How to Rethink PR in a Consolidating Healthcare Industry

Written By

Raffetto Herman Strategic Communications

Healthcare organizations are pursuing partnerships and collaborations to strengthen market offerings. Increasing consolidation has PR professionals wondering: How will these strategic partnerships impact the way we talk about healthcare organizations?

The waters are muddy as the industry marches towards consumerization. Tech giants are looking to the healthcare industry for new product innovations, blurring the lines of traditional mergers. For example, Apple unveiled a feature that would allow customers to see their medical records on their iPhone.

While these mergers and innovations offer incredible potential for the industry, it also means that public relations professionals have to stay agile in a quickly-changing landscape.

Raffetto Herman Strategic Communications outlines seven trends PR professionals should watch to craft their stories and campaigns for the increasingly consolidating healthcare industry:

1. Trade reporters will broaden the topics they cover as payers become providers and lines become increasingly blurred.
2. Publications will devote entire sections to covering these partnerships.
3. Media outlets will likely begin designating more dedicated healthcare reporters.
4. Innovations in health IT will continue to grow.
5. As companies seek to address all factors that contribute to patients’ well-being, social determinants of health – such as economic factors and location – will increasingly become a central topic.
6. Storytelling will focus on the patients and their pain points.
7. Data, storytelling and anecdotal evidence will be crucial to breaking through the noise of tech giants taking over the industry.

Get more insights on the public relations impact of the consolidating healthcare industry from RH Strategic on their blog, or find additional healthcare communication insights from Worldcom PR Partners.

Raffetto Herman Strategic Communications is a leading public relations agency based in Washington, D.C. and Seattle, working to introduce the world to the next generation of innovators in technology, security, government and healthcare. Their team combines deep market expertise with creative storytelling and communications strategy to deliver meaningful, measurable PR results for their clients. RH Strategic’s public relations services include brand building, thought leadership, product and company launches, reputation management, crisis management, social, digital.