News

March 2023

By Carisa Brewster, Staff Writer and Media Relations, Whitman Partners

Whitman Partners, the talent agency for Directors of Surgical Services, conducted a report on “Diversity Hiring in Healthcare,” which provides data to support DEIB (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging) initiatives in perioperative services. The report surveyed 100 healthcare professionals across the United States involved in recruiting, hiring, and training individuals in perioperative positions.

Leadership commitment was deemed the most crucial factor for creating a diverse and inclusive organization, according to 71% of respondents. Attracting, retaining, and mentoring staff were identified as leading solutions for increasing the recruitment and retention of BIPOC candidates. Having a diverse workforce positively impacts BIPOC healthcare professionals, staff retention, culture, profit margins, and quality of patient care.

On the importance of having staff who can translate to communicate healthcare information to patients, Kendall Carter, MBA, BSN, RN, said: “Patients want to be respected and valued, and part of that comes from respecting the parts of their culture that we may not normally experience.”

Read the full article here ‘The Value of DEIB in the World of Perioperative Services’ here.

February 2023

By Kennedy Soileau, Chief Communications Officer at Washington State Health Care Authority

We often find ourselves working at a pace that requires us to be both tactical and strategic. It can be challenging to balance these two aspects of our work, but there are strategies to stay focused on the big picture while still delivering on the day-to-day needs of the organization. Here are some tips for strategic thinking in a tactical environment. Read ‘Strategic Thinking in a Tactical Environment’ here.

January 2023

By Alan Shoebridge, Assoc. Vice President for National Communication at Providence & HCNW At-Large Director

For the last three years, almost every article looking ahead to the new year offered some type of prediction that healthcare would return to what it looked like prior to the pandemic. Nobody is saying that about 2023. Disruption on many levels is here to stay.

What does that mean for the new year? It’s likely that healthcare communicators will again be dealing with periods of opportunity and chaos. Just like the last three years, we will be tasked with helping organizations move through that uncertainty toward the future. Read on about what we know – and don’t know – about 2023 and what communicators can do to be successful.

August 12, 2022

By Kelly Bantle, Principal at Allegiant Strategies NW and HCNW President

Thrust into an unprecedented pandemic of global scale in our modern time, crisis became a day-in and day-out reality dragging on for years. Within healthcare, the impacts are near countless and immensely profound, affecting operations, staffing, and service delivery, coupled with the health and wellbeing of our patients and communities. The far-reaching disruption and impacts of the pandemic did, however, illuminate many new mindsets and better practices, including around crisis communications. [Read more]

June 3, 2022

By Kelsey Huwaldt, Assoc. Dir. of Internal Communications at OHSU & 2022 HCNW At-Large Director

We have all heard: communications should start with your employees. They are your brand ambassadors, your champions, your frontlines. We all believed it and wanted to build strategy that way. But, in 2020, it became more true than ever before.

The guidance and regulations around COVID were changing daily, if not more, as we learned more about this virus. The public looked to health care employees through these frantic moments, and getting employees information, and quickly, became more important than ever. [Read more]