RH Strategic

In addition to the COVID-19 pandemic, three overarching healthcare narratives have come into greater focus over the last year: Technology’s impact on healthcare took a massive step forward, due in large part to telehealth and remote monitoring services replacing many in-person doctor’s visits amid social distancing measures. The importance of healthcare equity: In the past year, there has been greater focus on equitable access to care across the United States. As we reflect on the past year and look towards the year ahead, we have hope that these key healthcare narratives will not get lost even as new stories develop and public health interest shifts.

We partner with community health plans delivering mobile healthcare services to rural communities, telehealth companies bringing top doctors to patients who would otherwise have no access to primary care, care management companies ensuring patients have resources like transportation to get to their appointment, and several others. When you are looking to share healthcare resources or information with communities of color, consider sharing your PR plan or materials with people of color to see if you might be missing a key piece of information, an important message or a channel that might be more effective to reach your target audience. Studies show that Black doctors can more effectively build trust with Black patients than non-Black doctors. Today, Black doctors are addressing misinformation, improving health equity and building trust with Black patients in communities across the country and on a national scale.

While it is crucial to have close relationships with high-profile reporters, landing a client in Forbes starts with uncovering an expert resource and leveraging that relationship to tell compelling stories supported by expert insights and reliable data. Whether your client team is developing a new pitch, campaign or thought leadership platform, relationships with SMEs are vital to the success of a PR program. You may go into a meeting expecting to develop a new pitch rather than a full-blown campaign idea, and you may come out with more than you need for that pitch alone. When coming prepared to the conversation with goals in mind and ready to talk off the cuff, you may hit the jackpot for future stories that can land your client in a top tier outlet.

Walker climbed the ranks at St. Luke and eventually became the managing editor for St. Luke’s first newspaper, The St. Luke’s Herald, where she led the team in publishing articles that called attention to injustice in the community while providing a platform for Black entrepreneurs to establish institutions through the paper. In 1987, Tobin went on to found the National Black Public Relations Society, a testament to her passion for advocating for Black public relations professionals and journalists. For 25 years in Los Angeles, she was viewed by many as a queen of public relations, master of the fine art of networking, and guru of event planning, particularly among the city’s African Americans.” To learn more about these leaders and other Black public relations trailblazers, visit The Museum of Public Relations.