Daily Briefing Live – April 28, 2020

Key Resources Mentioned in Today's EpisodeWashington Post: U.S. deaths soared in early weeks of pandemic, far exceeding number attributed to COVID-19Key TakeAwaysOur latest research revealed that people are avoiding hospitals:People are avoiding necessary Emergency Room visits in an effort to avoid hospitals altogether.There have been increasing numbers of deaths from strokes and heart attacks nationally but decreasing amounts of stroke and heart problem related ER visits.Will this prompt a national reassessment of the COVID-19 related death count? New York has reassessed the total death count, but will other states do the same?What are the obstacles to patients that need healthcare but are not willing to go to the hospital?9/10 people are afraid of returning to hospitals even if they were to need health services.Of people that are currently in need of health services, 5/10 of them are still fearful of going to a hospital.Patients do not see a difference in healthcare facilities; they are fearful of all of them whether or not COVID-19 treatment is being administered in a given facility.People are using personal logic to assess the COVID-19 threat:It is going to be more difficult and take longer to get people back in hospitals, regardless of states opening back up.People are relying on the confirmed case and death counts to determine if hospitals are getting safer instead of listening to political officials or healthcare experts.On average, most patients anticipate it will be 3-6 months before COVID-19 settles down in their communities.Regardless of political affiliation, people are still relying on their own conclusions about safety instead of listening to political leaders.People want to see the information for themselves; how do healthcare marketers assist in this?People want to know exact information about the protective measures that hospitals are taking to protect against the spread of COVID-19.Hospitals need to be explicitly clear about sanitation, protective gear, and where the COVID patients are being treated.No amount of information is “too much” for the consumer now.People want to hear from their hospital twice a week, which is a complete shift pre-COVID desired communication patterns.