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A mounted police officer stands with healthcare professionals outside a hospital
September 27, 2018

Staff embrace the first #myHHS Day

Those who work at Hamilton Health Sciences (HHS) got their first taste of how social media can bring a large group of colleagues together and celebrate why they love working here.

Staff, doctors, residents and volunteers celebrated the first-ever #myHHS Day earlier this month.

The early morning kick-off featured the cheer squad from Hamilton’s St. Thomas More Catholic Secondary School. That was followed up by visits from crowd-favourites Lincoln of Hamilton Police Services’ mounted patrol unit and Zachary’s Paws for Healing.

The day was a chance to celebrate everyone who works at HHS and to promote social media as a tool to share workplace pride.

Social media engagement rising at HHS

With hospital staff always on the move, HHS must reach its people in new ways and where they are most present.

In early 2017, HHS embarked on a new strategy to encourage staff to use social media safely and appropriately. Several employees were already using social to share the hospital’s patient stories. They also share what makes them proud to work for a leading healthcare and research organization.

“It’s so exciting to be able to show our pride for the amazing work we do.”

The plan called for a new Twitter account aimed directly at employees and doctors working at HHS’ hospitals.

HHS also introduced a new hashtag campaign–#myHHS—to harness a growing interest amongst people who work here to show off their pride. The campaign helped staff connect with each other in a way that didn’t involve more traditional methods of communication.

Helping colleagues connect with each other using social media has helped strengthen HHS’ culture.

“We’ve come a long way with our sharing and social media,” tweeted Kathyann Davidson, a media application specialist at HHS. “It’s so exciting to be able to show our pride for the amazing work we do and to celebrate the best care we provide to our patients and families.”

Davidson is part of a group of social media ambassadors that includes front-line staff, doctors and leaders. Each one takes on simple tasks to promote stories, events and their own roles to their followers.

Staff can use #myHHS to share their proudest moments on social media. Follow @HHS_staff on Twitter for employee news and events information.