On the other hand, the internal audiences of a hospital include different groups: medical staff, students in training, biologists, technicians, matrons, nurses, psychologists, assistants, administration and services staff and research groups, among others (Costa, 2012b: 111).

In this context, the strategic management of communication in the relations of a hospital and its internal audiences plays an essential role, and in it “the involvement, collaboration, motivation and cohesion of all the personnel within the organization is essential to reach excellence” (García Nieto, 2012b: 129). And, in this sense, internal communication at hospital centres serves three purposes: identifying, integrating and motivating (García Nieto, 2012b: 133). Since the General Theory of Systems (Von Bertalanffly, 1976) it can be stated that “a hospital is a system in permanent interaction with its environment and in constant adaptation in its internal processes” where the necessary effort of management to “warrant staff’s integration and cohesion” prevails (García Nieto, 2012b: 130).

3. Excellent public relations and humanisation

The humanisation of health care is only conceivable in the epistemological framework of the excellence of public relations, always within the unavoidable patient centred care. Humanisation is a basic and essential principle in hospital chores and it stands for the most elemental precepts of social responsibility in health care. Humanisation is key when communicating with people who are feeling insecure due to health issues. For this reason it is important to detach it from any philanthropic connotation that would give it a discretional and arbitrary nature as something optional and voluntary, which is unthinkable when dealing with relations with patients.

3.1. Excellence in public relations

As is known, the Theory of Excellence in Public Relations arose from the studies conducted in 1985 at the request of the IABC (International Association of Business Communicators) Research Foundation, in order to explain “the value of public relations for an organization, and to identify the features of the role of public relations that increase its value” (Grunig and Grunig, 2008: 327).

One of the main contributions of the Theory of Excellence is the definition of the four models of Public Relations. These models, based on empirical research, are a reflection of the different ways of conducting relations with audiences throughout history since the beginning of the twentieth century, extrapolated to the present time along with the elements from each model that may be found in the current context. Therefore, as its authors state, the different models may be currently applied in organizations in different proportions. However, they add, the model most desirable for the development of public relations is the so-called excellent public relations model, with bidirectional communication and balanced results (Grunig, 1992; Grunig and Hunt, 2003).

Excellence refers to a set of features that define the efficiency of an organization. And an organization is efficient when “it reaches the goals set upon consulting its audiences –goals that serve the interests of the organization and those of