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Exploring WHO Communication during the COVID 19 Pandemic through the WHO Website Based on W3C Guidelines: Accessible for All?

Author

Listed:
  • Elena Fernández-Díaz

    (Department of Economics and Business, University of Malaga, Av. de Cervantes, 2, 29016 Málaga, Spain)

  • Patricia P. Iglesias-Sánchez

    (Department of Economics and Business, University of Malaga, Av. de Cervantes, 2, 29016 Málaga, Spain)

  • Carmen Jambrino-Maldonado

    (Department of Economics and Business, University of Malaga, Av. de Cervantes, 2, 29016 Málaga, Spain)

Abstract

Health crisis situations generate greater attention and dependence on reliable and truthful information from citizens, especially from those organisations that represent authority on the subject, such as the World Health Organization (WHO). In times of global pandemics such as COVID-19, the WHO message “health for all” takes on great communicative importance, especially from the point of view of the prevention of the disease and recommendations for action. Therefore, any communication must be understandable and accessible by all types of people, regardless of their technology, language, culture or disability (physical or mental), according to the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), taking on special relevance for public health content. This study analysed whether the WHO is accessible in its digital version for all groups of citizens according to the widely accepted standards in the field of the Internet. The conclusion reached was that not all the information is accessible in accordance with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1, which implies that there are groups that are, to some extent, left out, especially affecting the elderly. This study can contribute to the development of proposals and suggest ways in which to improve the accessibility of health content to groups especially vulnerable in this pandemic.

Suggested Citation

  • Elena Fernández-Díaz & Patricia P. Iglesias-Sánchez & Carmen Jambrino-Maldonado, 2020. "Exploring WHO Communication during the COVID 19 Pandemic through the WHO Website Based on W3C Guidelines: Accessible for All?," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(16), pages 1-17, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:17:y:2020:i:16:p:5663-:d:395036
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Piotr Sorokowski & Agata Groyecka & Marta Kowal & Agnieszka Sorokowska & Michał Białek & Izabela Lebuda & Małgorzata Dobrowolska & Przemysław Zdybek & Maciej Karwowski, 2020. "Can Information about Pandemics Increase Negative Attitudes toward Foreign Groups? A Case of COVID-19 Outbreak," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1-10, June.
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    Cited by:

    1. Tiago S. Jesus & Sutanuka Bhattacharjya & Christina Papadimitriou & Yelena Bogdanova & Jacob Bentley & Juan Carlos Arango-Lasprilla & Sureshkumar Kamalakannan & The Refugee Empowerment Task Force, Int, 2021. "Lockdown-Related Disparities Experienced by People with Disabilities during the First Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Scoping Review with Thematic Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(12), pages 1-24, June.
    2. Domenica Ramírez-Saltos & Patricia Acosta-Vargas & Gloria Acosta-Vargas & Marco Santórum & Mayra Carrion-Toro & Manuel Ayala-Chauvin & Esteban Ortiz-Prado & Verónica Maldonado-Garcés & Mario González-, 2023. "Enhancing Sustainability through Accessible Health Platforms: A Scoping Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(22), pages 1-38, November.
    3. Karol Król & Dariusz Zdonek, 2021. "The Quality of Infectious Disease Hospital Websites in Poland in Light of the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(2), pages 1-19, January.
    4. Patricia Acosta-Vargas & Sylvia Novillo-Villegas & Belén Salvador-Acosta & Manuel Calvopina & Nikolaos Kyriakidis & Esteban Ortiz-Prado & Luis Salvador-Ullauri, 2022. "Accessibility Analysis of Worldwide COVID-19-Related Information Portals," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(19), pages 1-15, September.
    5. Carlos de las Heras-Pedrosa & Carmen Jambrino-Maldonado & Dolores Rando-Cueto & Patricia P. Iglesias-Sánchez, 2022. "COVID-19 Study on Scientific Articles in Health Communication: A Science Mapping Analysis in Web of Science," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(3), pages 1-29, February.
    6. Sureshkumar Kamalakannan & Sutanuka Bhattacharjya & Yelena Bogdanova & Christina Papadimitriou & Juan Carlos Arango-Lasprilla & Jacob Bentley & Tiago S. Jesus & Refugee Empowerment Task Force, Interna, 2021. "Health Risks and Consequences of a COVID-19 Infection for People with Disabilities: Scoping Review and Descriptive Thematic Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(8), pages 1-17, April.

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