BUSINESS

Published by Vivas Publications Ltd Martin Mill, Walker Lane Hebden Bridge, West Yorks HX7 8SJ Tel: 01422 847078 e:mail vivshep@aol.com Editor Vivien Shepherd Advertising 01422 847078 Contributors: John Lucas Mike Ramsden David Waters Annual Subscriptions UK 60 Europe 110 Outside Europe 120 Cheques should be made payable to Vivas Publications Ltd Healthcare Business Published 10 times a year Editorial Board: Hamilton Anstead Consultant Tony Billingham MD Carlton Care Group Kevin Craig MD PLMR Mark Ellis Chairman, Pinders Professor Martin Green OBE Chief Executive, ECCA Professor Malcolm Johnson Bristol University Des Kelly Chief Executive, NCF Keith Lewin Senior Partner Brunswicks LLP Elizabeth Mills OBE, Chief Executive eminence-grise Barry Sweetbaum Chief Executive, SweetTree Care Services David Waters MD CHIS Design Campbell Graphics 0161 442 0865 john@campbellgraphics.co.uk www.campbellgraphics.co.uk

HEALTHCARE

he way we communicate has changed. Traditional channels of communication, like print, radio and television remain, but theyre amplified or disrupted by an everchanging suite of online channels with a social dimension at their heart. Social media is still something new to lots of people. It can be confusing. It has its own rules and etiquette. But at its heart, its about a conversation. With one crucial difference; anyone can listen in. As a former BBC journalist and broadcaster, it never ceased to amaze me the information people made publicly available about themselves through social media. I used to get intimate insights into motivations, moans and mishaps. Great story material. Now, as a public relations consultant specialising in broadcast and social media for the healthcare sector, I see first-hand the threats social media can pose to the reputation of a business. Unsubstantiated rumours can spread quickly. Smartphones mean every resident, employee or visitor has a video camera in their pocket, linked to a network of friends and contacts, and just a few clicks away from the traditional media. So social media brings the potential for further reputational threats, to a sector already facing pressure over trust. Surely, managers in the health and social care sector should be steering well clear? Not necessarily, for a variety of reasons 1. Social Media is not going away. My mum is 67, and has just got an iPad. She uses FaceTime to speak to my kids a videophone made real, for those of us who remember it as a distant vision of the future on the BBCs Tomorrow World. Shes only one step away from using Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. If she chooses residential care later in life, she wont be giving up her technology shell be embracing it even more, to keep in touch with her family, just like she does now. In other words, your digitally-enabled residents

arent a couple of generations away. Theyre here now. Surely its better to engage with them, than ignore them? 2. Social Media is great for positive public relations. Say theres been a lovely event at your home, which would make for wonderful publicity. Social media

Social media for care homes an opportunity or a threat?

means you have the power of broadcast. A tweet or a Facebook post even an email - with a photo attached, is a fantastic and positive demonstration of life at your home, and can be sent directly to the family and friends of service users. Its another point of contact, another way to show your business cares about the community their loved one is part of. 3. Social Media is good for your business. Imagine youre a relative of a potential service user, looking for care. Youre more likely than ever to search for a care home online, and when you do, your search engine brings up comments on social media in your search results. Youve whittled the choices down to two homes. Which home are you more likely to choose? The one which, through social media, shows a happy community of people, regularly enjoying fun events together over the last few years? Or the one where its impossible to get a picture of the daily lives of residents? Of course, healthcare business leaders shouldnt make the mistake of thinking social media is a broadcastonly platform. Social media is two-way. Its all about the conversation between your business and your stakeholders and your side of the conversation needs to be managed by someone who has the empathy and experience to deal with some difficult questions from time to time. This job can be difficult. But

the results can be beneficial for your business, enhancing your reputation and building a relationship between your home and the local community that goes well beyond the four walls of a home. Again and again, through contact with clients and care sector experts, weve heard that feeling that somehow care homes are separated from the communities that surround them. Used correctly, social media can be a way to help engagement, to break down any barriers of misunderstanding, and to enhance the reputation of your care home and business. Mike Ramsden is a Senior Consultant, and Head of Broadcast, at PLMR, the leading public affairs and public relations consultancy for the health and social care sector. www.plmr.co.uk To see Mike in action go to http://vimeo.com/65544815

New initiative builds links between HWBs and independent care providers
new initiative to help create stronger links between Health and Wellbeing Boards (HWBs) and independent health and care providers is being set up to ensure that services focus on the individual needs of users. NHS Partners Network (NHSPN) and the English Community Care Association (ECCA) have joined forces to support their members in approaching HWBs but also to help boards develop a clear understanding of what local independent health and care services have to offer the sector. The initiative was developed following a joint survey by NHSPN and ECCA which was sent to members last July to

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explore the current relationship between HWBs and independent providers. Although HWBs are still relatively new the feedback was disappointing and showed a lack of engagement with HWBs. A spokesperson from NHSPN explained: "HWBs are going to be central to health and care reform and it is vital to ensure they have strong links with all local providers in their area. Our main aim is to support our members in approaching HWBs but we also hope to see a willingness on the part of HWBs to work closely with independent health and care providers." Professor Martin Green OBE, Chief

Executive of ECCA, added: "While the results of the survey were very negative and did not show any real engagement between providers and HWBs, we recognise these are still early days for the boards and there have been many demands on them in terms of determining priorities. "However, this sector has a lot to offer and can support the local health and social care economies to meet the integration agenda and ensure services are built around individuals in the community and not in hospital. So it will be important for the Boards to have a clear understanding of the capability and capacity of local independent health and care services."

Healthcare Business