Accessibility statement
In short
Coloscopy.com is built to be readable by as many people as possible, including readers using screen readers, keyboard navigation, browser zoom, reader-mode tools, and older or lower-bandwidth devices. The site targets conformance with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) version 2.1 at level AA. We treat accessibility as a part of editorial quality, not a compliance checklist.
What this page covers
The conformance target we are working towards, the specific choices we have made (and the ones we have deliberately not made), the limitations we know about, and how to report a barrier you have run into. The information here applies to the whole site at coloscopy.com.
Conformance target
We aim to meet WCAG 2.1 level AA across all pages. WCAG is the international standard for web accessibility, maintained by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). Level AA is the level most commonly required by accessibility law in the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union, Canada, and Australia, and is widely regarded as the appropriate baseline for public-information sites.
We do not currently claim formal conformance certification. The site is reviewed against WCAG criteria as part of the ordinary editorial process, and we will say so plainly here if a known issue prevents conformance.
Specific choices
Type and reading
Body text is set in a serif typeface at a base size of approximately eighteen pixels on desktop and seventeen pixels on smaller screens, with line height around 1.55 to 1.65. Long-form prose is constrained to a single column with a measured line length, which is a more comfortable read for most adults than full-bleed text. Pages do not load in an iframe, do not require login, and do not impose a paywall.
The site honours your browser's zoom controls; pages reflow cleanly up to 200% text zoom (and beyond, with some loss of layout polish). The site does not override your default font size, your reduced-motion setting, or your selected colour scheme by force.
Colour and contrast
Body text is dark grey-brown on a warm off-white background. The combination is selected to give a contrast ratio that exceeds the WCAG AA minimum for body text, while avoiding the harshness of pure black on pure white that some readers — including those with dyslexia and certain visual conditions — find difficult. Headings, accent rules, and link underlines use a deeper warm red against the same background; that combination is checked for AA contrast.
Information is not conveyed by colour alone. Links are distinguished by an underline, not just by a colour change. Headings use both larger size and visible accent rules. Lists, blocks of advice, and the disclaimer are signalled by structure and explicit text labels, not solely by tint or hue.
Motion and animation
The site does not autoplay audio, does not autoplay video, does not contain marquee scrollers, and does not use full-page modal interruptions. The few entrance animations on the home page are short, subtle, and respect the user's prefers-reduced-motion setting. There is no flashing content.
Keyboard navigation
All interactive elements — links and the navigation in the top bar and footer — are reachable with the keyboard alone, in a logical order, and have a visible focus state in the browser. We do not implement custom focus traps or use ARIA attributes that would override the default browser focus behaviour. There are no carousels, accordions, or other widgets that hide content behind interaction.
Screen-reader considerations
The site uses standard HTML semantics: a single <h1> per page, a logical heading hierarchy, real lists for lists, real links for links, and a <main> region for the body of each page. Navigation is wrapped in <nav> elements with descriptive aria-label attributes (for example, Reference and Breadcrumb). The disclaimer block is wrapped in an <aside> with a heading. Decorative rules are visual only and are implemented in CSS rather than as elements that screen readers will announce.
Link text is descriptive — screening guidelines — United States, not click here — so that links read meaningfully out of context, as they will be read by users navigating from a list of links.
Language
Pages declare lang="en" in the document head. The site is written in international English. Where a passage is in another language (for example, the names of organisations such as Haute Autorité de Santé), the surrounding context makes the meaning clear.
Forms
The site does not have forms. There is no search box, no newsletter signup, no contact form, and no symptom checker. Contact is by email at the addresses listed in the colophon, which we believe is more accessible than a custom-styled form for many readers — including those using assistive technology that handles their own email client well.
Documents and media
The site does not currently host PDFs, video, or audio. If we add such material in future, we will provide accessible alternatives — text equivalents for video, transcripts for audio, and tagged-PDF or HTML alternatives for documents.
Images
The site is intentionally close to text-only. Decorative rules and accent marks are CSS, not images, so they require no alternative text. We have made the deliberate decision not to include diagrams of the bowel or photographs of polyps; clear text descriptions and the use of widely-available external diagrams elsewhere are, we believe, more useful and less alarming for many readers. Should we add images, they will carry meaningful alternative text where the image conveys information, and empty alt attributes where the image is purely decorative.
Time and pressure
Pages do not impose time limits, do not redirect after a delay, and do not refresh themselves. Cookies, where used at all, are limited to those necessary for the site to function. There are no advertising trackers and no pop-ups.
Known limitations
Honesty is part of accessibility. We are aware of the following limitations, and we are working on them:
- Long pages — particularly the glossary — can be slow to navigate by keyboard alone. We are considering an in-page table of contents and skip links to letter sections, in a way that does not clutter the page for users who do not need them.
- The serif typeface used for body text, while comfortable for most readers, is not the easiest face for everyone. We do not currently offer a typeface switcher; readers using assistive technology that overrides page fonts (most browsers, with the right settings) should find the site cooperates with that override.
- Some long-line section headings will wrap awkwardly at unusual zoom levels or window widths. Content remains readable; the layout is not always pretty.
- The site is currently English-only. Translated versions are not available, and we do not embed automated translation widgets that frequently introduce errors. Readers who need other languages may find their browser's built-in translation tool helpful, with the usual caveat that translations of medical material can introduce inaccuracies.
Where we know about a limitation that affects a specific user community and we have a planned fix, we will note it here.
How to report a barrier
If you have run into something on this site that you cannot use — a contrast that is too low for your screen, a heading that does not read correctly with your screen reader, a link that has unclear text, anything else — please tell us.
The fastest route is email: accessibility@coloscopy.com. Useful information to include is the page URL, a short description of what went wrong, the device or browser you were using if you can name it, and any assistive technology you were using. Even a one-line note ("the focus state on the menu disappears in Safari") helps. We do not require a formal complaint format.
We aim to acknowledge accessibility reports within five working days, though we do not promise the same speed for resolution — some fixes are quick, others require more thought. For barriers that prevent you from finding information you need urgently, please tell us so in your message; we will treat it accordingly.
How to use this page
This page is reference, not clinical guidance. It tells you what we have built and what we know we have not built well enough. Bring questions about your own care to the relevant clinician.
Common worries, briefly addressed
I use a screen reader. Is this site usable?
The site is built with standard HTML and tested with the screen readers most commonly used by readers (VoiceOver, NVDA, JAWS, TalkBack). If something is not behaving as you expect, please write to the accessibility address — that information helps us fix it.
The text is too small for me.
Increase your browser's zoom (usually Ctrl-+ or Cmd-+) or use the browser's reader mode (in Safari, Firefox, and most Chromium browsers, including Microsoft Edge, this is a one-click feature). The site supports both. If you would like to set a default font size in your browser, the site will respect that as well.
The contrast looks too low on my screen.
The site has been tested against WCAG AA contrast for body text. If a particular passage looks washed out for you, it may be a calibration issue with the screen, but we want to know — please write. We avoid pure black on pure white deliberately, but we are open to refining the palette if it is causing problems for readers.
Is this an official accessibility statement under the law where I live?
This statement is provided in the spirit of the legislation that exists in the major jurisdictions where readers find us — the Americans with Disabilities Act in the United States, the Public Sector Bodies Accessibility Regulations and the Equality Act in the United Kingdom, the European Accessibility Act in the European Union, the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act in Ontario, the Disability Discrimination Act in Australia. We are an independent reference, not a public-sector body, and we make this commitment voluntarily. Where applicable law sets a higher bar than WCAG 2.1 AA, we will work towards the higher bar.
Will this statement change?
Yes. We expect to update this page as we improve the site. When we update it, we keep the URL the same so that existing links continue to work.
Sources
- Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 — World Wide Web Consortium
- WAI-ARIA Authoring Practices — World Wide Web Consortium
- Accessibility Conformance Testing (ACT) Rules Format — World Wide Web Consortium
- Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) Accessibility Regulations — used as a benchmark for the form of this statement