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A serious incident, safeguarding concern, complaint or negative social media post can quickly place a care organisation under scrutiny.
For care providers, reputational risk is the potential for an incident, allegation or public concern to damage trust in the organisation among residents, families, employees, commissioners and other stakeholders.
The way a provider responds can be just as important as the original issue.
Having clear incident management, communication and escalation procedures in place before a problem occurs can help care providers respond accurately, support the people affected and demonstrate that concerns are being taken seriously.
Care is built on trust.
Families need confidence in the people looking after someone important to them. Employees want confidence in their employer, while commissioners and other stakeholders need assurance that services are being managed appropriately.
A serious incident can therefore create consequences beyond the immediate event.
Depending on the circumstances, a care provider could face:
Not every incident will become a reputational crisis. However, organisations should be prepared for situations where an operational issue becomes a public one.
Social media has changed how quickly information about a care provider can spread.
A complaint, allegation, photograph or video can be shared publicly before the organisation has had an opportunity to establish all the facts.
Information can then be reshared without the wider context.
This creates a difficult balance for care providers. There may be pressure to respond immediately, but responding before the facts are established can create additional problems.
The priority should be to establish what has happened, protect the people involved, follow appropriate reporting procedures and communicate accurately.
The immediate priority should be the safety and wellbeing of residents, service users and others affected.
The appropriate response will depend on the incident, but providers should consider:
The organisation should also keep an accurate record of the decisions made and actions taken.
Media enquiries should be handled carefully.
Employees should know who is authorised to respond, with enquiries passed to the appropriate person rather than individual employees providing comments themselves.
Before responding, establish:
Avoid speculating about events or commenting on information that has not been verified.
Equally, simply ignoring a legitimate enquiry may not always be the most appropriate response.
A short, accurate holding statement can sometimes provide time for the organisation to establish the facts and prepare a fuller response where appropriate.
A crisis communications plan establishes how an organisation will communicate when a serious incident or reputational issue occurs.
It should identify who has authority to speak on behalf of the organisation, how enquiries will be escalated and how different stakeholders will be kept informed.
For a care provider, this might include arrangements for communicating with:
Contact details and responsibilities should be kept current.
A crisis plan that has never been reviewed or tested may be much less useful when a genuine incident occurs.
For services regulated by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in England, the duty of candour requires registered providers and registered managers to act openly and transparently with people receiving care or treatment. Specific requirements also apply when an incident meets the definition of a notifiable safety incident.
This is important when considering reputational risk.
Reputation management should never mean concealing an incident, withholding information that should be disclosed or trying to minimise legitimate concerns.
CQC states that an apology made as part of the duty of candour is not an admission of liability. It also expects providers to create a culture of openness and transparency. [Care Quality Commission]()
Protecting an organisation's reputation should therefore start with appropriate action, transparency and learning rather than simply trying to control the message.
Where the duty of candour applies, an apology forms part of the requirements.
CQC explicitly states that saying sorry is not an admission of liability.
Even outside those specific circumstances, organisations should consider carefully how they communicate with people affected by an incident.
The appropriate response will depend on what happened, what is known at the time and any professional advice the provider has received.
Strong reputation management begins before a journalist calls or a complaint appears on social media.
Providers should consider whether they have:
Clear incident procedures
Employees should understand how serious incidents are reported and escalated.
Accurate record keeping
Good documentation can help establish what happened and demonstrate the actions taken.
Appropriate risk assessments
Identifying vulnerabilities before an incident occurs can help prevent problems or reduce their impact.
A crisis communications plan
Senior employees should know who makes decisions and who communicates externally.
Clear social media procedures
Employees should understand what can and cannot be shared about the organisation, residents or incidents.
Strong governance
Serious incidents should result in meaningful review, action and learning where improvements are required.
CQC's safe care guidance expects incidents affecting people's health, safety or welfare to be appropriately reviewed and investigated, with action taken to prevent recurrence and support organisational learning.
Potentially, depending on the policy and circumstances.
Some insurance arrangements may provide access to legal advice, crisis management or public relations support following certain insured events.
This support should not be assumed to apply to every reputational issue. Cover will depend on the policy wording, circumstances, conditions, limits and exclusions.
If a serious incident occurs that could result in a claim or significant external scrutiny, contact your broker promptly.
Your broker can help establish what insurance support may be available and whether the insurer needs to be notified.
If an issue is already developing, avoid making rushed public statements simply because there is pressure to respond.
Establish the facts, protect those affected, preserve relevant evidence and make any required notifications.
You should also consider whether you need support from your broker, insurer, legal adviser or communications specialist.
Most importantly, make sure the operational issue itself is being addressed.
A communications strategy cannot compensate for an underlying problem that remains unresolved.
Reputational risk cannot be eliminated completely.
Care providers operate in an environment where serious incidents, complaints and allegations can occur. Social media means information can also become public extremely quickly.
The strongest protection is therefore not simply positive PR.
It is good governance, appropriate risk management, accurate records, openness when something goes wrong and a clear plan for responding under pressure.
Organisations that prepare for difficult situations before they happen are better placed to respond calmly and demonstrate the actions they have taken.
Quality Care Group supports care providers with both insurance and proactive risk management.
Our Risk Assessments & Audits services can help organisations identify potential vulnerabilities, strengthen controls and improve their ability to evidence how risk is being managed.
Where a serious incident has already occurred, our Incident Response & Crisis Support service can provide independent support to understand what happened, manage immediate risks and develop practical improvements.
Insurance clients should also contact us promptly where an incident could result in a claim or where support may be available under their policy.
