Transcript for Clear for all: Accessible comms 101
Welcome to Clear for all, an introduction to accessible communications in NSW Health. I'm Rachel from the NSW Health Strategic Communications and Engagement Branch.
At NSW Health, we support and empower our consumers, families and carers to make informed decisions about their health. This leads to better health outcomes. To do this, we are committed to improving the accessibility of health communications.
This means making health information easy to access and understand for everyone.
Our commitment is supported by the national Disability Discrimination Act 1992, the NSW Anti-Discrimination Act 1977 and many more. Read the NSW Health Accessible Communications policy directive on Accessibility matters for more information.
At NSW Health, we communicate with people from all walks of life. The NSW population is diverse in culture, language, location and lived experience.
According to the 2021 Census and NSW government sources, in New South Wales:
Different audiences can have different communications support needs. It is our responsibility to consider these needs and create health communications everyone can access and understand. This is called accessible communication.
As explained in the NSW Health Accessible Communications Policy, ‘accessible communication means making sure all people understand the information NSW Health is sharing. This can be people with disability who have low literacy, low health literacy or specific communication needs.’
Why does accessible communication matter?
This all leads to better care experiences and health outcomes.
So, let's explore how accessible communications is better for everyone.
Captions, for example, are primarily used to support access for people who are d/Deaf or hard of hearing. However, they are also useful for people watching content in a second language or people in noisy environments.
By making our communications accessible, we make them easier for everyone to access and understand.
Now that we understand why accessible communications matter, how do we make our communications accessible?
First, know your audience. Talk with consumers to understand what information they need and how they'd like to receive it.
Identify the communication barriers they face and their communication support needs.
A communication barrier is something that prevents a message from being accessed or understood. A person's circumstances or identity is never the barrier. Barriers come from societal ideas, systems and practices.
A communication support need addresses those barriers and offers a solution.
It's important to recognise that audiences or individuals may face multiple communication barriers. This is referred to as intersectionality. Make sure you consider how communication support needs may overlap.
Let's imagine an example.
Pat has a visual disability and uses a screen reader. English is Pat's second language. Pat also identifies as a member of the LGBTIQ+ community.
Communication barriers Pat might face are:
Pat’s communication support needs are:
It's much easier and quicker to consider how to meet these needs at the start of a project than to try and make existing content accessible. Where possible, plan ahead.
For best practice, work with representatives from your audience to co-design and test your communications to ensure accessibility.
By considering the diverse needs of your audience, you can create accessible and inclusive communications. This helps you reach a wider audience of people who may otherwise have been unable to access your communication. It also increases your impact by making your information easier to understand.
Now that you know the basics, we'll share some practical tips that you can start using today.
Use inclusive, respectful, and culturally safe language and terminology.
For example, using Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander is often considered best practice and should be capitalised to show respect. Also shortening the term into an acronym, ATSI, should be avoided as this can be seen as disrespectful.
Use plain English.
This is direct, clear and simple language to give information that people can understand quickly and easily. In Australia, it refers to writing that is equal to a year seven level.
When writing content in plain English:
For social media or written content:
We also recommend using a minimum font size of 12 and line height of 1.5. Where possible, we recommend using Public Sans font.
Lastly, we'd like to share our top three things to consider when planning your communications.
Consider alternative formats such as captions and audio descriptions for video content and transcripts for audio only content.
Provide Easy Read versions of your content, this is a way of showing written information in an easy-to-understand format. It uses short active sentences and images. It can be useful for audiences who need support to understand plain English.
And develop translations of your content if this is required for your audience.
Thank you for watching or listening to this introduction to accessible communications.
To wrap up, we'll do a quick recap of the key takeaways.
It is our responsibility to communicate health information in an accessible and inclusive way. This leads to better care experiences and health outcomes.
Accessible communication means making information easy to access and understand for everyone.
Consider accessibility at the start. This will save you time.
To create accessible and inclusive communications, talk with consumers to understand what information they need and how they'd like to get it.
We've covered some general tips and guidance but there is more to learn.
Visit Accessibility matters for tools and resources to help you improve the inclusivity and accessibility of your communications.
Join our Teams channel to stay updated with more training opportunities. Thank you.