Nursing and Allied Health: Accessibility

People with disabilities should have the ability to access both the physical and virtual library.  Additionally, it is important to be aware of U.S. legislation known as the Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973  which eliminates discrimination towards individuals with disabilities by entities receiving any Federal financial assistance  and mandates equal education for all students. (http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/civilrights/resources/factsheets/504.pdf)

It is important to remember that the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), enacted by the U.S. Congress in 1990 (amended in 2009), is a major piece of civil rights legislation that prohibits discrimination toward persons with disabilities in regard to access to housing, employment, public entities,and education.The legislation was reauthorized as the Workforce Investment Act of 1998, and strengthened with the addition of Section 508,which has defined standards in regard to electronic access.

Section 508 was enacted to eliminate barriers in information technology, to make available new opportunities for people with disabilities, and to encourage development of technologies that will help achieve these goals. The law applies to all federal agencies and agencies receiving federal money.  It requires that any information or communication technology they develop, procure, maintain, or use is accessible to people with disabilities. The Section 508 website, www.section508.gov, is an excellent resource to learn about the standards as well as to connect with tools, resources, and accessibility vendors.

Sources:

• Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act  www.section508.gov
• Office of Disability Employment Policy, Library’s Office of Disability Affairs. Locate the office through the  Directory of State Liaisons
• The Library’s State Library and/or Archives  www.dol.gov/odep/state/state.htm
• United States Access Board www.access-board.gov  Independent federal agency devoted to accessibility for people with disabilities.
• ADA Technical Assistance Program  www.ada.gov/taprog.htm  This website contains links to and information regarding training, and technical assistance to businesses and agencies with duties and responsibilities under the ADA.
• DisabilityInfo.gov Home Page  www.disability.gov  This web portal is a gateway to the federal government's disability-related information and resources relevant to people with disabilities, their families, employers, service providers, and other community members.
• Library Access www.librarycouncil.ie/policies/Library%20Access.pdf  Full text of the Library Access is presented by the Equality Authority and An Chomhairle Leabharlanna National Assistive Technology Research Institute andserves as a good example of how to plan and implement an “access for all”initiative.
• Library of Congress: The National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS) www.loc.gov/nls NLS administers a free library program of Braille and recorded materials list circulated to eligible borrowers through a network of cooperating libraries.
• World Wide Web Consortium's Website Accessibility Initiative (W3C) www.w3.org/WAI  International group of professionals who work to establish guidelines, standards and educational programs to ensure web accessibility for all persons.

This tipsheet, revised in 2010, is one in a series developed by the Association of Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies, a division of the American Library Association.  Source www.ala.org/ascla.