How Orlo can help NHS comms teams this winter

We know many NHS organisations are bracing for a busier-than-usual period, with ongoing pressures across services and industrial action affecting staffing and patient flow. When things get tight operationally, communications teams are often the first to feel the surge – from anxious patients, curious media, and staff looking for clarity.

If that’s you right now: we hear you, and we’re here to help with guides, blogs and top tips.

Below are simple, practical steps you can put in place today, with direct links to Orlo’s support articles to help you get everything set up quickly.

A structured inbox makes spikes in volume far more manageable.

• Create priority dashboards to track urgent topics, keywords or accounts:
  How-to: Creating a Dashboard
  Widget options: Dashboard Widgets Glossary
• Use tags and filters to group similar messages and spot trends quickly:
  How-to: Tagging Orlo Inbox Messages for Analysis 

Preparing content in advance saves time when things heat up.

• Draft and store ready-to-use content your team can quickly publish:
  How-to: Creating Draft Content
• Keep track of everything in one place using the content calendar:
  How-to: Content Calendar Overview

Let automation handle repetitive tasks so you can focus on the human side.

• Set up rules to tag, categorise, or flag urgent messages automatically:
  How-to: Automation Overview
• Use pre-canned responses for common queries with links to trusted info
  How-to: Create Snippets

Scheduling and batching posts reduces pressure and keeps communications consistent.

• Bulk edit or delay scheduled posts if you need to pause non-urgent content:
  How-to: Bulk Edit Social Media Content
• Ensure replies are controlled during sensitive periods:
  How-to: Reply Controls are detailed within the Marketing section
  https://support.orlo.tech/marketing

The more informed your team is, the quicker and calmer your responses will be.

• Use RSS feeds to pull in trusted updates from police, local authorities, NHS England, or resilience groups:
  How-to (widget): Dashboard Widgets Glossary
  How-to (content feed): RSS setup sits under Manage Content in the Marketing section https://support.orlo.tech/marketing 

This helps you stay ahead of emerging topics and gives you content ready to share when appropriate.

Peak periods are demanding, and comms teams often feel it first.

• Share responsibility using dashboards and shared workspaces.
• Agree fast, simple sign-off processes.
• Celebrate small wins – clarity and reassurance go a long way for patients and staff.

You’re not in this alone

We know how intense these moments can be for NHS comms teams – the pressure, the pace, and the responsibility of shaping public understanding. Our aim is to make things feel a little more manageable and give you tools that genuinely lighten the load.

If you want help setting up dashboards, automations, RSS feeds or smarter ways to manage high-volume periods, we’re here to support you, so get in touch.