Barrie & Community Family Health Team
Brand Identity

The Barrie & Community Family Health Team (FHT) is made up of physicians and other health care providers who provide a comprehensive range of health care services delivered by a team to meet the community’s health care needs. In Barrie, the FHT is scattered across the city and surrounding region, within several separate physical locations. Without a unified brand identity and consistent messaging, the FHT was facing challenges internally with regards to team members’ understanding this new model of care and delivery of care as a cohesive team. The Barrie & Community FHT needed to unite their team and enable inclusive communications.

The goal was to improve organizational communications for the Barrie and Community FHT by: providing clear and consistent messaging that can be shared internally and externally; facilitating internal communication that is relevant and provides context and interpretation; and, supporting a smooth cohesion among the team. These objectives would be measured in a satisfaction survey issued upon launch of the new brand.

HONEY proceeded to first with qualitative research that would provide context for shaping the key messages and insight on how to best approach the audiences in a meaningful way that would resonate and be authentic. The new brand identity had to fit the Ontario ministry brand guidelines for FHTs, which defined the font, placement and layout for the FHT’s proper name. HONEY solved the team unity challenge by applying a graphic that depicts the natural environment of northern Ontario, including a large native sculpture that is a feature of the Barrie waterfront and recognizable by all in the community.

Feedback was overwhelmingly positive and a satisfaction survey was sent out to members. Team members identified with the new graphic; agreed that the messages were accurate and easy to deliver to patients, and that the new materials made them feel proud to be a part of the FHT.