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2010 will be the year that the consumer is truly central to all communications campaigns across the public sector.  The NHS is committed to putting the patient first, a theme that's been central to health service comms in recent years.  This isn't anything new, but we'll see this take off more than ever as local authorities increasingly deliver campaigns - tailored to the individual, which take advantage of the latest developments in technology.

According to Marshall Manson, of Edelman UK, patients are increasingly searching online for healthcare information and NHS Choices' blogs and forum section caters perfectly for patients as a way to share information and seek advice on a wide range of medical conditions.

The site was launched a couple of years back but is continuingly evolving and now features a clever portal allowing patients and healthcare professionals to share their own experiences.  It's great for those looking for easily-accessible information about a sensitive issue or just have somewhere to engage with fellow patients and demonstrates how the NHS has adopted social media to put the patient first. 

But while 2009 may have been the year that social media became the latest buzz word, it's not the only tactic that lends itself perfectly to the patient-central approach. 

It may be a simple concept, but ensuring you understand your audience and what influences their behaviour is vital for an effective communications strategy. Simon Wakeman recently argued that this is an area that PRs and Marketeers have been lacking and shared the COI guide to communications and behaviour change.  This is a great guide which highlights the need to understand social-psychological theories before planning and creating campaigns which have a tangible effect within the public sector.

Rather than a communications-focussed approach, the most successful campaigns will use this audience insight to deliver social marketing, social media and traditional PR elements to have a real impact on influencing local communities and delivering public awareness campaigns.

So, as budgets become increasingly tight and communicators are challenged to demonstrate their value and effectiveness, a one-size fits all approach certainly can't be adopted.  The NHS's overarching strategy is about putting the patient first, and this will be a trend seen across the whole of the public sector to help deliver campaigns to those hard-to-reach audiences.