Mayo Clinic puts a human face on its swine flu message

Why a renowned health organization went to video to spread the word

Mayo Clinic didn’t want to tell the swine flu story just through print.

Instead, they opted to give it a human element.

Conveying a calm, yet engaging physical demeanor and vocal tone, Dr. Bill Marshall, an infectious-disease specialist, explains what swine flu is, what the symptoms are, and how Mayo Clinic is responding. The video is crafted to be educational and to minimize alarm.

“A video had the ability to show the emotional side of it,” says Karl Oestreich, public affairs manager. “It helps bring the static information to life.”

The video is also posted along with informative articles on the Web site. Oestreich says there’s been a spike of traffic on the Web site, with about 1,200 visits and 600 people watching the video. The video has also been posted on the organization’s intranet, “Mayo Web.”