Is my clinic website accessible? The basics

Your patients include older adults, people in pain and people with disabilities. A site that is hard to read or use turns them away. Accessibility also tends to help everyone, for example clear text on a phone in bright light.

Rules differ. Some provinces and states, and some kinds of organisations, have standards or laws about accessible websites, and requirements may depend on the size of the business. This is general information, not legal advice. Ask a professional if you are unsure of your obligations. The common reference standard is the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, known as WCAG.

1. Contrast. Text should stand out clearly from its background. Pale grey on white is a common failure. Use a contrast checker.
2. Text size. Body text should be comfortable to read on a phone and resize without breaking the layout.
3. Image descriptions. Add short alt text to meaningful images, such as a photo of your team. Leave decorative images empty.
4. Headings. Use real headings in order, so a screen reader user can jump between sections.
5. Link text. “Book your first visit” is better than “click here”.
6. Keyboard use. Press Tab through the page. You should be able to reach every link and button, see where you are and operate the booking button without a mouse.
7. Forms. Every field needs a visible label, and error messages should say what went wrong in words.
8. Video and audio. Add captions or a transcript.
9. Colour alone. Don’t use colour as the only way to show meaning, such as red for errors.
10. Motion. Avoid auto-playing media and moving banners.

The place to start is the path to booking. Test your booking button, your form and your booking software’s pages with the keyboard. Jane and Cliniko are third-party tools, so check how their pages behave and ask their support about accessibility. If the embedded widget is hard to use, link to the booking page instead.

Make a phone number available as an option for anyone who can’t use online forms.

Also describe the physical access to your clinic: steps, ramps, lifts, accessible parking and washrooms. Patients often search for this. Say it plainly on your homepage or contact page.

Simple checking tools can catch some problems, such as missing alt text and low contrast, but not all. Real checks, such as trying a screen reader or asking someone who relies on assistive technology, find more. Don’t rely on an overlay widget that claims to make a site accessible automatically. It doesn’t replace fixing the site itself.