MCH Library: Accessibility

Our goal is to serve the maternal and child (MCH) community with accurate, reliable, and timely information and resources. The MCH community includes health professionals, policymakers, family advocates, community service professionals, MCH/public health faculty and students, families, and the public. This site includes information for each of these groups.

The MCH Library strives to ensure that this Web site meets or exceeds the accessibility requirements outlined in Section 508 of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Existing pages on this Web site have been modified to make them compliant with accessibility standards, and new pages will meet or exceed the accessibility requirements outlined in Section 508 of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

This Web site has successfully passed the Section 508 accessibility tests of UsableNet, which strives to standardize accessibility format across corporate, government, and educational Web sites.

In April, 2003 the MCH Library was included by Macromedia Inc. in their Accessibility Showcase, which highlights examples of accessible Web sites created with Dreamweaver, a development tool for multimedia projects.

If you need information from a MCH Library Web page that is not easily accessible, choose one of the following two options:

(1) Use access.adobe.com
If you are unable to access Adobe Acrobat™ PDF files on the MCH Library Web site, type the URL of the inaccessible file into the Adobe Acrobat™ Accessibility site:

http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/access_onlinetools.html,

and convert the PDF file to an HTML format that your screen reader can read.

(2) E-mail the MCH Library Webmaster at webmaster@ncemch.org
If you experience problems converting PDF files to an HTML format that your screen reader can read, e-mail our Webmaster with the URL of the page you wish to access, the technology you are using, and your phone number and e-mail address. We will work with you to make the files available in a format you can use.

(3) Change the font size
If you are having difficulties reading the text of this site because of font size, please read on how to change the way your Web brower can adjust the size of your fonts.

In accordance with current Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) standards (http://www.hrsa.gov/508access.htm), our goal is to improve accessibility to users with visual, motor, or cognitive disabilities. We strive to meet or exceed accessibility requirements in the following areas:

Images. The MCH Library Web site provides equivalent text for images that convey information.
Multimedia. The MCH Library Web site limits the use of multimedia (i.e., presentations that include components such as text, graphics, video, animation, and sound), and, where multimedia is used, the site provides equivalent text for the presentation.
Color. The MCH Library Web site does not rely on color to convey information.
Style sheets. The MCH Library Web site does not require associated style sheets (i.e., pre-designated templates that define the layout of a Web page) to be viewed.
Image maps. The MCH Library Web site provides equivalent text for images (e.g., navigation bars) that perform functions when selected (e.g., open a new window, navigate through the site).
Tables. The MCH Library Web site provides row and column headers for data tables.
Frames. The MCH Library Web site does not include frames (i.e., separate sections of the display area that are generated from different Web pages).
Motion. The MCH Library Web site sites does not include motion that causes the screen to flicker outside an acceptable range (i.e., higher than 2Hz and lower than 55Hz).
Text-only pages. The MCH Library Web site follows HRSA guidance in adding links to the Adobe Acrobat™ Accessibility site to provide users with a tool for converting PDF files to HTML.
Scripts. The MCH Library Web site identifies the functionality of any scripting languages (e.g., Java and Javascript) used to display content or to create interface elements.
Applets and plug-ins. The MCH Library Web site avoids the use of applets (i.e., programs designed to be executed from within another program) and plug-ins (i.e., programs that add features to a standard browser), and, when such programs are used, the site includes links to external Web sites that provide such applets or plug-ins via download.
Forms. The MCH Library Web site allows for easy access to and completion of forms.

If you have comments or suggestions about the accessibility of the MCH Library Web site, please contact the Webmaster at webmaster@ncemch.org.