Empirical Insights Into Web Accessibility in the Health Domain

Introduction

Digitalization has presented a crucial instrument across various domains in today's digital age, where the Internet become the primary platform for disseminating information in most fields. This transformation was particularly evident during the COVID-19 pandemic when various aspects of daily life, including goods and services, education, and business operations, transitioned to virtual environments. Particularly, the healthcare sector played a crucial role, emphasizing online access to information, raising awareness, and sharing information about healthcare products, devices, and services with a broader audience.

The pandemic encouraged the development of numerous websites to track the spread of the virus, offer strategic insights on how to contain it, and provide real-time updates on evolving lockdown conditions and restrictions (Dani & Agrawal, 2023). Additionally, the websites in the healthcare sector served as official references utilized by citizens, including those with disabilities, for national and individual health matters. These websites typically acted and still act as the primary source of information for people with disabilities, offering essential access to important health-related content.

Therefore, healthcare websites have become the primary channels for acquiring information for all people, including people with disabilities, who represent about 16% of the world's population (World Health Organization, 2023). While the European Union reports a slightly higher percentage of people with disabilities, around 27% of the EU population over the age of 16, the prevalence varies significantly across member states, ranging from 10% to 38.5% (Eurostat, 2022). The lowest proportions of self-perceived long-standing disabilities were reported in Bulgaria (14.6%), Malta (15.1%), Cyper (19.1%), and Slovenia (20.9%), whereas the highest was reported in Latvia (38.5%), Denmark (36.1%), and Portugal (34%) (Eurostat, 2022). Additionally, the population in Europe is aging. When the elderly (aged 65 or above) are added, the number of people who live with some form of disability additionally increases (Kous & Polančič, 2021). Moreover, there exists a percentage of people who may not be officially classified as having a disability, but adjustments are essential for their inclusion. As our population ages, the need to accommodate diverse needs is expected to rise, emphasizing the importance of creating environments that cater to varying abilities and ensuring inclusivity for all.

Given this societal demographic, accessible websites are necessary. Web accessibility is a crucial aspect of website quality, aimed at ensuring equal opportunities for accessing online information. All websites should be accessible to every user, regardless of their individual characteristics or needs. This implies that people, including those with visual, auditory, physical, speech, cognitive, and neurological disabilities, should be able to (1) perceive, (2) understand, (3) navigate, (4) interact with the web, and (5) contribute to the web (W3C WAI, 2019).

Despite the recognition of accessibility as a general principle in the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, individuals with disabilities often encounter obstacles. To address these challenges and uphold equal rights, countries worldwide have established laws and policies. Just to name a few: the Disability Discrimination Act in Australia, the Canadian Human Rights Act in Canada, the Law on the Protection of Persons with Disabilities in China, the Act on Equal Opportunities for Disabled Persons in Germany, the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act in India, Provisions to support the access of disabled people to IT tools (Stanca Law) in Italy, Equal Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act in Israel, Basic Act on the Formation of an Advanced Information and Telecommunications Network Society in Japan (Kous, Kuhar, Pavlinek, et al., 2020; W3C WAI, 2018c).

In the EU, three web accessibility laws and policies have been adopted to ensure equal access for people with disabilities (EUR-Lex, 2018), namely: (1) the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities; (2) the Web and Mobile Accessibility Directive, and (3) the European Standard EN 301 549 - Accessibility requirements suitable for public procurement of ICT products and services (Kous, Kuhar, Pavlinek, et al., 2020; Kous & Polančič, 2021).