NHS Services Information Campaign

July 2015

The issue

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Who uses urgent and emergency care?

• The NHS is extremely resilient and can cope well with an increase in attendances.

• What is more challenging is the increase in people who need to be admitted to hospital, particularly those who arrive by ambulance.

• The elderly are most likely to make an admission. Source: Urgent and Emergency Care Review Team

Why do so many people require admission in winter?

• Respiratory illnesses are a particular source of winter admissions, especially among people with long term conditions.

• Falls are another common avoidable cause of admission.

Source: Urgent and Emergency Care Review Team

How we’ve tackled this in the past…centrally

How we’ve tackled this in the past…locally

What we will do this year

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Flu budget Urgent and emergency care

budget NHS111 budget

Flu campaign Winter pressures campaign

Integrated campaign

Radio advertising, press and digital

TV advertising, posters, newspapers, pharmacy bags, door drops and digital advertising

NHS 111 campaign

TV advertising, radio, press, digital

Partner activity, e.g. in-kind support from pharmacies,

cold and flu manufacturers, charities

Local support from NHS and local authorities, e.g.

face to face events, locally-tailored information, etc

Central costs: local toolkit, core campaign collateral, production, agency fees, staffing, evaluation etc

What do we mean by integration?

1. Shared assets

2. Shared look and branding

3. Integrated campaign,

phased

4. Single campaign

Campaigns use same end line and destination point, but keep individual parent brands and campaign liveries.

As 1, plus all campaigns branded NHS and conform to NHS style guidelines.

One campaign, with discrete phases (e.g. flu in October, pharmacy in December).

One campaign with 4/5 recommended actions (e.g. “Five things you can do to keep well this winter”).

There are many different ways synergy could be achieved including:

5. Continuous campaign

Year round campaign, redefining how patients use services.

Marketing objective

• To ensure that people who are most at-risk of preventable emergency admission to hospital are aware of and, wherever possible, are motivated to take, those actions that may avoid admission this winter.

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Who are our audiences?

Audience England C2DE individuals

% England adult population

COPD 5,018,000 11%

Carers (45-59) 4,907,000 11%

Older people (65+) 4,287,000 10%

Parents of children under 5

2,746,000 6%

Total 14,034,000 31%

Between 2008-2013, across all A&E departments, there were at least twice as many attendances from those living in the most deprived 10% of areas than those in the least deprived 10% of areas.

COPD is a proxy for patients with LTCs and is of particular relevance as it is easily exacerbated by common winter illnesses, but the true target audience may be larger, when other conditions (diabetes, arthritis etc) are considered.

Audience insights

• Stoic: may delay seeking help because they do not wish to “bother the doctor” with trivial ailments.

• Some hold incorrect beliefs, for example:– Don’t treat seasonal illnesses such as colds and flu – Healthier to keep windows open and the central heating off.

• While habits may be established, this audience want to “do the right thing” both for their own health and for the good of the NHS.

• Trust in healthcare professionals and the NHS brand is high.

• Target audience includes informal carers and care workers.

Audience insights

• A relatively small number of “high impact users” account for a large proportion of admissions.

• Many people with long term conditions do not identify with this terminology, particularly if their condition is well-managed. We may need to be explicit that common winter illnesses can lead to complications / make it harder to manage long-term conditions.

• As with older people, carers (informal and professional) will be an important secondary/intermediary audience.

Audience insights

• Children 0-5 are a large group of attenders at A&E.

• Parents may default to A&E if it’s out of hours or they are frightened.

• While we do not wish to discourage concerned parents from going to A&E if they judge this is an emergency, it may be useful to increase awareness of other options that may be more convenient in less urgent cases.

• This audience often go to GPs to demand antibiotics for their children (and may have received them in the past) even for common viruses (coughs and colds) for which antibiotics do not work. Even when people rationally understand that self-care and OTC medicines are more appropriate, it can be hard to stick to this plan when a child is sick.

What are our messages?

1. Have your flu jab.

2. If you or your children start to feel ill, get help from your pharmacy first.

3. If you are prescribed medicines by your doctor, take as directed.

4. Antibiotics are not always necessary, but if you’re prescribed them finish the course.

5. Don’t go to A&E or call 999 unless it’s an emergency. If you are in any doubt, NHS111 can help you get the right treatment.

1. Have your flu jab.

2. Make sure you take any medicines as directed.

3. Get any repeat prescriptions filled in advance as many surgeries and pharmacies close over Christmas.

4. Keep a supply of cold and flu remedies in the house so you don’t need to go out if the weather is bad.

5. If you are prescribed antibiotics, finish the course.

6. If you start to feel ill, get help from your pharmacy straight away.

7. Don’t go to A&E or call 999 unless it’s an emergency. If you are in any doubt, NHS111 can help you get the right treatment.

1. Keep your home warm, at least 18 degrees.

2. Make sure you take any medicines as directed.

3. Get any repeat prescriptions filled in advance as many surgeries and pharmacies close over Christmas.

4. Keep a supply of cold and flu remedies in the house so you don’t need to go out if the weather is bad.

5. If you are prescribed antibiotics finish the course.

6. If you start to feel ill, get help from your pharmacy straight away.

7. Don’t go to A&E or call 999 unless it’s an emergency. If you are in any doubt, NHS111 can help you get the right treatment.

Messages for informal carers• Make sure the home of the person you look after is kept warm, at least 18 degrees.

• Make sure the person you care for keeps taking their prescribed medicines.

• Make sure that any repeat prescriptions are filled in advance as many surgeries and pharmacies close over Christmas.

• Make sure the person you care for takes their prescribed medicines as directed.

• Make sure the person you care for has a well-stocked medicine cabinet to help them manage common minor ailments.

• When the weather is bad check up on the person you care for and advise them not to go out.

• If the person you care for is prescribed antibiotics, make sure they finish the course.

• If the person you care for starts to feel ill, advise them to seek help and advice from their pharmacy straight away.

• Unless it’s an emergency do not take the person you care for to A&E or call 999. If you are in any doubt, call NHS111 to get the right treatment.

• Access self-care advice and information on the right NHS services from www.nhs.uk.

• Keep tissues with you and use them to catch coughs or sneezes, then to bin the tissues and kill the germs by washing your hands.

• Have your flu jab.

Multi-channel approach• TV ad

• Radio ad

• Out of home advertising

• Leaflet door drop (11.5 million homes – 17 million individuals)

• Pharmacy POS packs

• Branded pharmacy bags

• Resources / assets provided for local NHS marketing

• Campaign microsite on NHS Choices

• National and local PR

• Digital / social media marketing

• Partnership marketing

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Date(s)

Creative assets available Mid September 2015

NHS 111 regional pilot (region tbc)

September 2015

Flu vaccination October 2015

Stay healthy this winter November 2015 to January 2016

NHS 111 national campaign February to March 2016

Campaign timescales

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