Milton Hospital

Milton Hospital provides community-based health care to people of all ages in Milton, Quincy, Braintree, Randolph, Canton, Hyde Park, Dorchester and other local communities. The 81-bed facility is located just eight miles southwest of Boston.

The Challenge

As Milton Hospital’s PR counsel, PAN Communications set out to help the hospital achieve community and business awareness and funding for its capital campaign through increased media coverage and successful hospital events.

With multiple events, a capital campaign and a flush press release pipeline, it was necessary to make sure that all PR activities were executed efficiently and effectively in order to bring in the results that Milton and PAN expected.

The Approach

The PAN team took a multi-faceted campaign approach in order to successfully manage multiple PR activities in a short amount of time. First and foremost, PAN worked closely with Milton Hospital to ensure its capital campaign initiative was front and center. Through a series of events as well as press releases, PAN would work to enhance the “brand” of the hospital and ultimately result in meeting the anticipated goals of the fundraising campaign.

PAN also worked to ensure that the hospital’s visibility was high within the communities it serves as well as key trade publications. Milton Hospital prides itself on technological advancement so the adoption of new technologies proved fruitful to the campaign as well.

The Results

• Media alliances: PAN worked to create and nurture “go to” relationships with key local print and broadcast media including the Milton Times, Patriot Ledger, Quincy Sun and the Milton Cable Access channel.

• Byline campaign: PAN worked to build a relationship with editors of the Milton Times,/i>—the hospital’s #1 media target—utilizing program elements such as a series of health articles on topics such as colon care, prostate health, and more, correlating with national health observances and internal developments at the hospital.

• da Vinci promotion: When Milton Hospital became the only community hospital south of the city in Massachusetts to acquire a da Vinci robotic device, the agency seized the opportunity to demonstrate Milton Hospital’s dedication to top quality care. For the public launch of the hospital’s new da Vinci Surgical System, the PAN team made the decision to bring the da Vinci machine out into the well traveled hospital lobby, inviting reporters and the public alike to see it for themselves. The hospital CEO, chief of staff, doctors and surgical staff who work with the da Vinci robot were on hand to answer questions and demonstrate the equipment.

In addition, the agency gained positive attention about the da Vinci with the public and the media. Showcasing the da Vinci robot in a high-traffic area proved auspicious. The beautiful lobby provided just the right backdrop for the media day, and generated a great deal of excitement among patients and employees alike. The team was also very pleased to secure positive coverage in the Boston Globe, Patriot Ledger, South Shore Senior News, Milton Times, Quincy Sun, and Randolph Herald.

• Taste of Spring: To celebrate the ongoing expansion at Milton Hospital and the care the hospital provides to the community, the hospital’s development office invited some of Greater Boston’s culinary experts and local dignitaries for an elegant evening at the Milton Hoosic Club. As part of that campaign, the hospital hosted a “Taste of Spring” event and to generate buzz about the event, PAN invited key reporters to celebrate with them, secured coverage in calendar events of local papers, and issued press releases highlighting fun auction prizes such as diamond earrings and a South African safari trip. The spring gala was featured in the Milton Times in a two-page photo spread.

• Personnel press releases: PAN rounded out the campaign with well timed announcements about the appointment of key medical personnel showcasing the growth and expansion at Milton Hospital.

PAN’s efforts helped raise awareness about Milton Hospital’s capital campaign, and played an integral role in helping the facility raise $3.7 million for expansion and improvement of medical services. The raised funds were spent on a handful of improvements, including a new emergency department, two new and four renovated operating rooms, a new Pre-Admission Testing and Blood Drawing Center, an expanded endoscopy center, a new parking deck with accessible entrances, an inviting and modern lobby, and most importantly, improved patient convenience, comfort and confidentiality.