Communication Strategy Campaign for Patients With Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) - Essay Sample

Abstract

Military service is among the riskiest jobs that involve putting one's life in the line of duty. Approximately 48 percent also had past or current depression. Dallas North Texas Health Care requires a clear, precise and effective communication strategy to ensure that information is accurately conveyed to the targeted audience and the key stakeholders. Thus, this plan has been developed in relations to the facility's mission and vision statement to maximize the quality and reach out to the Veterans and their families and friends diagnosed with PSTD. Besides, the plan has is flexible and can be altered following the changes needed.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

The communication campaign plan has mainly focused on the Veterans and the medical center management who constitute the key audience in solving the two significant challenges: decreasing enrollment and the high levels of turnover in the institution.

The campaign strategy is set to run for six months under a budget of $100,000. Key channels to be used in reaching out are online platforms, free-checks to attract the populations, and conferences meant to educate the veterans on the importance of being consistent with medication and frequent medical check-up. In addition, a three-month training program for staff is expected to take effect immediately to motivate the team.

Assessment and evaluation criteria for success of the strategy will be based on the impact of awareness, the number of newly registered veterans, feedback from veterans both online and through surveys, and lastly rate of job turnover two months after the campaign ends.

Introduction

VA North Texas Health Care System in Texas is a health care provider covering two countries in southern Oklahoma and thirty-eight counties in Texas. It is a 1A complexity facility level accredited by The Joint Commission and the second largest VA health care system in the country. With 1.4 million outpatient episodes of care in FY 17, it serves more than 129,000 Veterans. Its headquarters are in Dallas, with the other facilities in Fort Worth, Bonham, Plano and Tyler, and five outpatient clinics, which are community-based.

I want to introduce a health communication campaign for these veterans so that they may receive PTSD services through the Dallas Veteran North Health Care System. The essence of this campaign is to help stakeholders come up with a better understanding of PTSD, development of better vetting processes, provision of top of the line treatment options to the veterans/military, find ways veterans can access immediate help now, and as well wrap around services for friends and family (Silverstein, 2009).

Situation AnalysisIn post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression is amongst the most commonly occurring diseases. Research has revealed that those that possess or have encountered a PTSD diagnosis, approximately 48 percent also had past or current depression. At some point in one's life, veterans diagnosed with PTSD are said to have almost a seven times likelihood of also having depression as those without PTSD (Silverstein, 2009). Moreover, this is the reason Dallas North Texas Health Care System is encouraging veterans to look for help.

Currently, the Dallas VA Hospital possesses a number of strengths to comprise of social worker monitoring service members' intrinsic care while they are admitted to these programs, multi-tier psychotherapeutic PTSD programs for veterans from various deployment campaigns, referral to community programs through The Choice Program, as well as clinical team to case management services and medication. However, the weaknesses include "forever-and-a-day" times of wait, discontinued programs, programs that are over-crowded, undedicated professionals, eligibility criteria which is very complicated, as well as high turnovers by the departmental staff (Hynes, 2005).

The SWOT analysis is highly recommended here and extremely useful to help understand, analyze and make decisions for the communication campaign (Lauren & Joseph, 2015). SWOT is an acronym, which stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (Gibson, 2003). The analysis will give an excellent framework to review the strategy, position as well as the direction of your campaign (Wilson, 2001).

Target Market, Opportunities

VA North Health Care has offered health services, which are comprehensive through the tertiary, primary, as well as long-term care in several areas which include surgery, rehabilitation, mental health, and medicine. The 853-bed system has involved the Centre for Spinal Cord Injury, Community and Living Domiciliary Centre with dementia units and dedicated hospice. At Dallas VA Medical Centre, a Fisher House on campus offers temporary lodging at no cost in a setting, which is home like for Veterans' military personnel who are on active duty or family who receive VA care. A Poly-trauma Suite has provided individual therapies and treatments for brain injury trauma as well as other conditions that are combat-associated. By refining a more transparent campaign, a SWOT analysis will be an appropriate model to be utilized in the hospital, and also make health care professionals who administer services more accountable.

Competition Threats

The population is increasing outwardly, the VA, with its annual budget of $960 million, shifts to offer a broader range of services to veterans where they are. With response to this and together with the Tyler and Plato expansions, the system has operated facilities of primary care in Sherman, Greenville, Bridgeport, Denton as well as Granbury; it has served 38 counties in southern Oklahoma and North Texas. Dallas VA Medical Center is full of knowledge about the whereabouts of the veterans and will look into reaching out and capturing that population by offering them primary care offices proximity.

In 2016, 97.7 percent of all the veterans within a 30-day window of their initial appointment request was seen, with the remaining being sent to the community facilities, which since 2013 has nearly doubled. The VA anticipated sending out 30,399, an amount that equals to $102.4 million. Regardless of it as the state is largest, the Dallas branch will introduce a 30-day rate of appointment in Texas of the three located there.

Management Threats

The VA management will, therefore, look into streamlining the provided care, with the central hub rolling out direct scheduling services in audiology, optometry, radiology, and urology, allowing PTSD patients while they are on-site to schedule the appointment. There is hope to upgrade the record of the electronic health to converse with other care sites and systems, and they can send veterans. Dallas VA Medical Center has overcome staffing, with the nursing turnover rate being at 4 percent; below the national rate of 17.1 percent; therefore, more veteran PTSD patients can get the services more accessible.

Financials

Under Secretary for Health, the Executive in Charge directs a health care system of approximately $68 billion annual budget, to oversee the delivery of care to more than 9 million enrolled Veterans.

Funds to be Sought

The key to modernization has been greater interoperability with Governmental partners such as DOD, to focus efforts in Veteran's journey support, starting with their military service. Dalla VA Medical Centre will collaborate with similar functions to ensure PTSD Veterans can get their care, benefits, and services efficiently and consistently, and with excellent customer service, no matter where they are throughout their lives. VA will as well partner with, Tribal, State, Federal, local communities as well as the Local Government entities towards ensuring Veterans get what they need. The private sector will be leveraged by the VA where appropriate and required to deliver the very best outcomes for Veterans (Einwiller & Will, 2002).

Between 2007 and 2016, health care users increased by 22 percent to 6 million, with users of pension services and compensation rising by 42 percent to 4.6 million. Therefore, in 2008 during the recession, the VA's Home Loan Guaranty program users number dropped sharply, but the numbers have grown steadily as the housing market recovered, to 2.6 million in 2016. Education benefits users have slightly risen since 2011 (to .7 million), and memorialization services users and vocational rehabilitation have been relatively constant (.3 and .1 million respectively). Life insurance is the only program since 2007 with a decline in the number of users (to 1.1 million).

Distribution Channels

Identifying the chal...