McCann Health Brain & Heart Partners with Regina Maria to Take on Symptoms of ‘Longing'
McCann Health Brain & Heart, an IPG Health Associate Company, in partnership with Regina Maria, Romania’s leading private healthcare network, recently launched a campaign to tackle the growing concerns associated with longing. Regina Maria revealed eye-opening, relevant data that links the psychosomatic effects of longing to recurrent symptoms in the body of those living separated from their loved ones: insomnia, headache, chest pain, trembling, numbness, depression. Out of Romania's population of 20 million people, more than 10 million are currently separated by distance, largely because of Romanians’ exodus to the Western Europe and beyond following the 1989 Revolution. This situation is currently being treated as a national trauma that manifests through a combination of emotional and physical pain with a very Romanian name - DOR - derived from the Latin word for pain “dolus.”
Following the recent burnout model (officially recognised as a workplace-related disease in 2019), the research is the first step in Regina Maria’s initiative to transform longing into a legitimate diagnosis. To build the case, the effects of longing on the human body were investigated through qualitative and quantitative research in the demographic most prone to suffer from acute longing: the Romanian diaspora.
The creative execution by McCann Health Brain & Heart plays with the double meaning of 'affection' (both love and disease), in the context of distance, a term forever changed by the pandemic. Visuals were inspired by the sewing technique of the Romanian folk costume, made famous by Matisse’s 'La Blouse Roumaine'.
Much like the hundred-words-for-snow trope of the arctic languages, DOR / Longing, used as proof of cultural significance of the Romanian language and mindset, provided the initiative with a unique framing. Yet, in a wider lens and in the uprooting world pressured by the increasing waves of social, economic, climate and conflict migration, recognizing longing as an affection caused by distance and alleviating it with a dedicated medical service is not only a long-term and high-stakes initiative aiming to create an entire treatment ecosystem, but it is an action of healthcare leadership and relevance. An action that reconnects the medical system with the truth that diseases change with times and people.
With the first medical subscription created to treat longing of Romanians living abroad, subscribers can now consult with Romanian doctors in the Virtual Clinic, no matter where they are in the world. The medical subscription comes in two options: Longing for You and Longing for Your Loved Ones (tailored to the needs of those left behind in the country).
To reach both Romanians living around the world and also their families back home, the 'Longing' campaign was strategically mapped out to reach audiences across geographies and behaviors, employing an integrated media mix: from social media to influencers; from direct marketing in traditional Romanian grocery shops in Brussels to special displays on the streets of New York, Madrid and London, where large communities of Romanians live; from a strategic partnership with a national radio channel deployed in ATL, promotion and data gathering component, to a documentary film releasing the investigation results on an independent journalistic platform.
