First year with the Polish Deep Engagement Partner

The Polish Deep Engagement Partner (DEP) have completed the first year of their 3-year programme.

Focus group 1 topic: barriers in understanding and accessing healthcare

Objectives

• Explore the lived experiences of Polish residents when accessing NHS primary care
• Identify what makes it hard to book appointments, communicate, and navigate the NHS
• Assess participants' understanding of NHS written and verbal health information
• Examine how cultural expectations and prior experiences in Poland shape perceptions of NHS care
• Collect feedback to improve the accessibility, communication, and cultural appropriateness of NHS care

Findings

• Phone booking was the biggest challenge — busy lines, long queues, and no appointments available, which led to many people delaying care
• Online booking worked well for some, and there was a strong reliance on informal interpreters and helpers
• They understood NHS information well but noted that it does not reflect the wider Polish community, who struggle with registration, referrals, online systems, and prescriptions, and who need Polish translations and simple visual guidance
• Positive interactions with staff, but felt feelings of being rushed and misrecorded notes, causing a delayed diagnosis, and damaged trust
• The NHS is seen as offering minimal treatment ("just paracetamol"), which creates low trust and drives many to use private healthcare in Poland, which they view as quicker and more thorough

Recommendations

• Expand phone capacity, reduce wait times, extend hours, and increase online booking
• Provide information in Polish, simplify language, offer visual guides, and expand interpreter and multilingual phone line support
• Deliver NHS workshops, assist with digital systems, and co‑produce culturally relevant resources
• Train staff on Polish expectations around diagnostics and communication

Focus group 2 topic: understanding substance overuse in Birmingham's Polish community

Objectives

• Explore how Polish community members understand substance overuse and addiction
• Examine cultural attitudes and social pressure around alcohol
• Identify what causes stigma and silence, and understand what makes it hard to access support
• Gather culturally relevant prevention and support suggestions

Findings

• Overuse is defined as losing control, using alcohol or drugs to manage emotions, and continuing despite harm
• Alcohol is highly normalised in Polish culture (for example, always offering vodka), with gendered drinking patterns and less openness about recovery
• Strong pressure to drink and stigma toward abstaining, alcohol‑free choices are rarely respected
• Addiction is hidden, highly judged, and rarely discussed openly, leading to delayed support
• Language difficulties for expressing emotions, fear of social services involvement, low awareness of services, fragmented pathways between addiction and mental health, and cultural mismatch with professionals
• Desire for Polish‑language resources, safe support groups, emotional wellbeing workshops, youth prevention, and campaigns that address social pressure and normalise not drinking

Recommendations

• Polish‑language support groups, alcohol‑free social activities, stigma‑reduction campaigns, and demotional wellbeing workshops for adults and young people
• Cultural competency training for staff, better interpreter access, translated guidance on addiction and mental health pathways, and more outreach in Polish neighbourhoods
• Youth prevention programmes, trauma and coping‑skills education, and sharing recovery stories to reduce stigma

Focus group 3 topic: understanding healthy eating in Birmingham's Polish community

Objectives

• Explore how cultural traditions shape dietary choices,
• Identify what makes it hard and easy to eat healthy
• Understand family nutrition practices
• Determine preferred formats for culturally appropriate health messaging

Findings

• Traditional dishes, such as bigos, pierogi, soups, and homemade bread, are key to Polish identity and family connection – participants are open to healthier changes when their culture is respected
• Barriers include time pressure, work demands, cost of healthy food, family preferences requiring multiple meals, and confusion over UK food labelling and ingredients
• Conflicting advice from doctors, social media, and influencers creates confusion as participants rely heavily on Polish‑speaking dietitians and peers – strong preference for clear, bilingual, consistent messaging
• Visual, practical learning, including short video content, workshops, demonstrations, and simple meal‑planning tools, is most engaging and accessible

Recommendations

• Healthy Polish meal guides, recipe cards, short videos, and infographics
• Use Polish Facebook groups, WhatsApp, TikTok, Polish shops, and community venues
• Polish‑led cooking workshops, family sessions, and a "Healthy Polish Kitchen" series
• Work with Polish‑speaking professionals to make sure guidance is culturally aligned and consistent across health teams
• Improve access to fresh produce, promote clear labelling, and share cost‑effective meal planning tools

Focus group 4 topic: oral health in Polish families

Objectives

• Understand Polish parents' oral health knowledge, brushing routines, fluoride views and sugar consumption patterns
• Understand experiences accessing dental care and community‑generated ideas to improve child oral health

Findings

• Parents showed a strong understanding of early oral health, with twice‑daily brushing, parental supervision, and the use of timers or songs
• Fluoride views were mixed due to misinformation in Polish online spaces
• Sugar intake varied, with schools and grandparents noted as major sources of sweets
• Dental access varies because of postcode‑based inequalities, concerns included long delays for orthodontics (2 to 4 years), and difficulty finding NHS dentists accepting new patients
• Positive experiences centred on good communication and negative ones involved rushed treatment, anxiety‑related refusals, and fillings failing quickly
• Parents suggested school‑based education, annual hygienist visits, free toothbrushing packs, and Polish‑language information available to GPs (General Practitioners, usually your family doctor) and schools

Recommendations

• Provide bilingual resources, visual brushing guides, school assemblies, and community workshops addressing fluoride myths
• Commission school hygienist visits, supply free toothbrush and toothpaste packs, target postcode inequalities, and expand orthodontic capacity
• Train dental teams in culturally sensitive communication and ensure Polish‑language materials are available in dental practices and GP surgeries

Page last updated: 12 February 2026