. His experience in healthcare is deep but goes beyond including work with Northwell Health, UCHealth, the Denver Broncos, Adventist Health, FedEx, Sherwin Williams, Massachusetts General Hospital, One Main Financial, The New England Journal of Medicine, Quiznos and Tenet Healthcare. Prior to Monigle, Justin led Interbrand’s global retail and consumer branding business.
Citation
Holt, Christine, Rose, Cindy and Wartell, Justin (2021, September 1). Humanising healthcare through COVID-19 and beyond. In the Management in Healthcare: A Peer-Reviewed Journal, Volume 6, Issue 1. https://doi.org/10.69554/FUOH1991.
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