McDaniels Healthcare Marketing Develops Groundbreaking Letter-Writing Module for Certificate of Need Process

McDaniels Healthcare Marketing, a communications firm headquartered in Pekin, Ill., recently worked with HSHS St. Elizabeth’s Hospital in Belleville, Ill., to develop a first-of-its-kind letter-writing module that easily enables the community to show support of a proposed replacement hospital as part of the state’s certificate of need (CON) process.

“St. Elizabeth’s needed an efficient way to inform the public about this project and enable them to show their support,” Randy McDaniels, president of the agency, said. “Our staff teamed with the hospital to develop a groundbreaking letter-writing module that was approved by the Illinois Health Facilities and Services Review Board (HFSRB) staff. The microsite (http://www.steliz.org/st-elizabeths-hospital/) allowed community members to submit their letters of support and even sign them electronically online.”

St. Elizabeth’s Hospital submitted a request to the State of Illinois HFSRB on August 25, 2014. To more effectively provide for the healthcare needs of the community, they were seeking to build a replacement hospital in O’Fallon. The idea of a microsite that could be used to inform the community and allow them to submit letters online first started in the project’s planning phases and continued with its launch in June of 2015. The letter module was turned off after the recent CON approval, but the microsite is still accessible.

The module offered easy access to details, drawings and news about the project, along with information on community support and the current hospital, frequently asked questions, a link to Facebook and a related resources page. Visitors were also able to sign up for email updates.

“For healthcare facilities challenged to earn support from the public on projects, the online module was extremely successful. As more and more people are tech-savvy, the online letter was utilized by more than 1,000 people. We also appreciated that it was more than a form letter. It allowed writers to enter their personal thoughts on the project for the Review Board members,” noted Kelly Barbeau, Marketing/ Communications Manager, HSHS St. Elizabeth’s Hospital.

McDaniels Healthcare Marketing draws on more than 49 years of experience to help strategically plan and execute marketing tactics for hospitals and physician practices throughout the Midwest. McDaniels also has client service offices in Bloomington and Rockford, Ill., as well as the Quad Cities. McDaniels Interactive specializes in developing websites, animation, videos, e-surveys, kiosks, ecommerce, content management systems, search engine marketing, optimization and social media to fit a variety of budgets.