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W3C-validated transitional XHTML 3.19 Involving people: An accessibility checklist
Use this checklist to examine whether your process of information prescribing
is as inclusive as it needs to be.
1. Is your IP as tailored (personalised to the user) as it could be?
- Research has shown that sites which provide more tailored IP processes are likely to find their users and carers, as well as their professionals, feel more satisfied than those from sites with less tailored IPs.
2. Is your rationale for deciding who receives IP clear ? Is it fair and reasonable?
- The criteria your organisation has adopted for who receives IPs must have been arrived at by a process of consultation and must not contain any bias. Otherwise you risk widening the health inequalities gap by choosing methods that may exclude certain user groups.
3. Are you delivering information the way people want it?
- Most of the evidence suggests that in order to reach a widest possible group of users and carers, IPs need to be available through a range of channels, including the web, help-lines and a range of face-to-face contacts.
- Most users still prefer to receive their information directly from a trusted health and social care professional, such as their doctor.
4. Are you reducing health inequalities?
- Information should be provided in simple and easy to understand formats if it is to benefit those with learning disabilities or low literacy levels.
- User groups from representative backgrounds should be involved in the design and vetting of all written materials.
- Maximise take up of IPs amongst different disadvantaged groups
- Provide IPs through a wide range of channels, in particular phone help-lines, through volunteers, trained information advocates and written material. For the most severely disadvantaged, information workers need to be located in community centres and health centres to support users in accessing information.
- Sites should always ensure every written material is available in easy read and plain English. Where possible, visual aids and diagrams should support written materials.
- The needs of users without English as a first language need to be considered in the design of IP systems.
- It may be difficult to provide all information in community languages so use information in national information databases. See, for instance, Health for Asylum Seekers and Refugees portal.
On the next page: This brings us to the end of this section of the resource. The next section takes us on to getting on with the process of developing and issuing the information prescription
