Swanson Russell

How can you make your hospital web site stand out from the pack? Resist the urge to cram everything you have to say on the home page. 

Less is more when it comes to your hospital home page. Think of everyone’s favorite consumer electronics brand – Apple. Its home page is beautiful in its simplicity. There’s one large, gorgeous “hero” product image that makes us believe that we want/need/gotta have whatever they’re selling. Then they offer three or four action-item options at the bottom of the page. Simple and smart. 

An informal survey of hospital websites shows an average of 15 or more items competing for attention on the typical hospital home page, ranging from anniversary news to quality rankings to how to donate to the hospital. Are we forgetting that consumers are already overwhelmed by health care?

The names of disease conditions, our therapeutic technologies, even the way finding on our hospital campuses are intimidating. Remember that if a consumer is coming to our hospital web site, then they or someone they love is probably ill. Let’s help anxious patients and their families by giving them a home page that doesn’t overwhelm them but that instead helps them find the most important things they need – a doctor, a treatment for a diagnosis they’ve just received, or information on a health issue that worries them.

Check out USCHospitals.com for an example of how The University of Southern California is making this work.