Accessibility: The problem with screenshots

There are many situations where screenshots are not appropriate for use in Trust documents.

The primary issue with screenshots is that they take all of the information of text, tables, and charts, and they bind it into a picture. From a digital perspective, this flattens all of the information into a single item – an image.

This means that the text and tables lose their district information, making it impossible for software like screen readers to actually pick up on that information. The meaning of that text and those graphs is completely inaccessible to anyone who cannot see it.

This is why screenshots should be avoided as much as possible in the creation of Trust documents. They should be used only to show examples of webpages or other relevant images, NOT to transfer text or informational tables and graphs from one document to another.

If it is possible to create a feature in a document from scratch, without the use of a screenshot, then a screenshot is not an accessible option.

This will make all of our EEAST documents far more accessible and bring us more thoroughly in-line with our legal responsibilities to provide accessible information.

If you have any questions about this or any other web accessibility related topics, please take a look at the Trust Accessibility Support page. If you can’t find the answers you are looking for there, please feel free to contact the EEAST Digital Team at webteam@eastamb.nhs.uk

 

Published 1st September 2022