Making the connection

Gaining access to physicians and specialist care in Colorado

Published: 05 Aug 2010

Client: UnitedHealthcare

Agency: Linhart Public Relations

Campaign: Connected Care

Timescale: July – September 2009

A quick look

Connected Care is an innovative program aimed at ensuring residents in rural communities in Colorado can gain access to physicians and specialist care. By making the technology the star of the story, Linhart PR was able to engage an audience that, thanks to a national announcement weeks earlier, had heard about the program but were not aware of the specifics of the initiative. The program will be rolled out in four other markets in Colorado and is expected to provide care for more than 4,800 residents each year.

Challenge

For many patients in rural areas in the US accessing much-needed healthcare easily and quickly is a growing concern. UnitedHealthcare, one of the nation’s largest healthcare providers, launched a new program called Connected Care to ensure patients in rural locations had access to physicians and specialists using advanced telehealth technology.

Colorado was among the first states to showcase the program, which combines audio and video technology and health resources to greatly expand physicians’ reach into rural and medically underserved areas.

United Healthcare turned to Linhart PR, a Colorado-based corporate communications counseling and PR firm, to generate statewide awareness for Connected Care and further establish its reputation as a leader in using innovative technology to deliver high-quality care to all Coloradans. But there was a catch: Connected Care had already received news coverage following a national announcement weeks earlier and few specifics had been established about the Colorado program. Linhart was tasked with finding new ways to attract positive media attention.

Solution

Linhart PR made the technology behind Connected Care the star of the story, while leveraging influential third-party endorsements for the program. The team helped UnitedHealthcare coordinate a press conference at the Denver state capital with Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter and other partners to announce the Colorado program, discussing how the new telehealth technology helps solve healthcare access issues for rural residents. VIPs and media were invited to see the technology first-hand and experience the “house call for the 21st Century.”

The team secured advance, live TV interviews with UnitedHealthcare spokespeople the morning of the event, which increased interest among media outlets and the general public to attend the event.

Linhart PR also filmed the press briefing and released an edited video package with the news release. Since the target consumer audience for the program lived in rural areas, the video package gave media outside of Denver convenient access to the news and ready-to-use footage to share with their viewers and readers. The video was also uploaded to YouTube.

To reach rural areas that could most benefit from the program, Linhart PR targeted community papers across the state with tailored stories while distributing a news release about the program.

Results

The campaign generated a “sweep” of major Colorado media, generating more than three million media impressions. Among the successes:

•   The Denver Post, Associated Press, all four Denver television networks, Colorado Public Radio and FM news radio station 850KOA all featured the event
•   The event was featured by all affiliate stations in priority markets Grand Junction and Colorado Springs
•   The influential Colorado Managed Care newsletter covered the story and taped interview with UnitedHealthcare of Colorado, CEO, Beth Soberg
•   Two pre-event exclusives with KUSA-TV (NBC), Denver’s highest-rated news station, reached more than 140,000 Denver residents before the briefing
•   UnitedHealthcare used the conference video and tours produced by Linhart PR to educate employees about the program and directly engage external audiences through YouTube.