“Liberating the NHS”, the Government white paper introducing fundamental changes to the NHS, specifies that the structure for primary care will change come 2013 when we wave goodbye to the Primary Care Trust (PCT).
Professional bodies have produced a wealth of great advice to their primary care members regarding commissioning under the new regime, which will see GP commissioning consortia taking on much of the operational and strategic roles currently undertaken by PCTs.
The commissioning advice covers all the expected areas, but we have not seen any definitive direction on how GP consortia (and other organisations within the new primary care regime) will commission the services currently provided by the many excellent PCT press offices across the country.
Commissioning PR, press and media services can stretch the most commercially-aware organisations. For ones, such as GP consortia, that are new, fundamental to their end users and likely to be viewed with suspicion (the British Medical Association’s words, not ours) the message is: ignore the importance of strategic communications at your peril and use the best professional support you can, which will mean commissioning professional help.
Look for professional support from organisations that understand the delicate balance required of communications activity in the health sector – this this is, after all, a partnership job involving your consortium, local authorities, patient support groups, HealthWatch, LMCs, other GPs, the voluntary sector and, of course, the media.
Make sure they can deliver proactive campaigns around key messages and services, and make sure too that they have the necessary expertise to deal with crises.
Remember too that every decision you make has communications and reputation consequences. As a consequence, let your comms professional support be an integral part of your team. No matter how great your communications strategy, it will stand or fall on the effectiveness of the communication between your consortium and the people providing you with a comms service. All the big PR disasters have happened when decisions makers within an organisation have locked out their comms support.
Fundamentally, make sure that your comms support is accountable – not just in financial terms but also in the contribution they make towards the ongoing reputation of your consortium.
The NHS is always in danger of becoming the latest health secretary’s train set. Change is happening, for good or bad, but the comforting thing to remember is that when it comes to commissioning professional healthcare PR, press and media support, there are proven organisations out there who can help – including us.
If you have any questions about this blog, or if you would like an informal chat about how we can help your consortium, please call Andrew Gould on 01392 686107 or email him at agould@theprworks.co.uk.
