Comms Room’s interview with Austin Health Head of Communications and Media Maddison Stafford delves into the strategies used to ensure all voices are heard, how interorganisational meetings are structured for success, and the importance of maintaining unified messaging in such a complex setting.
Maddison is a speaker for the upcoming 19th Social Media for Gov.
I have always had a strong interest in health and started a degree in psychology before switching over to journalism, so moving into healthcare communications seemed like a natural transition once I left the world of media.
Communications in healthcare is such a rewards space to move into and I feel like I can use a lot of my journalism skills in my work every day whether that be interviewing patients for social media stories or interviewing doctors and researchers for a new podcast episode.
It’s a real privilege to be able to hear so many stories each day from both staff and patients.
Austin Health is a vast organisation with over 11,000 employees and a diverse range of skill sets – from doctors to allied health professionals, to HR and finance personnel. For me, cross-organisational collaboration involves working with various individuals who have unique skills to convey crucial health information while ensuring they are heard.
Like many communication professionals in healthcare, the COVID-19 pandemic was likely the most challenging career moment we will ever encounter. Due to the unpredictable nature of the virus and constant changes, creating effective and efficient communication materials was difficult. It required balancing the needs of the community, the organisation, and messages from the Department of Health.
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Having a clear agenda and meeting chair are crucial to interorganisational meetings, without this there will likely be a lot of thumb twiddling – I’ve been there and it’s not fun. If it’s a longer campaign or a regular meeting I also like to switch up the meeting chair role and share it around, it provides other staff the opportunity to lead and also get involved and prevents some staff from taking the back seat.
Along with this, a solid communications plan is also integral and clearly outlines roles and responsibilities, as well as a framework for messaging development. I always like to include a key message and key outcome section in each plan to staff can easily locate approved statements.
At the end of each meeting it’s important to recap any key points or actions. These can get lost during a meeting and there can be at times miscommunication about who is taking on a task, taking five minutes at the end to recap and list what needs to be done prior to next meeting clarifies who is doing what.
Again, I think a strong agenda and an understanding of roles is important. One of the key tasks of a communications professional is to listen to the needs and opinions of the subject matter experts. I never think I know it all, so I often rely on information being provided to me from others who are closer to the project. Ensuring each person has their time to speak is crucial and will hopefully mean those involved feel heard.
We continually refer to the organisation’s mission and vision, along with the objectives outlined in our Strategic Plan. The communications team manages both the channels and the organisation’s reputation, ensuring all outgoing content is consistent. This includes educating staff, revising incoming content, and offering feedback on the modifications made.
Adrianne Saplagio is a Content Producer at Comms Room, where she combines her passion for storytelling with her expertise in multimedia content creation. With a keen eye for detail and a knack for engaging audiences, Adrianne has been instrumental in crafting compelling narratives that resonate across various digital platforms.
