While palliative care is an important part of medical care for many patients and providers, marketing messaging for these services must be carefully crafted.
Given the rampant misconceptions about palliative care, education is an essential component of a marketing strategy, including for patients and families, referral partners and payers.
A key point is to distinguish palliative care from hospice, according to Tony Kudner, chief strategy officer for Transcend Strategy Group.
“The lack of both consumer and health care professional understanding of what palliative care can do alongside curative treatments for the seriously ill, coupled with the fact that we don’t yet have a standard definition of palliative care, are the main obstacles,” he told Palliative Care News.
In addition, services offered by providers may have different niches in the care continuum, such as cancer care, and insurance coverage can vary widely.
With these knowledge gaps in mind, marketers need to educate patients, family members, and payers as to the specific suite of services their organizations offer and how they can benefit patients. For example, a particular program may involve both the clinical or the psychosocial aspects of care, whereas another may focus on pain management or on advanced directives. The nature of the program will determine the messaging, according to Kudner.
Demonstrating value
Marketing also must illustrate the value of their services to their clients, referrers and, potentially, investors.
Patients and their families may find value in a referral from a trusted health care worker; therefore, building relationships with other providers in the targeted geographic region is important, Kudner said. He added that, for patients and families, value may be found in “how you approach the first few visits or consults: Patients with chronic or serious illness can be wary of new services, so bedside manner and consistency will be key.”
Referral organizations and payers also look at outcome data, and solid numbers will help demonstrate their program’s effectiveness, such as improved quality or cost reductions. These measures might include reductions in 911 calls or hospitalizations, or demonstration of effective management of multiple lines of service for a wide geographic area, Kudner indicated.
“Being a one-stop-shop helps as well when thinking about efficiency from the provider/payer side,” he said. “Those are the sorts of value propositions that will resonate.”
Likewise, patient metrics can assist payers with choosing one provider over another.
3 effective strategies
Given these parameters, Kudner relayed the three most important strategies for marketing palliative care:
- Define the target audience. Providers must know whom they’re aiming to reach. The more narrowly you can define your target audience, the better off and more efficient you’ll be, according to Kudner. Providers might begin by concentrating on a single disease or by reaching out to one hospital or skilled nursing facility and then use this platform to build sustainability.
- Focus on the patient. Couch marketing strategies in “we” language, communicating how the provider’s services will aid the patient. Rather than offering a simple list of products and services, providers should detail how they aid program participants and their family members.
- Develop referral resources. Creating a network of trusted professionals who can refer to an organization is always a good strategy. Marketers should work on developing solid relationships with sources of referrals.
“Your marketing efforts should focus in part on those who can refer patients and who are likely to deal with patients who fit your ideal patient profile,” Kudner said.
