Creator / originator

The Children’s Hospital Trust.

Summary / objectives

The burns ward at the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital is not the only specialised burns centre treating children with burns in the Western Cape but throughout the whole of Africa. However, the burns ward has not been updated since the hospital was built and medical techniques and modern needs have changed so much that its equipment and facilities are now out of date.

The aim of the ‘careometer viral campaign’ was to create awareness of this burns unit and its need for modernisation. People were encouraged to visit the Children’s Hospital Trust website and click on the ‘careometer’ to show that they care.

Background

The Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital was built in 1956 in Cape Town and manages 250,000 patient visits every year. The hospital is the only dedicated specialist children’s hospital in southern Africa and cares for patients from not only the Western Cape region but from all over South Africa, the African continent and the rest of the world. The Children’s Hospital Trust was established in 1994. It is an independent organisation and the official fundraising arm of the hospital. Its mandate is to keep the hospital at the cutting edge of paediatric care.

The burns unit is highly specialised and a new ward is needed to maintain international standards and the high quality of care that is needed for burn victims. The cost of upgrading and equipping the new unit is R16 million (a little less than USD 2.5 million).

Special characteristics

The ‘careometer’ campaign was launched at the end of September 2010 to create awareness around the upgrading of the burns unit. An email was sent to all previous supporters which urged them to visit the website of the Children’s Hospital Trust. Visitors were not asked for time or money, but were asked to show they cared by clicking on the ‘careometer’ featured on the site. People were also asked to forward the message to their own family and friends.

The ‘careometer’ campaign was also publicised on a local prime-time breakfast radio show. The radio show was actually broadcast from the hospital and the DJ, Nigel Pierce, interviewed both trust and hospital staff and asked listeners to visit the website.

Influence / impact

The target number of clicks for this campaign was 30,000. However, the popularity of the campaign meant that the Children’s Hospital Trust achieved almost three times as many clicks than the targeted amount. The website received on average almost 3,000 visitors per day during October. The emotive stories from the burns unit connected many people to the cause and supporters could see the progress as the careometer heart gradually filled up as more and more people clicked on the site.

Furthermore, the trust received many donations towards the appeal that helped them to reach their fundraising target.

Merits

This campaign is a great example of how to make people care. Using powerful messages, simple actions and the right publicity, the Children’s Hospital Trust were able to raise awareness and receive donations towards their fundraising target.