To anyone involved in crisis management on a regular basis, the idea that a sincere apology can mitigate damages is a no brainer. In other sectors, however, this idea is only just beginning to catch on. The success of legislation which has been adopted in 34 states, based on the theory that health care providers acknowledging and apologizing for mistakes would reduce the likelihood of patient lawsuits, has led the business community to take notice.
In an article for the National Law Journal, Marc E. Williams shares one of his own experiences with the success of this method:
Anecdotally, I have seen this work in my own practice. A small chemical spill caused local neighborhoods around an industrial facility in my home state of West Virginia to be sheltered in place for the better part of a day. As part of the company’s emergency response plan, company representatives and their lawyers went door-to-door in the affected neighborhoods to see if there was anything that the residents needed from the company. The gratitude of the people was palpable. And not a single one made a claim for damages or inconvenience.
As health care providers have discovered, accepting responsibility is one of the most important moves an organization can make in attempting to move past a crisis and rebuild their reputation.
JB
Jonathan Bernstein
https://www.bernsteincrisismanagement.com/