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If you can understand most of the lingo thrown around on "ER," you probably know enough to get started -- and perhaps even make a name for yourself -- in the fascinating, lucrative field of healthcare communications.
What skills do you need? You don't need to be a doctor, nurse or even a college graduate to write health-related materials. Of course, it helps if you have some background in the medical field, and you'll probably need that kind of expertise if you want to write materials that health professionals will read. But if your main audience is the lay public (AKA healthcare consumers), the most important qualifications are:
- Curiosity about health and medical topics
- Research skills, including the ability to differentiate between accurate, reliable health information and bogus or "fringe" claims
- Basic understanding of medical terminology (and a good medical dictionary)
- Ease and confidence when interviewing physicians and other medical experts
- A compulsion for accuracy (mistakes and even innocent typos can have devastating effects)
- Willingness to keep up with the constant changes in healthcare and medicine
- Ability to communicate complex facts, technical information and medical jargon in a clear, understandable manner
- Commitment to meeting your clients' expectations and your readers' needs
Getting Clients
The most logical markets
for healthcare writers are hospitals, which often have a variety of writing
needs--such as newsletters, website content, ads, audiovisual scripts, brochures,
speeches, press kits and patient education materials. Contact hospital public
relations, communications or marketing departments. Try the human resources
department, too, because HR professionals in all kinds of businesses, including
hospitals, often need writers for employee manuals, policies and procedures,
and other materials.
Besides hospitals, look for healthcare assignments from advertising, marketing
and public relations agencies. They often have healthcare organizations or
professionals as clients. One of my very first clients was an ad agency that
specialized in healthcare. I wrote a lot of print ads, brochures, newsletters,
TV and radio spots and patient education sheets.
Early in my career I also had a client who produced audiovisuals to educate
patients with diabetes, asthma and other chronic conditions. I wrote the scripts
and also worked with the photographers during photo shoots to make sure the
slides matched the script and storyline. (And, of course, I was paid for this
extra work, known as expediting). You can find similar work from video producers
and other media pros.
Additional potential healthcare clients include dentists, chiropractors, nutritionists,
veterinarians, massage therapists, physical therapists, clinics, pharmacies,
health associations and alternative health practitioners, such as acupuncturists
and herbalists. And if you have a knack for writing web copy, your marketing
possibilities are almost unlimited. Thousands (millions?) of reputable health
sites are on the Internet, and many of them turn to outside writers for good,
timely content.
No matter where or how you find healthcare clients, keep this point in mind:
Protect your credibility and reputation by working only with those who provide
legitimate services. Plenty of "snake-oil" salespeople are out there,
especially on the Internet. Avoid them at all costs.
“Show me the money”
You can command top dollar when you have enough experience to call yourself
a specialist in healthcare writing (even if you do other kinds of writing
as well). Until then, don't sell yourself short. It's difficult to say specifically
how much money you can make, because reasonable fees vary widely. However,
I'll go out on a limb and suggest that you can make at least $70 an hour in
most locales. (By the way, sometimes it's best to avoid telling clients your
hourly rate. Instead, estimate how long a project will take and then give
your estimated total fee.)
Bonus rewards
Money is not the only reward of healthcare writing. Several times I have heard
about people who read what I wrote, acted upon the information and had a good
or even lifesaving experience as a result.
A newsletter article I wrote for a hospital described the warning signs of
a stroke. A man read the article and realized he had been having those signs
on and off for a couple of days. He called his doctor, who told him to go
to the emergency room immediately. Tests showed blocked blood vessels leading
to the brain -- a leading cause of stroke. The man was treated successfully
and suffered no permanent problems. I framed a copy of the article and proudly
display it in my office. It's a reminder that I can make a difference in someone's
life.
So can you. If you would like to enjoy the financial and personal rewards
of healthcare writing…go for it! And if you need help getting started
or expanding your business in that direction, contact me at clarity@iag.net
or call (407) 324-2138.
Click here for a printable, PDF version of this article.
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