Data-Driven Storytelling in Healthcare

Data lies at the heart of healthcare, driving progress and making a huge impact worldwide. Data scientists are not the only people who work with complex data anymore. Without proper data analysis, assisting patients and improving care would have been much more challenging. The amount of data humanity created and consumed was 64.2 zettabytes in 2020. Forecasts indicate it will exceed 180 zettabytes by 2025. There will be even more data, and interpreting it will become much harder. What can a healthcare organization do to foster a better understanding of data? Data-driven storytelling is your solution. In this guide, I will tell you more about how communicating with data can help you articulate its importance to any audience.?

What is Data-Driven Storytelling, and Why Is it Important??

Telling a story is always a powerful way to make someone interested in what you have to offer. And when you use data to back up your story, it becomes a powerful tool for engaging with the audience and conveying an important message in simple words.?

So, what is data storytelling? Storytelling brings data to life and allows decision-makers to effectively communicate insights to any stakeholders, regardless of their technical background. It converts data insights into a compelling narrative, helping others better understand complex facts and figures.?

The best part about a data-driven story is how flexible it can be. There is no need to go the same route to tell a story as someone else did. There is a myriad of approaches you can use to craft a narrative and tell it to your audience. While data merely shows what's going on, effective data storytelling goes a step further by explaining why something is happening. From patient journey mapping to presentations on new products and services, there are many areas of healthcare where data storytellers can share industry insights.?

Key Components of Data-Driven Storytelling?

A good data story must have a few important elements to help you create a compelling narrative. Here is what you should include:?

• Data??

Everything starts with analyzing the collected data you will discuss in your story. It’s likely that, at this point, all you have is raw data that only you and maybe some of your colleagues understand. How can you turn it into a story? What can you extract from this data to make it more humane? You need to use data to set your story's plot and context.?

• Narrative?

This element of a data story is by far the hardest to build. You need to answer a set of questions before progressing with your story. Who is the main character? What challenges do they face? How can they solve their problem with data? When creating a narrative, it’s crucial to rely on emotions since they can make the story clearer and more memorable.?

• Visualization?

Visuals will support your data story, connecting with the audience and helping you create more engaging data narratives. 65% of the general population are visual learners, so it's a must-have for you to include interactive data visualizations in your story. Many data visualization tools will help you create amazing visuals. Check out programs like Microsoft Power Business Intelligence, Tableau, Google Charts, etc.?

How to Create an Engaging Narrative with Data Story?

Storytelling through data points is just as hard as writing any story. It requires a lot of practice and patience. Here are some tips that will help you craft a compelling story and get an emotional response from your listeners:?

Define your audience?

Every story appeals to its unique audience. Before jumping right into the creation process, take some time to determine who you are writing the story for. First, ask yourself: what is my goal? What am I trying to achieve with this data story? Suppose you want to give a presentation about positive changes. In that case, you can use visuals that describe the benefits of the outcomes, actions that led to amazing results, and what the audience can expect next.?

Build a captivating story?

Every story has a logical beginning and ending. An effective data story should be structured to deliver its main point best and make the story’s flow feel effortless. To create an interesting and engaging story, incorporate elements commonly found in writing: an attention grabber, a conflict, a solution, and a treasure. In other words, explain what kind of problem the main character (a company, an audience, a client, etc.) had to deal with, the solution unlocked through data analysis, and how the said solution helped the main character find a treasure (customer satisfaction, increased revenue, faster time to market, etc.).?

Let’s take a look at the data storytelling example. A company experienced a decline in sales. The company believes that it might be due to inefficient marketing campaigns. Upon looking into it and gathering data, the company learned more about consumer behavior and preferences and how to tailor marketing strategies to them. As a result, the company’s sales significantly increased.?

Choose the right visuals?

Visuals are an essential part of any data story. Narrative data visualization is what can support your story and better illustrate the importance of the data you’re describing. The chosen visualization method must grab the audience’s attention. Pick the visuals carefully, making sure that they correctly represent the data. Here are some types of visualization you can consider:?

• Column charts;?
• Heat maps;?
• Bubble charts;?
• Line graphs;?
• Funnel charts;?
• Bar charts;?
• Tree charts;?
• Histograms;?
• Timelines;?
• Radial wheels.?

For example, you are giving a presentation on your sales across different dimensions, such as product categories and time periods. In this case, you can use a heat map. A darker color could indicate higher sales, while a lighter color could represent lower sales. A heat map makes it easier for the audience to identify peak sales periods and correlations between them and product categories.?

Final Words?

Operations research analyst employment is forecasted to grow by 23% by 2032 , surpassing the average growth rate for all occupations. Storytelling in data science and good communication skills have become a requirement.?

Data and storytelling, combined, can make a huge difference. In the modern world, everything is tied to data and how you work with it. Impactful data storytelling allows companies to bridge the gap between data and decision-making, improving overall understanding of how data can influence businesses and leave a mark on even the smallest operations and outcomes. It’s time healthcare organizations embraced storytelling with data to drive innovation, enhance patient care, and inspire change.?