Our fourth of 6 Blogs from our Bradford and Craven Community of Practice for Primary Care through a Community Lens — a collaborative, evolving space where professionals learn, connect, and drive real change in healthcare access, service integration, and patient outcomes.
Seeing things from both sides – the human element of communications
In health care, communication is about much more than passing on information. It’s about building trust — one conversation, one experience at a time. But how we communicate, and how trust is built, has changed over the years.
Forty years ago, building a brand and getting your message out to the public was simpler. A few TV channels, posters, billboards, maybe some radio ads — and you could reach most people.
But the NHS has never been built like that. Our reputation hasn’t come from advertising campaigns, it’s been shaped every day, in every town and city, through the millions of interactions between people. A consultation. A chat at reception. A home visit. It’s those small, everyday moments that have made the NHS one of the most trusted institutions in the country.
Today, the way we communicate has changed dramatically. People get their information from all over — social media, WhatsApp, email, online forums, podcasts — and very few stick to just one channel. In health care, we’ve moved on from letters. Rising costs and environmental concerns mean we text now — a lot.
But communication today isn’t just about getting information out quickly. It’s about building relationships. Listening. And that takes more effort. Social media offers a chance to tell positive stories about health care — but it can also be a tough space, and many staff choose to stay away for their own wellbeing. Still, finding ways to engage and tell the real story of general practice has never been more important.
In Bradford District and Craven, we’ve been trying to create better spaces for these conversations. Through Listen In events and other deliberative sessions, we’ve brought patients and practice staff together — not just to share feedback, but to hear and understand each other.
One example is the familiar “8am rush” for appointments. Patients talked about what it’s like — feeling unwell and anxious, trying to get through on the phone. Staff shared their side — the pressure of dealing with high demand, wanting to do the best they can with limited resources. By slowing down the conversation, we helped people move past frustration and blame, and towards a better understanding of each other’s experiences.
In a recent workshop, we used empathy mapping to explore this even further. We asked colleagues to think about what patients see and hear. What they worry about. What they hope for. Taking time to step into another person’s shoes helped us reconnect with the human experience behind the systems and the pressures.
From these conversations, some clear themes emerged:
- Creating a friendlier, more welcoming environment in practices.
- Focusing on positive first impressions — because they matter.
- Striving for clearer, joined-up messaging across our primary care networks.
- Taking every opportunity to meet patients face-to-face and share the real story of general practice.
- And above all, making the effort to see things from both sides.
The world has changed. The way we communicate has changed. But trust, empathy, and human connection are still what matters most.
The Blog was co -written by Vic Simmons Senior head of communications and involvement at Bradford and Craven ICB and Bill Graham, community of practice facilitator.