University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust have earned recognition for their COVID ZERO campaign over recent weeks, winning ‘Best Crisis Comms’ at the PR Week Corporate, City & Public Affairs Awards and being runners up in the same category at the PR Week Healthcare and Pharma Awards.

The COVID ZERO campaign was focussed on promoting safety across the workforce and healthcare services throughout the pandemic, and was composed of several interconnected communication strategies, including branding and designs created by global illustrators such as Quentin Blake, committed internal channels and a well-received rewards programme.

PR Week said: “The judges were impressed by the way the Trust outlined its ambition of minimising hospital transmission and brought it to life through a series of behavioural science-endorsed nudge strategies and creative interventions encouraging widespread adoption, advocacy and adherence”.

Staff engagement increased significantly, with the positive impact on patients and media coverage ultimately playing a large role in University Hospital Southampton’s success. UHS did not set out to win awards but rather to keep COVID-19 rates low across the Trust, and have been recognised for their efforts with hospital transmission rates amongst the lowest in the country.

UHS success at PR Week awards