COMMUNICATIONS WORKSHOP:

VITAS BRANDAMBASSADORS

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Disclaimer about this presentation

•The information in this presentation is strictly confidential and proprietary to VITAS Healthcare Corporation.

•This presentation and it’s addendum may not be disclosed, reproduced or redistributed without the permission of VITAS.

•The purpose of this information is strictly for internal use and training purposes.

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The Goal

To maximize your role as brand ambassadors who effectively tell the VITAS story and develop meaningful relationships that support VITAS’ mission of providing the highest quality of end-of-life care to patients and families.

The Microphone is Always on You

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Embrace the Glass House

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Leverage VITAS’ Platform

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Do Not Fear Questions

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Embrace Yourself as Storyteller

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Prepare for the Worst

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Practice Your Key Messages

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Don’t Make Assumptions

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Be Confident and Assertive

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Satisfy and Steer

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Emphasize Your Key Points

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Remember: Humor = Trouble

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Lead the Conversation

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1. Control the environment. 2. Question the questioner and reverse the question to find out

how to best make your points. 3. Defend your ideas, not yourself. 4. Raise hot objections proactively. 5. Pause before you respond. 6. Stay focused when hit with a barrage of questions. 7. Set limits.8. Don’t take anything personally: Separate content from tone and

keep your cool.9. Stick to your core messaging.10. Know when to end the conversation.

10 Smart Strategies for Tough Conversations

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• VITAS Innovative Hospice Care, a pioneer and leader in the hospice movement since 1978, is the nation’s leading provider of end-of-life care.

• Patients and families choose to do business with VITAS for numerous reasons, including:• VITAS consistently receives a 95% satisfaction rating from its patients and their

families. • Patients, families and providers trust VITAS because of its strong reputation as a

leading provider of end-of-life care.• Satisfied patients and families instantly recommend our services to their loved ones.

In fact, we receive hundreds of letters from patients and families thanking us for our excellent service. To read these letters, please visit the “About Us” section of our website www.VITAS.com and click on the “Testimonials” tab.

• The medical community trusts VITAS’ high-quality hospice services and as a result recommends our services.

• VITAS plans to continue to move ahead as a leader of the national hospice movement and keep offering the same high-quality care that we have been providing for the past 35 years to the patients, families and communities we serve.

Important Facts About VITAS

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Tough Questions to Anticipate

The following information was based on feedback by the Northern California programs who provided the suggested questions on the next slide.

The responses on your worksheet are meant to offer a broad context about VITAS and should not be used word-for-word if the question is posed by someone outside of VITAS.

Each situation will require an individualized approach and assessment.

Tough Questions to Anticipate

1. VITAS is run by corporate executives. Other companies have clinical leadership making the decisions that are local and have been in the local medical community for years.

2. The non-profits do a lot of community outreach and give back to their local communities.

3. I recommended VITAS and my family looked you up on the Internet and has asked about/is concerned about the lawsuit.

4. One of your competitors showed me several articles where VITAS has been named in lawsuits and we are concerned about doing business with a company with this type of reputation.

5. We looked your company up on the Internet and saw several bad reviews.

6. VITAS makes decisions based on stockholder interest not on patient interest.

7. It is not appropriate for a hospice provider to be for-profit.

8. Our hospital policy will not allow us to use a vendor with open/unresolved lawsuits.

VITAS Media Guidelines Included in your packet

• VITAS’ media guidelines and protocol should be followed at all times. The guideline is available in the I-Net under Divisions, HR, Communications and Public Relations.

• All media inquiries should be routed immediately to the Corporate Communications Department for processing. This can be done as follows:• Media representatives can be instructed to call our telephone

hotline: 1-877-848-2701 where they can leave a detailed message with their inquiry, contact information and deadline.

• Media can be instructed to send us an email at media@vitas.com

• No comments should be made to the media by anyone other than an authorized VITAS spokesperson.

• The VITAS Corporate Communications Department will determine how to best respond to any media inquiries.

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