St Petersburg College W6 Downsizing the Nursing Staff Discussion

At a local hospital, a decision was made recently to downsize the nursing staff. The local television station sent a reporter and camera crew to interview the administrator regarding the impact of this action on patient care. After 20 minutes of filming the interview, the reporter left. That evening, a 15-second segment of the interview was shown that left an unfavorable impression regarding the impact on quality. The administrator wondered what went wrong. Explain how more control could have been used to send out the message about the downsizing.

reply 1

The communication process in marketing refers to the organization’s method of the most strategic and effective communication with their target audience (Berkowitz, 2017). Components of effective communication for an intended message include a sender, a receiver, the process of encoding the message, the message itself, the channel chosen to carry the message, the process of decoding the message, the element of noise affecting the interpretation of the message, and the feedback received by the sender about the intended message.

In our scenario, there is a local hospital that made a decision to downsize the nursing staff. They allowed a local television station to send a reporter and camera crew to interview their administrator regarding the impact of downsizing the nursing staff on patient care. After 20 minutes of filming the interview, the reporter left and by that evening, only 15 seconds of the interview was shown and this particular segment shined a negative light on the hospital and left an unfavorable impression on the public regarding the impact on quality of care. Naturally, the administrator felt blindsided and wondered what went wrong. We are tasked with explaining how more control could have been used to send out the message about the downsizing.

What the administrator of the hospital experienced was channel noise which happens often in mass communication (Berkowitz, 2017). Channel control strategies are categorized as push and pull. The pull strategy is most suitable for this situation because of the opportunity to bypass intermediaries and advertise directly to the consumer. They also could have pretested their message with a focus group. This would have given physicians and hospital staff the opportunity to give their feedback on the messaging before the interview occurred. Finally, the administrator may have benefitted from paying for the television spot so that they could guarantee the verbiage and the amount of time allotted for their message. Additionally, there would have been more than one opportunity for the viewers to see the message if it was paid for (Worrall et. al, 2020). An issue like this would have been best handled by an advertising agency that was more equipped n skill and function to handle all of the advertising needs for the hospital.

In speech pathology, we consider any interference in the communication process to be a breakdown that changes the end result and whether the involved parties receive what was intended. The messaging, receipt, relationships, as well as the progress all hinge on the communication process not being broken. I John 5:14 of The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (2021), says, “Now this is the confidence we have…Whenever we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears whatever we ask, we know that we have what we have asked Him for.” The Bible and our Christian beliefs align themselves with the foundation of a relationship with Our Maker and His care for us being shown by speaking to us and through us. Even the earth was formed by the Lord communicating His desires and making it so.

reply 2

Health care organizations use promotion and advertising to promote their goods and services to the marketplace through communication. The best way for an organization to promote its goods and services is through promotional strategies. A promotional strategy is what companies use to communicate their messages to the marketplace (Berkowitz, 2017, p. 414). When developing a promotional strategy, health care organizations need to follow four basic components. Those four basic components are advertising, personal selling, publicity, and sales promotion (Berkowitz, 2017, p. 414).

At the center of the promotional strategy is communication. Berkowitz (2017) explains that communication is the goal of a promotional strategy (p. 414). When communicating with the marketplace, health care organizations need to provide information that is communicated accurately and positively. Solomon et al., (2016) explain that promotional messages must also be truthful, should not create unjustified expectations, and should be consistent with reality. Creating this type of communication in the marketplace allows health care organizations to create a bond with current consumers and potential consumers.

Solomon et al. (2016) explain that people responsible for marketing in the health care field must follow the ethics code of the health care profession and maintain an honest marketing communication that also respects the dignity of the health care profession. At a local hospital, a decision was made recently to downsize the nursing staff. The local television station sent a reporter and camera crew to interview the administrator regarding the impact of this action on patient care. After 20 minutes of filming the interview, the reporter left. That evening, a 15-second segment of the interview was shown that left an unfavorable impression regarding the impact on quality.

The administrator wondered what went wrong. Explain how more control could have been used to send out the message about the downsizing. Due to the news report, the hospital is now dealing with negative publicity, and the hospital will have to run damage control in the community to clarify the situation. To develop a clear message, the administrator should have consulted with the hospital’s public relations team or another public relation firm to develop a clear, accurate statement to the community. Berkowitz (2017) explains that the message combines symbols and words that the sender uses to transmit (p. 420).

Messages can be delivered in several forms, and finding the correct form is important so that the message is clearly transmitted to others. To deliver the information to the community, the administrator should have focused on two-sided messages. Two-sided messages allow the sender (the administrator) to present the pros and cons of a situation. Research shows that two-sided messages have a stronger impact on consumers and helps prepare the market for opposing messages which can be heard or read about in presentations (Berkowitz, 2017, p. 420). Another way to clear the negativity is through consumers leaving reviews and offering incentives to leave reviews.

Luca & Zervas (2016) explain that consumer reviews are now part of everyday decision-making. Offering incentives to patients to complete hospital reviews can also be helpful to reverse the negative publicity for the hospital. Vlaev et al., (2019) explain that incentives are central to economics to influence behavior. To further promote positivity for the hospital in the community, social media should also be considered. Vedel et al., (2020) explain that social media is widely used in the health care industry for promotion and advertising and health promotion.

Since social media is considered an internet-based tool that is broad with the ability to reach a larger target audience. Berkowitz (2017) explains that many health care organizations have started using social media as traditional media coverage is too narrow (p. 473). Social media platforms commonly used in the health care industry are Web 2.0, Facebook, blogging, Twitter, and podcasts. A study performed in 2010 indicated that 21% of health care institutions were using social media, and by 2013 the use of social media amongst health care institutions had increased to 90% (Berkowitz, 2017, p. 473). Health care organizations and health care professionals can use social media to provide positive feedback for current patients and future patients.

Catto (2020) explains that social media has revolutionized the speed of communication between friends and health care professionals across the globe. Luke 6:31 states, “And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them.” (ESV, 2021). As health care professionals, we have a right to provide quality care to our patients to better their outcomes. Part of making sure that we are providing this care is to provide patients with options regarding their care. This means making hospitals and physician offices transparent when it comes to services and goods offered. More and more patients are beginning to use the internet and other forms of technology to access reviews for hospitals and physician offices. A lot of the time, they will make health care decisions based on this information.