Creating communications excellence

It’s no secret that across patient communities, there’s a shared feeling of being overlooked. From rare conditions to common forms of dementia, community surveys report patients feeling marginalised and isolated in their experiences. So it’s encouraging that healthcare communications are increasingly pivoting to place a greater emphasis on amplifying patient voices.

But what is the secret to a successful patient empowerment campaign? It’s true that there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’, but whether it’s a big creative idea or your agency’s bread-and-butter framework, the key is placing patients at the heart of endeavours and respecting the unique value that lived experience brings to a campaign.

Collaboration and co-creation
Collaboration should be the red thread running through any and every patient-centric initiative, and co-creation is an indispensable component of communicating and resonating with any patient group. By gathering insights from your target audience, you will (unsurprisingly) discover what’s best for that specific group and your campaign can reach others more richly and authentically as a result.

Indeed, it is often the shared lived experiences that a campaign brings to light that will unite us in the strongest way and propel a campaign to make meaningful strides in reducing stigma, and empowering and inspiring patients.

Staying true to the objectives
In the whirlwind and excitement of any campaign or initiative, it is easy to lose sight of its purpose. Behind the shiny metrics, impressions, engagement and circulation figures, it’s important to keep this at the forefront of your mind and continue to ask yourself: where can we enact real change? Yes, we need to think about our clients every step of the way… but we also need to remain mindful of the patients that trust us with their stories.

It is essential that this trust is repaid with a devoted pursuit to help patients as they seek to help others, placing them at the core of everything we do. Whether it be purely about uniting the community or striving for policy change, the real and positive outcomes from projects are ultimately why we love and take pride in what we do.

James Hollaway is Managing Director and Owner at M+F Health