In a recent FierceHealthcare news story examining the relationship between hospitals and social media, Andrea J. Simon, anthropologist and founder of Simon Associates Management Consultants, is quoted as saying, “From a business perspective, (hospitals) are missing a great opportunity to find people who would like to use them when they need them.”
FierceHealthcare reports that even though “more than two-fifths of individuals said social media affected their choice of a provider or healthcare organization…many hospitals are still behind on the social media trend.”
Dr. Simon is also referenced in a November 24, 2012 Times Union article, cited by the FierceHealthcare news story. An expert on healthcare organizations, business change management and human behavior, Dr. Simon told Times Union, “Social media provides an extremely powerful way of communicating: People trust you, and trust is extremely valuable.”
According to Simon’s Second Annual Survey of Hospital Use of Social Media, only 16 percent of hospitals are actively using social media. Times Union reports, “The survey of 140 hospitals described the four main reasons hospitals avoid social media: patient privacy, employees wasting time on social media, not enough staffing to sustain a social media effort and fears of people talking about them online.”
Darlene Olivieri Raynsford, director of communications for Glens Falls Hospital, echoes Dr. Simon’s observations about how crucial it has become for hospitals to capitalize on social media. “‘This is the way our community is communicating,’” she said in the Times Union article. “‘You either embrace it or lose out on it.’”
About Dr. Andrea Simon and Simon Associates Management Consultants
New York-based Simon Associates Management Consultants (SAMC) serves clients in a wide range of industries from manufacturing, OEMs, customer care, hospitals, and other healthcare institutions to colleges and service industry companies, among others.
One of the keys to SAMC’s success is helping the leadership at companies to “see, feel, and think” in new ways. For more information, visit www.simonassociates.net. You also can follow SAMC on Twitter (@andisamc) or Facebook.
