Case study
KRH Hannover adopts Siilo for real-time internal communication
Klinikum Region Hannover (KRH) is one of the largest municipal clinic groups in Germany and the largest provider of healthcare services in the Hannover region. Its 8.500 full time employees treat approximately 135.000 inpatients and 160.000 outpatients annually.
* photo credit to Stefan Gallwitz
KRHs challenge: reaching all staff with internal news
The global spread of COVID-19 highlighted an overwhelming need for rapid communication. Due to an increased difficulty in keeping up-to-date on the latest COVID-19 statistics, treatment strategies, and hospital protocols, KRH’s communications department, led by Steffen Ellerhoff, was searching for ways to keep employees informed and safe. Both the monthly print newsletter and the desktop intranet program at KRH were ineffective due to the slow, static dissemination of information.
The solution: mobile platform to share internal news
Siilo, a secure medical messenger, was already in use at the KRH organisation in the Urology Department of KRH Clinic Robert Koch Gehrden under Prof. Dr. Florian Fuller to improve internal team collaboration and coordinate patient care with consulting physicians outside of the organisation. KRH’s data protection officer, Christian Säfken, reviewed and approved Siilo as meeting security requirements, stating,“We have examined Siilo and found it to be secure for use by both medical and administrative personnel. It was particularly important to us that Siilo is a European product and that the app’s data is stored separately from personal information on users’ devices.”
Having seen Siilo’s effectiveness as a communication tool in other parts of KRH, Steffen Ellerhoff recognised its potential for the challenge his team was facing.“The simplicity of the app is what makes Siilo so easy to use,” Ellerhoff explained.“We can upload information directly where everyone can find it, and doctors or nurses can respond to it in real time, like answering any other text message.” Siilo’s multiple security certifications, end-to-end encryption, and PIN Code protection, amongst other features designed to protect patient information, made it all the more attractive as an internal communication solution.
KRH organisation members on Siilo now receive updates, messages, and calls straight to their mobile phones. This environment is an arrangement of discussion and bulletin boards, called tiles, where Ellerhoff’s department can post information directly to organisation members. These tiles include the following:
- Contacts, a comprehensive directory of all staff members who can be contacted without sharing personal contact details.
- KRH News, where internal updates on initiatives and policies are shared.
- Events, where invitations and reminders to internal events, courses, etc. are posted.
- Corona News, where COVID-19-related updates, such as current number of patients, are communicated.
- Corona Q&A, an interactive forum where everyone can publicly ask questions and responses are available for all staff to see.
Team Siilo helped the Internal Communications Department set up the environment quickly and provided support with setting up Siilo Spaces, training department staff on how to use the app, and onboarding members to the platform.“We have been anticipating a solution and partnership like this for quite some time,” says Ellerhoff.“Team Siilo was quick, responsive, and reliable, which made for a smooth setup and onboarding process. That was a major driving force behind our decision.”
The results: well-informed staff
Within just three months of usage by the Internal Communications Team, the staff at KRH have already exchanged 178.300 messages sharing critical information like hygiene guidelines and numbers of COVID-19 patients. The KRH Siilo Network unites 770 active members from both medical and administrative departments.
“Siilo is a simple, low-threshold tool that can help to bridge existing gaps between those working in the office and dealing with administrative processes and those involved in patient care,” says Ellerhoff. He advises that, when introducing Siilo, organisations should consider what their employees want to know and what help they need. It is important to communicate closely with medical and administrative representatives so that it can be tailored to their different needs.
The statistics
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