Effective communications for 100 medical institutions

challenge

Strengthening the role of medical institutions' communication during wartime

Systematic communications in medical institutions, especially state and municipal ones, often remain outside the focus of their management. The reasons include routine tasks, a lack of specialists, and simply underestimating the importance of this area. As a result, too few resources are allocated to communication work.

At the same time, the challenges caused by Russian military aggression are prompting medical institutions to seek a new approach to their ultimate consumer — the patient. According to the Ministry of Social Policy, about 4.6 million Ukrainians have an internally displaced person (IDP) status (as of October 2024). Many have just signed or are planning to sign declarations with local doctors and often require quality navigation, explanations, and support from medical staff. Effective communication is the key to making this process successful.

Implementation of the Medical Guarantee Program also requires medical institutions to provide quality services and actively work on building their brand and attracting new patients. Without effective communication, building trust and fostering an atmosphere of care and safety within the institutions is difficult.

solution

Training, networking, and practical tools: building a community of professional communicators

with patients, including explaining the Medical Guarantee Program, the Internews Ukraine team, with support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Ministry of Health of Ukraine, implemented the project “Establishing Communication Standards for Healthcare Institutions.”

The project brought together 134 participants from 100 healthcare institutions across 13 regions of Ukraine. Priority in the selection process was given to institutions in communities near active combat zones and those serving large numbers of internally displaced persons.

The program consisted of three components:

• an online training program: 6 seminars and 28 training sessions;
• individual consultations, during which experts held 201 meetings with hospital representatives;
• development of 100 communication products for participating hospitals, including brand books, presentations, promotional videos, website texts, SMM audits, content plans for social media, and more.

During the online training course and individual consultations, healthcare managers and communications specialists:

• Learned how to develop a communication strategy for their medical institution.
• Discovered how to respond effectively to crises and adverse situations.
• Received practical tools to successfully communicate with patients on social media and promote their services there.
• Mastered the principles of effective internal communications within medical institutions.

Communication experts from Internews Ukraine, Diana Ishchenko, Anastasiia Kovalenko, Diana Ihnatenko, Nadiia Ushchapivska, Tetiana Domnenko, Denys Petrenko, Roman Skrypnyk, and Kateryna Chystoforova, shared their expertise with participants. Additionally, invited specialists with experience in healthcare, communications in the public and civil sectors, and as consultants in international projects and programs, Anna Tsiatsko, Iryna Zaslavec, Volodymyr Biriulia, Mariia Kravchenko, Yuliia Sukhoparova, Ihor Zastavnyi, Mariia Paselska, and Yuliia Martynenko, also contributed.

To facilitate the onboarding and adaptation of new professionals and provide practical tools for brand development, Internews Ukraine experts prepared and delivered job descriptions for communications specialists, message boxes, templates for technical assignments, and content plans with sample posts to healthcare institutions.

results

Higher-quality communications in healthcare institutions and positive patient feedback

The significant interest from medical institutions in the project (three applications for each available spot) once again confirmed the importance of developing systematic communications in healthcare facilities.

One of the most relevant topics, named almost unanimously by the participants, was crisis communications, especially in the context of launching paid services in hospitals and preempting negative feedback from patients.

Most representatives of medical institutions indicated that thanks to the knowledge and skills they gained, they could improve their digital communications through higher-quality texts and more effective visual solutions.

Posts featuring the success stories of project participants on Internews Ukraine’s social media reached nearly 280,000 users.

At Zaporizhzhia Primary Health Care Center No. 10, internal communication standards were updated: an employer branding campaign was launched, an information portal with newsletters for staff was presented, and a new column, “A Day in the Life of a Doctor,” was introduced.

The Sklifosovsky Hospital in Poltava received a modern logo and brand book thanks to the project. The new visual identity and communication approaches helped the institution successfully present itself at meetings with international partners and during diplomatic visits by the ambassadors of Lithuania and Romania. The hospital’s specialists are currently piloting an online appointment system and developing a newly established Communications and Patient Services Center. Plans also include new projects with the Slovenian center “Maribor.”

The communications specialists at the Mykola Halytskyi Nizhyn Central City Hospital have significantly improved internal communications and patient interaction. The hospital now features new, more convenient navigation, a feedback system, and an “Employee Code of Ethics.”

More positive changes in institutions after participating in the project:

• 60% of surveyed participants reported significant improvements and successes in communicating their services, which led to an increase in the number of patients.
• 23% began planning a budget for communication activities, and 4% increased their communication budgets. Participants emphasize that they took this step primarily thanks to the knowledge gained during the project. Some medical institutions also started developing and implementing crisis management strategies.
• 30% updated their internal communication policies and expanded their communications teams. Nearly half of the respondents (47%) intended to introduce a communications specialist position. In 23 institutions, plans are being made to engage external professionals, such as copywriters, graphic designers, and media specialists, even if they previously had no experience working with them.

Course graduates note receiving positive feedback from patients more frequently after participating in the program. Satisfied and loyal patients are an incentive for medical institutions to continue strengthening their brands, even amid the daily challenges of wartime.