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    AKCG Spectrum Article Nov-Dec 2013

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    Anne Klein Communications Group
    The document provides a self-assessment for evaluating a hospital's level of crisis communication preparedness. It outlines six fundamental questions for hospitals to periodically ask themselves: 1) Does the organization have a crisis communication plan? 2) Are approval processes in place to communicate quickly in a crisis? 3) Does communications have the authority and confidence to act in a crisis? 4) Are spokespersons trained and ready? 5) Can key systems be accessed during unusual events? 6) Are plans and policies in place to monitor and respond to social media? The document emphasizes the importance of being prepared to communicate nearly instantaneously during a crisis and having an accessible, actionable crisis communication plan.

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    AKCG Spectrum Article Nov-Dec 2013

    Uploaded by

    Anne Klein Communications Group
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    The document provides a self-assessment for evaluating a hospital's level of crisis communication preparedness. It outlines six fundamental questions for hospitals to periodically ask themselves: 1) Does the organization have a crisis communication plan? 2) Are approval processes in place to communicate quickly in a crisis? 3) Does communications have the authority and confidence to act in a crisis? 4) Are spokespersons trained and ready? 5) Can key systems be accessed during unusual events? 6) Are plans and policies in place to monitor and respond to social media? The document emphasizes the importance of being prepared to communicate nearly instantaneously during a crisis and having an accessible, actionable crisis communication plan.

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    A Crisis Communicator's Self-Assessment

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    The document provides a self-assessment for evaluating a hospital's level of crisis communication preparedness. It outlines six fundamental questions for hospitals to periodically ask themselves: 1) Does the organization have a crisis communication plan? 2) Are approval processes in place to communicate quickly in a crisis? 3) Does communications have the authority and confidence to act in a crisis? 4) Are spokespersons trained and ready? 5) Can key systems be accessed during unusual events? 6) Are plans and policies in place to monitor and respond to social media? The document emphasizes the importance of being prepared to communicate nearly instantaneously during a crisis and having an accessible, actionable crisis communication plan.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    44 views3 pages

    AKCG Spectrum Article Nov-Dec 2013

    Uploaded by

    Anne Klein Communications Group
    The document provides a self-assessment for evaluating a hospital's level of crisis communication preparedness. It outlines six fundamental questions for hospitals to periodically ask themselves: 1) Does the organization have a crisis communication plan? 2) Are approval processes in place to communicate quickly in a crisis? 3) Does communications have the authority and confidence to act in a crisis? 4) Are spokespersons trained and ready? 5) Can key systems be accessed during unusual events? 6) Are plans and policies in place to monitor and respond to social media? The document emphasizes the importance of being prepared to communicate nearly instantaneously during a crisis and having an accessible, actionable crisis communication plan.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    of 3

    C O M M U N I C AT I O N

    A Crisis Communicators
    Self-Assessment
    Here are six questions to gauge
    your hospitals level of crisis
    communication preparedness.
    By Patrick Donohue and
    Christopher Lukach

    We all have that dream. You know

    the one: Youre back in high school, and


    you forgot to study for the big test. You
    wake up in a sweat with the sensation of a
    dumbbell in the pit of your stomach. It is,
    thankfully, a fleeting sensation, when you
    realize it was only a dream.
    Far less fleeting, but not entirely dissimilar, is the feeling communicators have when
    4 Spectrum | November-December 2013

    they are unprepared to navigate a crisis.


    We subscribe to a simple precept: While
    a crisis may be unexpected, it should never
    come as a surprise. At St. Mary Medical
    Center in Langhorne, PA, crisis communication has earned priority status among the
    communication and leadership teams. The
    success of our crisis communication program
    exists because of a top-level commitment
    to preparedness, regular updating, rigorous
    testing, and unrelenting energy.
    Moreover, we have high expectations. At
    St. Mary Medical Center, we periodically
    ask ourselves six fundamental crisis-preparedness questions. Some are tactical, and
    some are cultural. Some rest solely with the

    communicators; others test the strength


    of our multidisciplinary response team.
    1. Does your organization have a crisis
    communication plan? Thats step one,

    and its a biggie. A strong scenario-based


    crisis communication plan based on probability and risk is the ultimate, versatile
    crisis communication resource. For guidance on constructing a strong, actionable
    crisis communication plan, see the sidebar
    Does Your Crisis Communication Plan
    Make the Grade?

    2. Do you have reasonable approval


    processes that permit you to communicate quickly? In todays demand-

    ing 24/7 media landscape, quickly


    is an understatement. Communication must be nearly instantaneous to
    be effective. And its the first response
    to a crisis that sets the tone. For many
    modern crises, living down the first

    Does Your Crisis Communication Plan Make the Grade?


    A crisis communication plan is an essential tool in the
    healthcare communicators toolbox. Unfortunately,
    not every organization that has a crisis communication
    plan has a useful crisis communication manual. With
    todays demanding media and social media landscapes,
    we do not have the luxury of hours or even minutes to
    formulate our first response. And as myriad modern crises
    have demonstrated, if were not quick to fill the vacuum
    of information, someone else will do it for us.
    First, be clear about what is considered a
    crisis. A no brainer, right? Not necessarily. For your
    planning purposes, a crisis is any event that has the
    potential to negatively impact your reputation or ability to
    operate. So while your crisis communication plan needs to
    consider the conventional crises, such as natural disasters,
    terrorism, and on-site acts of violence, it must also include
    those lesser crises and issues that carry the potential
    for great impact: a mismanaged merger or acquisition;
    sudden change in leadership; OSHA or regulatory
    violations; poor performance in a quality and safety rating;
    an inadvertent release of patient-identifiable information,
    etc. Any of these incidents has the potential to come on
    suddenly and to impact the organizations reputation and,
    therefore, its ability to operate.
    Second, make sure your crisis plan has
    actionable information. Too many crisis
    communication plans are policy repositories filled with
    complicated processes rather than actionable work

    statement lasts well beyond the events


    actual resolution. Communicators need
    to act quickly and without the delay of
    a lengthy approval process. The crisis
    communication plan helps this process
    by providing pre-approved, pre-vetted
    statements that reinforce your values
    without speculating. But communicators also need a certain amount of
    leeway. This leads us to the next step.
    3. Do you have the authority and confidence to act in a crisis? Earning a

    seat at the table status is a persistent


    cultural challenge for hospital and
    health-system communicators. But having the ear and respect for administration
    is a must for a successful program of
    crisis preparedness and response. The
    confidence of your leadership team can
    be a challenge to cultivate. You earn
    your seat routinely when you provide

    plans. Our crisis communication plan philosophy is


    simple: if it doesnt offer the necessary information and
    communication framework to respond within 15 minutes,
    it isnt prepared to do its job. Remove speed bumps by
    getting the plans contents pre-approved by legal and
    administrative teams.
    Third, make sure it is accessible. A well-designed
    plan is worthless if you cant find it precisely when you
    need it. Security and confidentiality are important, but not
    if they undercut the plans accessibility. Following a recent,
    innocuous bomb threat to our hospital, our response was
    impacted because the administrative first responders
    were not clear about location of the nearest plan. Now,
    at St.Mary, aside from a hard copy with each member
    of the leadership team, we keep multiple hard copies
    near the command center and key locations, and a copy
    with the hospitals switchboard operators. Modifiable,
    interactive, intranet and thumb-drive versions are also
    available to the communication team.
    Fourth, train your crisis response team in using
    the plan, then offer periodic refresher trainings.
    Spotlight the resources within the plan: the roles and
    responsibilities of the crisis communication team and
    how the plan can be accessed. And, most important,
    regularly test the contents using complex and difficult
    scenarios. Bend them. Stretch them. Break them. In the
    end, your plan will be stronger, and your hospital best
    prepared to weather a storm.

    counseling on a myriad of issues, demonstrating your clear and reasoned thinking


    and your broad understanding of the
    healthcare business. Leaders also like
    to know that you have tested experience
    and have been through some battles.
    4. Are your spokespersons trained and
    ready? In a crisis, it is ideal to have a

    single, primary spokesperson to keep


    the messaging consistent. But different
    situations require different backgrounds,
    skill sets, and levels of authority. At St.
    Mary Medical Center, we maintain a
    stable of spokespersons comprising executives (CEO, COO, CMO, and, of
    course, the marketing and communications director) and technical experts (director of security, director of quality and
    patient safety, CNO, CIO, HR director,
    foundation director, and vice president
    of mission). Each is trained to focus on

    key messages in answering questions,


    and we provide periodic refresher training. Even those organizational leaders
    who may not be spokespersons in
    the microphone-and-camera sense are
    trained in the fundamentals, ensuring
    internal and external messages are consistent. We reinforce the process through
    practice.
    5. Can you access key systems during an
    unusual event? As with many hospitals

    and health systems along the Eastern


    seaboard, Superstorm Sandy impacted
    St. Mary. While stranded at home without power, much of our communication
    team was unable to access our network
    and, therefore, put into action our crisis
    communication plan. Ensure your team
    has back-up processes to access the major
    communication vehicles in the event of a
    (Continued on page 10)

    November-December 2013 | Spectrum

    A Crisis Communicators
    Self-Assessment
    (continued from page 5)
    severe incident. This could mean anything from home generators, to mobile
    tethering software (to access the Internet
    from your mobile device), to a simple
    list of local libraries with internet access.
    Or, designate a representative to staff
    the hospital command center, where
    generator access to power should be
    uninterrupted. And, as if we needed it,
    heres another way social media changes
    the game your hospitals Facebook
    and Twitter presence may be all you are
    able to access with limited power and
    mobile access. Use them.

    6. Do you have the plans and policies to


    monitor and respond to social media?

    St. Mary and Anne Klein Communications Group developed a proprietary and
    focused Social Media Crisis Communication Plan to complement the hospitals
    broader crisis plan. Beyond assigning
    team responsibilities, the plan takes the
    guesswork out of social media activity,
    assigning an if-this-then-this workflow
    strategy to evaluate influence and risk.
    If you answered yes to these questions,
    you are ready. (Be sure you update your crisis preparedness plan at least yearly.) If you
    are in doubt regarding the answers to these
    questions, its time to take a hard look at
    your crisis preparedness strategy. And if you

    answered, no, then its time to have


    a heart-to-heart talk with your CEO.
    Patrick Donohue
    Marketing & Communications Director
    St. Mary Medical Center
    Langhorne, PA
    215-710-6908
    PDonohue@StMaryHealthcare.org

    Christopher Lukach, APR


    Senior Vice President and COO
    Anne Klein Communications
    Group, LLC
    Mount Laurel, NJ
    856-866-0411 ext. 15
    Chris@annekleincg.com

    The SHSMD
    Advantage
    Continuing its commitment to
    providing members with practical,
    timely resources, SHSMD has just
    released the 2014
    Calendar of Health
    Observances &
    Recognition Days.
    The easy-tonavigate online
    calendarback
    in PDF format
    gives you quick,
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    Its perfect for
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    thats required to
    access this great
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    SHSMD membership. 2014 will be here before you know it, so visit
    www.shsmd.org/calendar, and start planning today.
    10 Spectrum | November-December 2013

    SHSMD Datebook
    January 2014: Futurescan 2014 released
    October 1215, 2014: Connections
    2014, SHSMDs Annual Educational
    Conference and Exhibits, San Diego, CA
    For more information on these and other
    professional development opportunities,
    go to www.shsmd.org.

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