Spotlight Communication is so important We talk to Versus Arthritis social media officer Devon Douieb about how online communication is helping people to connect and about finding the best in each other As told to: Phil Lattimore I joined Versus Arthritis two years ago, about a week before lockdown. I used to work in the digital team at Crohns & Colitis UK, and knew about Versus Arthritis through our research team. After I applied for the role, I discovered that my dad had arthritis as a child, which I found interesting, because thats my experience when I talk to people about my job. They say: Oh, I know someone with arthritis, but often dont appreciate what the condition means. My role as a social media officer involves a lot of community management answering questions, and communicating with our audiences, including signposting people to the helpline when they need support. I do a lot of creative content and content planning, and work on projects and campaigns. I also do interviews and write stories for the website. I really like that we see feedback instantly on a daily basis thats very useful. Our social media activity covers LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and Pinterest. There are two of us in the team, but we have social media champions in our social communities. We work across a lot of Versus Arthritis teams because social media is such a quick way to communicate. For example, we helped shape content for the Lets Move project. We also work with the young people and families team, talking to young people who are active on Instagram and empowered to speak about their condition; they know its important to raise awareness. We had a huge amount of engagement during lockdown. We have more than 180,000 supporters interacting with us on social media. Functionality is getting more interesting, so we can do lots of different things, but the most important is communication from us to our supporters, and across communities. That connection is vital. People are really kind about how the pages have supported them. Some people find Versus Arthritis through our social media channels, and they often message us to say: Thank goodness I found you. I didnt realise you existed. What I like most is if people feel a piece of content has hit the nail on the head, and if people respond to it and feel understood. Working at Versus Arthritis has helped me see the good in people a bit more. Even when times are tough, and people are in a lot of pain, they take time to help other people and are really generous with their advice. We speak to young people who are active on Instagram and empowered to talk about their condition; they know its important to raise awareness