The 2025 MHA Communications Retreat brought together about 100 communications, marketing and public relations professionals from MHA-member facilities Oct. 1 to network and learn from peers across the state. The agenda featured sessions on reputation management and crisis communications.
The event began with a communications alignment activity, followed by state and federal healthcare updates from Laura Appel, executive vice president of government relations and public policy, MHA. She outlined how hospital leaders and communications teams can navigate new challenges in the evolving healthcare landscape and emphasized the importance of uplifting messaging that tells the hospital story.
Tim McIntyrce, an experienced communicator and former Domino’s Pizza executive, dived into reputation management, drawing parallels between his experience and the issues hospitals face today.
A panel discussion was conducted on crisis communications, focusing on lessons from past healthcare crises and strategies for working with and leveraging media relationships. Jeff Gaunt, founder and principal of Gaunt Strategies, moderated the panel comprised of Catherine Dewey, regional marketing communications manager, Munson Healthcare, and Mark Geary, senior director, communications & external affairs, Corewell Health.
The event concluded with an interactive tabletop exercise led by Gaunt. The session highlighted best practices in crisis communications using real-world examples and emphasized the importance of speed, accuracy, empathy, transparency and accountability. Attendees left with a first-hour checklist, templates and an action plan to help strengthen crisis communication readiness within 30 days.
The event was sponsored by Bellwether Public Relations, MHA Data Services (Community Benefits Tracker), KU Audio Production and MHA Print & Graphic Services. Members seeking more information and resources from the event may contact John Karasinski at the MHA.
