Capabilities
- Digital
- Outdoor
- Web
Summary
As COVID-19 fear grew in 2020, Mary Washington Healthcare (MWHC) saw a dramatic and worrisome decline in their emergency department (ED) patient visits. More patients were suffering at home with “traditional” emergencies rather than visiting the ED to be treated appropriately due to fear of contracting COVID-19.
Objective
To bring awareness to the public that emergencies must be treated, MWHC asked us to create a quick, direct, and serious message advising a nervous community of over 250,000 people that MWHC is equipped, protected, and ready to care for them safely and effectively. We used close-up images focusing on the eyes of diverse, scrubbed-in doctors, allowing you to see their dedication in providing the safest care possible. We used hospital-specific logos to ensure the audience understood that their closest ED was open and available.
50%
per month
Conclusion
The ED’s visit numbers grew by 50% per month after the eight-month campaign’s start. This creative demonstrates that when a message and image are equally compelling, it grabs the attention of the targeted audience effectively. The creative, themed “Emergencies Don’t Wait for Pandemics to Pass,” was used on traditional and digital platforms in both English and Spanish through two phases. In the campaign’s Phase II, minor adjustments were made in the media plan to bolster message delivery to those communities not accessing their nearby EDs as experienced in the more active EDs within the system. The creative was also updated to add additional BIPOC models.
The MWHC ED campaign was recognized by MASHSMD (Mid-Atlantic Society for Healthcare Strategy & Market Development) in their 2021 awards, receiving the Gold award for posters, banners, and billboards.