An Assessment Of The Use Of Social Media In Crisis Communication Strategies At Kenyatta National Hospital In Nairobi County

Abstract

This study sought to assess the use of social media in crisis communication strategies at Kenyatta National Hospital. The objectives of the study were; to investigate the various types of social media employed by Kenyatta National Hospital in crisis communication, to determine the kind of information shared through social media by the hospital during crisis, to find out the kind of feedback received from the public through social media during crisis, and to find out how the management uses social media to communicate both to the public and the stakeholders during a crisis. The study employed qualitative research approach the case study method. The study focused on two 2018 crises which occurred at Kenyatta National Hospital namely; the surgery mix-up and the nursing mothers’ rape allegations. Qualitative methods of data collection which include content analysis and interviews were used. An interview guide was used to interview key informants from the communication department at the hospital, who were selected through purposive sampling. Content analysis was used to collect data from social media which fell in the time frame, January to March 2018 when the scandals took place. Data analysis was carried out through thematic analysis. It was found that the hospital has Facebook, Instagram and Twitter accounts whereby Facebook and Twitter are actively in use. It was also found that the organisation follows a crisis communication strategy through which information such as empathy, corrective steps, reassurance and achievements, is shared to the public and stakeholders. Feedback from the public was found to be condemning, supportive, demanding, abusive, interrogative, sarcastic and humorous. It was also found that the organisation uses press releases, reports, short texts, photographs and hash tags to communicate through social media. The study recommends that Kenyatta National Hospital explores more social media platforms to reach a wider audience as well as invest in the training of its employees and management on crisis communication.