You dial 911 and the ambulance arrives. The EMTs give you emergency treatment, get you comfortable (the best they can) turn on the siren and lights and off you go. At that point, you really have no choice, but to go where they take you and more likely than not they’ll take you to Bonner General Hospital.

You know that. But, when your health care doesn’t involve an emergency, just regular lab work or diagnostic imaging or perhaps an elective surgery, do you think first of BGH? And, if not, why not? That’s a question the hospital is trying to answer, because quite often it is only because all of the hospital’s capabilities are not top of mind.

Marketing sounds very simple:

1. Identify your customer base.

2. Determine how to reach them.

3. Decide what to say to them to get them to use your services.

Simple? Sure. But, if the message isn’t pertinent to your potential customer, or in our case patient, it won’t get the desired results.

So, the plan isn’t to confuse you, but to ask you to help us with what is known in marketing as a branding audit. Branding is the personality of a business. Each business has one. And, with all the changes, and many are positive changes in health care in America and with us building a new building and providing more services it’s time we look at how you, our patients and potential patients, see us.

How do we do that? It’s a survey. It’s very simple to take and for your trouble, we’ll enter you into a drawing for a $100 gift certificate to Super 1 Foods. Go to your nearest computer and enter www.YouTellBGH.com. There are twelve simple questions for you to answer and the survey shouldn’t take but two or three minutes. Please take it even if you’ve never set foot in the hospital.

“As we are looking for opportunities to invest in and serve our community we want the community’s support and input,” said Bonner General Hospital’s community development director Terri Fortner. “Healthy communities are vibrant communities. We’re seeking an understanding of our patients’ values, attitudes, needs, desires, hopes, aspirations, fears and concerns.”

Fortner acknowledges that the public has options and that often the bigger hospitals to our south and west have the reputation of offering more up-to-date services or more experienced staff.

“BGH is continually upgrading technology, equipment and training to meet all the needs and expectations of our patients,” Fortner said, “Many of the tests, procedures and services sought outside of our community are affordably available right here at BGH. With our new marketing strategy in place by year’s end we’ll be better at communicating those amenities. I totally appreciate all of the survey participants and thank them in advance of our study.”

The information that the hospital gathers will help to build a much-improved, easier to navigate website; help the marketing staff decide whether or not to change the hospital’s logo, and point us in the right direction for the future. Go to www.YouTellBGH.com right now. OK? OK.

Kathy Hubbard is a trustee on Bonner General Hospital Foundation Board. She can be reached at [email protected] or 264-4029.