NW Indiana ER & Hospital Director of Marketing Jessica Hubbard knew she found her future calling the minute she stepped into the hospital.
Hubbard joined the team back in March and instantly clicked with everyone the moment she sat down for her job interview. When she first entered the room, the people across from her were just five strangers. By the end, Hubbard felt like she was catching up with old friends, and that immediate sense of camaraderie made Hubbard confident that this was the place for her.
“It just seemed like the right fit. I'd never met any of them in person before that, but sitting with everyone there was like talking to my family. It was so comforting, rewarding, and easy to navigate all of that with each of them, and I didn’t even have a job then. When I did come in, they were so welcoming. I’ve only been here just short of six or seven months, but it's been so welcoming to know that we have a huge staff that always has everybody’s back. We all work very well together,” Hubbard said.
While new to the NW Indiana ER & Hospital team, Hubbard has over 20 years under her belt in both the healthcare and marketing industries. Her past experience has taught her a lot over the years while letting her build upon many different skill sets. She notes it helped prepare her well for the work she does today.
“At the last doctor’s office I was at, I learned a lot about how a business works, such as how to cold call and how to get comfortable with that,” Hubbard said.
“From there, I went into a different field where it was more community-based. I was talking to businesses and then tying it into a whole community, not just the doctor or healthcare world. It was towns and schools and hospitals and municipalities and retail, just about every type of business you could think of. Both of those experiences, I think, are what has made me enjoy what I do even more. For so long. I was just in that healthcare mindset, and getting out into the community, seeing all the other entities that are out there, and building those relationships with all of those different people, businesses, and trends brought it to perspective as to what I'm doing now.”
Building upon those relationships for NW Indiana ER & Hospital is now the core of Hubbard’s work in marketing. It’s also what she enjoys most about what she does – each day brings new and exciting opportunities to further engage with the community around her.
“I think being involved in the community is a huge part of any marketing job. It's building the awareness of who we are in the community. For us, that’s bringing awareness to the community through different avenues, such as being at RailCats games, being at a parade or a 5k, or hosting our own event here too,” Hubbard said. “Letting the community know who we are and what we offer has been my favorite part of it all.”
Hubbard has also found a similar sense of community within the walls of the hospital. Whether it be her coworkers or the patients they treat, she’s gotten to know many new faces this year who have all become like a second family.
“I think that that's what makes this hospital different,” Hubbard said. “We are a smaller facility; we offer a concierge level of care because we're all happy to be here. The patients aren’t just a number, and the employees aren't just a number. We know the families, we know what's going on with everybody we worked with, and it's a family feel.”
As time progresses, Hubbard is excited to bring her unique perspective to the marketing team at NW Indiana ER & Hospital. Its large array of concierge services offered combined with its caring staff makes the healthcare facility a stand out in the area, and Hubbard is looking forward to getting that word out there to invite as many as possible into the NW Indiana ER & Hospital family.
“I'm hoping to bring a different feel from what may have been here before,” Hubbard said. “I think just having my own spin on how we can be successful in the community and having that outward-facing connection can go a long way. I want them to remember that we’re here, whether we’re on the Purdue campus or visiting a fire station - I want them to have that connection with them and let them know we're here for them day or night, 24/7.”
When not at the hospital or outbuilding connections within her community, Hubbard has recently become an avid runner and has an end goal to run a race in each state. She also enjoys spending as much time as possible with her daughter, a junior in high school, before the inevitable time comes for her to leave for college.
For more information on NW Indiana ER & Hospital, visit its website at nwindianaer.com.
