November 11, 2014
Last month, as news of the Ebola virus in America spread, everyone – including media – was wondering: how is our healthcare system preparing for this threat? And part of that — what if someone with Ebola symptoms walked into their neighborhood urgent care center? Luckily, the Urgent Care Association of America was there to provide guidance to its members and ensure that clinics around the country were prepared – and, we were able to help UCAOA reach the general public by coordinating interviews for the association’s spokespeople with top media outlets.During height of media interest in Ebola, we coordinated media interviews for the UCAOA with the Associated Press, The Wall Street Journal, The Boston Globe, The New York Times, Modern Healthcare, The Dallas Morning News and KDRV-TV in Denver, and provided written statements for many other local inquiries. The AP story alone was featured on numerous high-profile news websites and was picked up by more than 150 outlets in total. UCAOA experts used these opportunities to show how urgent care was extremely prepared to handle potential Ebola cases – and to encourage citizens who believed they had symptoms to call 911 to limit potential exposure to others.
The hype and hyperbole of the Ebola threat has subsided, but thanks to UCAOA’s quick response to the situation and readiness to speak with interested media, we were able to help offer reassurance at the height of the scare – and establish UCAOA as a well-prepared, informative resource for health-related stories.