There are so many terrific communicators and marketers who take part in NESHCo events. I thought I would single out a few who I recommend connecting with, should you have the opportunity. These are marketers that I know and hold in high regard. The list includes clients, vendors, friends, competitors and colleagues. I'm an equal opportunity blogger and list maker!

• Kevin Robinson, Southwestern Vermont Medical Center (Kevin is a Jennings…

Last night kicked off the 2012 Spring Symposium of the New England Society for Healthcare Communications (NESHCo). This conference is a dream come true for me. It combines so many of my favorite things: Boston, the Red Sox and Fenway Park, Lobster, the Marriott Long Wharf, and NESHCo. It doesn't get any better than this.

Last night's welcome event…

Later today, marketers from hospitals and healthcare organizations across New England will converge on Boston to attend the Spring Symposium of the New England Society for Healthcare Communications. Not only is this one of my favorite events, but this year it happens to take place in one of my favorite cities. It doesn't get much better than…

How can one determine the value of a drug that could potentially save millions of lives? Until now, pharmaceutical companies have struggled with finding an effective method to communicate the value of their drug for the various stakeholders. Each constituent, whether it’s the physicians prescribing the drug, the hospital administrators purchasing the drug and even the patient who uses the drug, all have particular requirements and interests. It is becoming clear that a new way of…

If you don't know it already, I am a fan of Lisa Gualtieri and her blog:
 Lisa Gualtieri's Blog on Health. Lisa is an Assistant Professor at Tufts University School of Medicine in the Health Communication Program. She teaches Online Consumer…

Below is a video segment from my recent presentation at the National Healthcare Marketing Strategies Summit in Orlando. I presented with Jill Lawlor of Cooper University Hospital and Lyle Green of MD Anderson. This is the first 16 minutes of the talk, featuring my introduction to the topic. Enjoy!

Here is the PowerPoint presentation from my SlideShare site:…

Last year, in honor of Mother's Day, I wrote a
 blog post about my mom. She loved it.…

I'm talking about balance - something I've never been very good at; but I am trying. Maybe it's because I am getting older, but I am more focused on work-life balance than ever before. That doesn't mean that I don't work like a crazy man. I do. But I also take time to look around me and remember why I work so hard.
 One of the things I do to bring balance into my life, and something I…

For me, this is a rare story because it it combines two of my firm's clients: NC Prevention Partners and Vidant Health. NC Prevention Partners is a leader within the healthcare industry in reducing preventable illness and early death caused by tobacco use, poor nutrition and physical inactivity. They've worked successfully with North Carolina hospitals to…

One of my colleagues, Joe Florence, sent me a link to this amazing video from the Hemoncology folks at Seattle Children's. Watch this video - it needs no introduction. Words won't do it justice.

Here's a link to a news story that gives details behind the making of the video. Chris Rumble of Kent, Wash., a 22-year-old leukemia patient, was evidently the force behind this amazing video. Learn more at…

I have a love-hate relationship with speaking at industry conferences. I spend a good amount of time seeking out opportunities, developing ideas for presentations, filling out speaker submissions, and waiting to hear if I've been accepted by the conference. If you're going to speak at a substantial number of conferences, there's a certain amount of work that you come to expect.…

In September 2009 my firm launched a new ad campaign promoting the pediatric affiliation between MetroWest Medical Center (Framingham, MA) and Floating Hospital for Children at Tufts Medical Center (Boston). The campaign graphically demonstrated the connection between the pediatricians and the child. It was very successful and…

I received email notification earlier this week from Mark Gothberg at eHealthcare Strategy & Trends (he is the awards chairman and editor) that they are now accepting submissions for the 2012 eHealthcare Leadership Awards. (In the spirit of full disclosure, I was recently invited to sit on their advisory board.) Not familiar with this awards…

Not long ago I wrote a post about the launch of Duke Medicine's new cancer center (<a title="The World's Kindest Cancer Center" href="http://thehealthcaremarketer.wordpress.com/2012/04/17/the-worlds-kindest-cancer-center-really/" target="_blank">The World's Kindest Cancer Center. Really?</a>). On a recent business trip I noticed ads rotating on a digital display for both the Duke Cancer Center and UNC's North Carolina Cancer Hospital. The ads were in the baggage claim area at RDU…

Guest post by Sara Mackey of reallycheaphealthinsurance.com.

In remarks made at the University of Wisconsin on April 10, 2012, Kathleen Sebelius, U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services said women are typically the most disadvantaged of all health insurance consumers. Women are more likely to be underinsured, or to have no coverage…

Today I am attending the 17th National Healthcare Marketing Strategies Summit (#HCMS12 for those of you on Twitter). When I attend these conferences, I want to meet smart, innovative people. It also helps if they are interesting and fun to hang out with.

Here's a list of people I think you ought to meet at this Summit. In creating this list I realized that I need to reintroduce myself to a couple of them. These are really smart people. Some I've just met, some I've known for years.…

Fox News recently covered a novel breast cancer screening initiative by Pornhub, a free ad-supported pornographic video sharing website. Pornhub recruited porn star Bree Olson to be the head cheerleader for the one day event in New York City. Olson, and a the "Boob Bus Nurse Brigade," staffed the predominantly pink "Save Our Boobs…

Here are the pre-conference tweets - as many of us anticipate the 2012 Healthcare Marketing Strategies Summit in Orlando. The conference begins this Sunday.…

Beginning Sunday, April 29, 2012, healthcare marketers will descend upon Orlando, Florida for two and a half days of great networking, learning and sharing. It's an annual event: The 17th National Healthcare Marketing Strategies Summit - formerly called the National Forum for Customer Based Marketing Strategies (HCMS). The new name is simpler and more on…

Earlier this week I learned on Twitter (thanks @MissDanaSmith) about a marketing program promoting cancer screenings to couples. Memorial Hospital in South Bend, Indiana has adopted a leading advocacy and awareness campaign called "Hand in Hand" to educate couples about the risks of gender-specific…