| Connecting During COVID - Exploring Innovative Methods of Maintaining Connection |
Ke‘ala Aki is Manager of Internal Communications for Hawai’i
Pacific Health. Here she discusses some of the actions her team is taking to
address the unique communications needs that have arisen in response to current
circumstances.
The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed a critically important
need to take care of the workplace and the people in it. With our staff
supporting the frontlines and our health care system at the center of treating
patients and the community, we need to look for new methods and systems of
communication in order to keep our staff informed about constantly evolving
updates and policies.
In response to these needs, Hawai‘i Pacific Health launched
HPH eConnect in April. This internal communications platform allows employees to
stay connected on the go. HPH eConnect offers a web platform and mobile
app through which users receive important updates, company news and others
announcements quickly and easily. We saw a 20% registration rate by the
end of the first day. Within two weeks we saw 3,500 total sign ups including
HPH employees, contracted staff and independent Physicians. Our registration
rate is now almost at 70% and we hope to reach 75% by the 6-month mark next
month.
Upon implementation, HPH’s internal communications strategy
focused primarily on daily COVID-19 updates and Self-Care resources and
support. HPH eConnect has allowed us to connect directly with employees
and offer transparency through Executive Videos directly from our President and
CEO, Ray Vara. We have been able to offer a brand new Healthier Connection
Podcast to deliver stories to the HPH community. We’ve also kept staff
connected through our social feeds, executive spotlights, New Hire introductions,
sharing exclusive discounts and special offers, and employees’ stories of
inspiration and recognition. Managers and supervisors can send messages
directly to their staff through this tool, which helps our leadership
communicate effectively with their employees. To encourage engagement, we
also launched a campaign in July called “Sign Up and Get the Scoop”, in honor
of National Ice Cream Month. In this campaign, we sent weekly emails to
employees who were not registered for HPH eConnect and invited them to sign up.
Then we did weekly drawings to reward one employee at each facility who signed
up with a $15 gift card for a local ice cream parlor.
We feel that keeping employees updated and informed keeps
them engaged. In addition, sharing great news about our organization and
‘feel good’ stories about our staff assures employees that they are valued for
the amazing work they do each day. With social distancing guidelines and
work-from-home initiatives now in place across our system, employee
communications have become more important than ever to keep our staff connected
to each other and to our mission of creating a healthier Hawai‘i.
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