Seeing Is Believing
Robotics
Building Surgical Volume Amidst Stiff Competition
BACKGROUND
St. Francis was the first hospital in Topeka, Kansas (2006) to invest in a daVinci Surgical System for robotic-assisted surgery. With 500 cases under its belt, St. Francis remains the only hospital in Topeka with robotic-assisted surgery capabilities.
Low awareness of the service and physician turnover led to the robot being under utilized. Additionally, consumers in Topeka utilized St. Francis’s main competitor – Stormont Vail – for traditional surgery or left Topeka for robotic-assisted surgery. Lastly, patients unquestionably made treatment decisions based on their doctor’s recommendation without probing to understand if there were alternatives to traditional surgery.
CHALLENGE
- Increase patient volume for robotic-assisted surgery in urology, gynecology and cardiology by taking share from Stormont Vail and convincing Topekans to stay local for their surgical needs.
- Motivate consumers to probe their doctors about robotic-assisted surgery.
UPLIFTING INSIGHT
Northlich conducted research in Topeka with consumers and St. Francis staff to build a patient decision-making model for each surgery. They uncovered the following core insight to inform the strategic direction for the St. Francis robotics campaign:
Consumers believe they understand how to make informed health care decisions. In reality, their decisions are based on the "shiny and newness" of the provider, emotions and how safe a choice feels.
SOLUTION
Connection Strategy: Northlich used its understanding of each patient decision-making process to identify where St. Francis communications should intersect with patient decision-making to influence behavior.
Message Strategy: Northlich developed a multi-channel campaign that highlighted the technological advancements of St. Francis’s, the benefits of robotic-assisted surgery over traditional and the expertise of St. Francis’s doctors and surgical staff.
EXECUTION
- Utilized geo-targeted media – primary media consisted of television and newspapers, secondary media consisted of out-of-home.
- Leveraged the Web to drive deeper engagement with St. Francis for prospective patients researching robotic-assisted surgery.
RESULTS
Robotics Volume Increases the First Six Months of the Campaign:
(compared to previous six months)
- Gynecology 257%
- Urology 35%
- Cardiovascular 250%
Additional Results:
- The robotics website had 1,058 page views from 498 quality visitors, which is excellent because the site was new and users were going to competitors' sites.
- Time on site averaged 1:43 per visit – significantly longer than the competition.
