If you haven't been asked about the status of your organization's Y2K compliance, it's just a matter of time. The questions is simple but daunting: "Are you ready?"
By now, most healthcare communicators are aware that the looming Y2K concern is much more than an IT "bug" - it's a leadership management issue that can blow your organization's image to smithereens if a solid, multifaceted communications plan isn't in place.
The good news is that it's certainly not too late to embark on planning efforts that position your organization as credible, proactive Y2K leaders on two critical image fronts: patient safety and public confidence.
The first step is to identify Y2K issues that will affect your key audiences. The second step is to provide resources and solutions. Lifeguard Inc., a managed care plan in San Jose, Calif., is taking this approach with its five core audiences, including brokers, employees and hospitals. For instance, Lifeguard provides incentive for its brokers to become educated about Y2K by offering them continuing education credit. It also provides resources for hospitals to become Y2K compliant. "We are putting a spotlight on the [Y2K] issue instead of burying our head in the sand," says Tom Carter, Lifeguard's VP of communications.
To help hospitals and health systems plan for the impending countdown to the new millennium, Hill and Knowlton (H&K) launched a new communications program, Y2K HealthCom, to address the onslaught of internal and external inquiries. The program, rolled out last month, works with each healthcare organization's communications department to develop strategies for informing the community about its Y2K readiness.
The millions of dollars hospitals are spending on IT solutions could be undermined by ineffective communications, says Terri Goren, H&K's senior healthcare consultant who heads up Y2K HealthCom. The program involves three phases of establishing Y2K preparedness, including a customized readiness assessment, strategic plan and communications "toolbox."
PR News, HPRMN's sister publication, is also helping communicators brace for Y2K with a special forum on the subject this month in Washington, D.C., called "Strategic Communications for Y2K Crisis Management." To register for the February 22nd seminar, call 888-707-5814 or visit http://www.prnewsonline.com. HPRMN subscribers will receive a special discount.
(Lifeguard, Tom Carter, 408/383-4204; H&K, Terri Goren, 404/249-8550)