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Taking Time to Listen
The Problem
Gulf Coast Medical Center has served the healthcare needs of Wharton, Texas and the surrounding area since 1987. The hospital is operated by Houston-based Signature Hospital Corporation (SHC), which purchased the hospital in 2006.
SHC approached Waller & Company about helping to improve public perceptions and communication efforts for its Gulf Coast Medical Center. The hospital was planning to announce major capital improvements, but it also faced increasing competition for patients and business from other area hospitals and needed help addressing several potentially negative issues with employees and the community.
The Solution
Waller & Company first conducted a series of focus groups with Wharton residents and Gulf Coast employees to obtain their views and opinions on a variety of hospital-related topics. Participants’ feedback on these “hot” issues was extremely helpful as Waller developed a comprehensive PR/marketing plan to help the hospital address a wide variety of issues ranging from perceived lack of community involvement and competition from other hospitals to general community awareness about new hospital departments and technology, physician recruitment efforts and improved communication with employees.
The Result
Waller helped Gulf Coast Medical Center implement a PR campaign to improve communications with the community and its employees, earning positive feedback from these important audiences and its parent company SHC. The hospital’s $20 million capital improvements campaign was successfully announced by SHC to the community soon after.
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