HSE wins for foster campaign
6 July 09

The HSE was awarded the Best Public Information Campaign award at the Public Relations Consultants' Awards (PRCA) of Excellence in Public Relations 2009 for its Focus of Fostering Week campaign which ran in November last year. 
 
The HSE's campaign was the only one of the four shortlisted entries in the category which did not use the services of a public relations firm and beat off stiff competition.
 
Judges of the PRCA awards included communications experts such as John Gallagher, course director, MA in Public Relations, DIT; Brian O'Mahony, chief business correspondent, Irish Examiner; Barry Kenny, corporate communications manager, Iarnród Éireann and Tara Buckley, director general, RGDATA.
 
The primary aim of the programme was to highlight the wonderful work done by foster parents in Ireland and create public awareness on what fostering is and who can foster children, in order to recruit new foster parents in those areas where they are needed. 
 
As a result of the HSE's PR campaign, there was a significant increase in enquiries to local health offices from prospective foster parents, and a larger-than-average conversion of expressions of interest into actual applications.