Strengthening Global Healthcare Authority Through Strategic Communications

The Vision

As one of the leading brands in the international healthcare sector, Medicana Health Group continues to expand its global reach through a strategic combination of an extensive hospital network, multidisciplinary medical expertise, and advanced healthcare technologies. At FL PR & Communications, our primary objective is to strengthen Medicana’s international reputation and position the Group as a trusted global healthcare authority across a broad range of fields, from sports medicine and preventive care to longevity and scientific expertise.

To achieve this, we developed a comprehensive international communications ecosystem spanning the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Nigeria, Europe, and the MENA region. Our approach combined planned media visibility with timely, news-driven expert communications.

During May and June 2026, four international press releases generated approximately 3,000 media placements, 477 million in potential reach, and 22,955 views. The two press releases distributed in June alone delivered approximately 2,000 placements, 254.6 million in full-text reach, and 14,136 views.

Strategic Playbook

To build a sustainable international brand presence for Medicana, we implemented a multi-layered strategy that extended beyond traditional press release distribution. The program brought together media relations, news agenda management, medical expert positioning, executive thought leadership, and reputation management.

• Global Media Network and Multi-Market Visibility: We brought Medicana’s expanded healthcare partnership with Fenerbahçe, the opening of the Medicana Longevity Center, the recognition of its “Next Stop: Mammography” initiative in Capital Magazine’s corporate social responsibility research, and the pre-World Cup health screenings of the Türkiye National Football Team to international audiences. The Capital Magazine-focused campaign generated approximately 1,000 placements and 126.8 million in full-text reach, while the national team health screenings release secured approximately 1,000 placements and 127.8 million in reach.
• Sports Medicine and News Agenda Management: We connected the World Cup news cycle with high-value editorial topics including player health, heat-related risk, hydration, sleep, jet lag, and injury management. A media campaign featuring insights from Prof. Dr. Mehmet Karabulut on World Cup hydration breaks appeared in 12 international outlets, including ESPN, Yahoo Sports, AOL Sports, the New York Post, ESPN UK, and ESPN India, reaching an estimated audience of 214.6 million.
• Regional Communications and Executive Positioning: We positioned Medicana Health Group Board Member Berk Bozkurt in Business Insider Africa through a leadership feature focused on the Group’s Nigeria strategy and its end-to-end care model for African patients. During the same period, we managed his nomination process for the Forbes Business Council, supporting Medicana’s broader objective of strengthening its leadership profile within the international business community.
• Reputation Management and Strategic Media Development: We managed an international patient-related communications matter originating in New Zealand in line with the principles of patient confidentiality, medical privacy, and evidence-based communications. We also developed future visibility opportunities across target markets through strategic discussions with international media organizations including BBC.com, BBC News, and SBS. In Australia and New Zealand, we initiated a World Cup media planning process with SBS.

Authority and Thought Leadership

Through reactive media relations aligned with global health and sports news cycles, we positioned Medicana’s physicians not simply as experts within the institution, but as credible scientific authorities whom international journalists could turn to for timely and reliable commentary.

Building Scientific Authority Through Newsweek

In a Newsweek feature examining the potential effects of commonly used food additives on heart health, we secured the inclusion of insights from Medicana Health Group cardiologist Prof. Dr. Gültekin Faik Hobikoğlu.

His expert commentary on processed foods, preservatives, blood pressure, and long-term cardiovascular risk was published by Newsweek Online and subsequently syndicated by Yahoo Health. The coverage reached an estimated audience of 118 million.

Bringing Sports Medicine to the Global News Agenda

• World Cup Hydration Breaks — ESPN and Global Sports Media: Through the expert perspective of Prof. Dr. Mehmet Karabulut, we communicated that hydration breaks are not merely a sporting or commercial consideration, but a critical medical measure supporting player safety, heat-risk management, hydration, and sustained performance. The story appeared in 12 outlets, including ESPN, Yahoo Sports, AOL Sports, and the New York Post.
• Sleep, Jet Lag, and Player Performance: Drawing on the expertise of Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mecbure Nalbantoğlu, we developed a dedicated media angle examining how the World Cup’s extensive travel schedule across the United States, Canada, and Mexico could affect sleep patterns, jet lag, hydration, recovery, and match performance.
• Injury Management and a Safe Return to Play: With insights from Prof. Dr. Okan Özkunt, we presented FIFA’s one-minute injury rule to international sports journalists from a medical perspective, focusing on acute injury assessment, the safe return of players to the field, and the time pressure placed on medical teams.

Turning Awareness into Action Through Media Power

We matched Medicana physicians with international journalist requests across a wide range of specialties, including infectious diseases, endocrinology, gastroenterology, dermatology, cardiology, oncology, rheumatology, psychiatry, and nutrition.

Expert commentary was developed on timely subjects such as Ebola, hantavirus, GLP-1 medications, obesity, kidney disease, hair loss, autoimmune conditions, sleep, nutrition, and digestive health. These insights were presented through CisionOne, Qwoted, and direct journalist outreach to high-reach publications including Newsweek, Yahoo Health, Daily Mail US, Bloomberg Luxury, HuffPost, EatingWell, and Woman’s World.

By integrating medical expertise into the international news cycle, we strengthened the visibility of Medicana’s scientific capabilities across multiple specialties and established its physicians as credible sources for both healthcare and mainstream media.

Our Impact

• Global Visibility: Four international press releases distributed during May and June 2026 generated approximately 3,000 media placements, 477 million in potential reach, 22,955 views, and 11,774 unique readers.
• Earned Media Success: The World Cup hydration breaks and cardiovascular health campaigns produced a combined 14 earned media placements, reached an estimated audience of approximately 332.6 million, and generated more than TRY 58.2 million in estimated earned media value.
• Scientific and Institutional Credibility: Medicana specialists were positioned as trusted expert sources across major platforms including ESPN, Yahoo Sports, AOL Sports, the New York Post, Newsweek, and Yahoo Health, covering fields such as sports medicine, cardiology, oncology, dermatology, gastroenterology, endocrinology, rheumatology, and nutrition.
• Strategic Brand Positioning: Medicana was represented internationally not only as a hospital group providing medical treatment, but as a global healthcare brand creating value across athlete health, preventive medicine, healthy aging, scientific expertise, and social responsibility.
• A Sustainable Communications Infrastructure: By integrating planned press release distribution, reactive news monitoring, expert commentary development, journalist pitching, executive communications, and performance reporting into a single model, we created a measurable and sustainable international communications infrastructure for Medicana.