Inclusive Design is Patient Care

26 Jan

Inclusive design is one of those phrases that sounds lovely… and also vague enough to mean nothing if we’re not careful.

So let’s make it concrete.

Inclusive design means designing your brand, content, and services so more people can use them. Especially people who are most likely to be excluded by default systems. In healthcare, this isn’t a “nice extra.” It’s the difference between someone understanding their options or staying confused. Between booking an appointment or abandoning the form halfway through. Between feeling safe enough to ask for help or deciding the system isn’t built for them.

Big-name health organisations are increasingly explicit about this. The NHS (England), for example, describes inclusive design as an approach to designing and delivering services so everyone can access them, regardless of background or life experience. That definition matters because it expands the frame: it’s not only about disability (though it includes it). It’s about designing for real life.

Now, before we go further, let’s untangle two words that often get blended together: accessibility and inclusion.

Accessibility VS Inclusion

Accessibility is about removing barriers for people with disabilities. It covers things like readable text, keyboard navigation, screen reader support, captions, and sufficient colour contrast. On the web, accessibility is often guided by standards like WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines), which outline practical criteria for making digital content more accessible.

Inclusion is broader. Inclusion asks: who is being unintentionally left out and why? It includes disability, but also health literacy, language, cultural context, neurodivergence, trauma history, poverty, ageing, and tech access. Inclusion is the whole room. Accessibility is making sure the doors, hallways, signage, and seating actually work for everyone who enters.

A simple way to remember it:

Accessibility is “Can you use it?”
Inclusion is “Do you feel like this was made with you in mind?”

Good health brands aim for both.

What Big Health Brands Do (That Small Business Can Learn From)

When you look at the big players, you’ll notice a pattern: the best health brands treat accessibility and inclusion as part of care, not a marketing tactic. They document it. They test it. They provide support options. They commit to standards.

The aim of this list is to not exclude or detract from people’s negative experiences with these systems or organisations. I am very aware, that in healthcare not everyone has positive experiences with healthcare organisations and systems. I am merely talking about this from the way the system or organisation has integrated inclusion into their design.

Here are a few examples worth learning from.

The NHS

The NHS doesn’t position inclusion as a creative preference. It positions it as part of delivering access to services. Their service guidance emphasises meeting WCAG standards (and notes updates in line with WCAG 2.2 for NHS service monitoring).

They also publish detailed accessibility statements for major digital products. The NHS App accessibility statement, for instance, references testing against WCAG 2.2 AA and includes specific review and testing information.

Why this matters for your brand: it shows that inclusion is operational. It’s not just about using a nicer font. It’s about testing, improving, and explaining how to get the help needed.

Mayo Clinic

Mayo Clinic explicitly states that it’s dedicated to making digital content accessible to all and references ongoing efforts to meet WCAG 2.1 level AA criteria.

This is a powerful trust signal. In healthcare, trust is the entire game. An accessibility statement tells users they were thought about in the design phase. That is brand experience, not just compliance.

Kaiser Permanente

Kaiser Permanente’s web accessibility commitment mentions support for WCAG 2.2 (levels A and AA) across digital properties, including website and mobile applications, and refers to review or testing processes.

That’s a useful reminder that inclusion doesn’t stop at your homepage. It includes your patient portal, your PDFs, your booking system, and every seemingly small interaction where people might get lost.

The CDC

If you want to understand inclusion beyond visuals, look at how the CDC talks about communication. They point to plain language resources and the Federal Plain Language Guidelines as part of making information easier to understand. They also provide the CDC Clear Communication Index, a research-based tool to develop and access public communication materials.

This is inclusion in action: not assuming your audience has the sam literacy level, cognitive energy, or context you do. In health, plain language is not “dumbing down.” It’s reducing harm caused by confusion.

What Inclusive Design Looks Like

Inclusive design is often treated like a technical checklist, but it’s quite bigger than that. For small health brands, inclusive design lives across five key areas: visuals, content, technology, system, and tone.

1. Visual Design

Inclusive visual design means your brand is readable, scannable, and steady especially for people with low vision, migraines, dyslexia, ADHD, autism, or anxiety.

That can look like:

Clear font choices (high legibility over decorative scripts)
Strong contrast between text and background (not “trendy beige on beige)
Generous spacing (line height, margins, breathing room)
Consistent hierarchy (users can predict where to look next)

Tips you can implement quickly:

Choose 1-2 fonts maximum, with a high readable body font
Use font size and weight to create hierarchy instead of clutter
Give your content space. Crowded layouts increase cognitive load

Big brands back this up with standards-based approaches (WCAG is a common reference point for digital readability and usability).

2. Digital Accessibility

In health, people often arrive to your site already stressed. Accessibility and inclusion helps them complete task without extra friction.

Core elements include:

Alt text for meaningful images (so screen readers can interpret content)
Captions for videos (and ideally transcripts for longer content)
Mobile-responsive design (because many people access health info on phones)
Accessible forms (labels, error messages, logical tab order)

This is why major organisations emphasise meeting recognised standards and testing.

Practical tips:

Treat captions as standard, not optional
Write alt text like you’re describing the image to a friend who can’t see it
Test your website on your phone with one hand, with low brightness

3. Langauge & Communication

Inclusive design isn’t only visual. It’s how you explain things.

In health, clarity is inclusion and accessibility. Plain language helps people understand what you do, what to expect, and what to do next without decoding jargon. The CDC explicitly supports plain language approaches and provides tools to assess clarity (as explained above).

Practical tips:

Replace jargon with everyday words, or define terms immediately
Use short sentences and clear headings
Be specific about next steps (what to book, where to click, what happens after, etc.)

Trauma-informed and inclusive language also matters: avoiding shame-based messaging, offering choice, explaining processes, and using respectful terms. If your brand serves vulnerable people, your words are part of the environment you’re creating.

4. Experience-Based Design

This is where inclusion becomes a full-body brand experience. Ask yourself: can someone actually access your services in the way they need?

Examples:

Intake forms that are short, clear, and not invasive by default
Booking systems that don’t punish people for being human (rigid policies, confusing steps, inaccessible time zones)
Multiple contact options (not everyone can call; not everyone can email; not everyone can do video)
Clear expectations (pricing transparency, session structure, accessibility options)

Practical tips:

Offer at least two contact methods
Add an “access needs” field that’s optional and welcoming
Explain your process like it’s someone’s first time here because for many people, it is

Inclusive design isn’t about being perfect. It’s about being intentional.

The brands that do inclusion well don’t pretend they’ve solved everything. They commit, document, test, and improve. They make it easy for users to ask for support. They treat accessibility like part of professionalism.

That’s the heart of inclusive design: the willingness to design for real humans, not the imaginary “average user” who never gets tired, never gets sick, never uses a screen reader, never feels anxious, and definitely has perfect Wi-Fi.

I work with health, wellbeing, and service-based businesses to build brands that are accessible and inclusive by design. The goal is a brand experience that feels safe, easy to navigate, and trustworthy from the first click.

Ready to make your brand more inclusive (without the overwhelm)? Book a discovery call with me to find out how we can elevate your brand.