Have you ever encountered a situation where you, or a loved one, couldn’t access a building or service because of a lack of accessibility?
If not, you are incredibly fortunate and, most likely, in the minority. Almost all of us will experience reduced functionality or capacity at some point in our lives. For some, it will be temporary – perhaps recovering from an illness, injury or other condition like pregnancy. For others, it’s lifelong. While we should all have empathy for those with disabilities, the reality is we often aren’t aware of accessibility issues until we, or those we love, experience them first-hand.
If you have mobility issues, a single step can exclude you from a building or prevent you from leaving your house. If you have vision impairment, routine tasks like shopping for groceries become impossible. We take for granted, every single day, our ability to navigate this busy world. However, just because most buildings and experiences are designed for people without disabilities doesn’t mean they should be.
Accessibility
The concept of accessibility is to ensure the design of products, devices, buildings and environments are usable by people with disabilities. However, I would say it should go further – accessibility is removing the high bars we often set as the ‘default’ and making something available for all. Accessibility is about inclusion and should be the default.
How many veterinary practices still have steps either outside or inside their building without an alternative option like a ramp?
How many clinics still have manual front doors instead of automatic doors that don’t require pushing or pulling?
While structural and procedural changes may seem intimidating or expensive at first, given the goal of accessibility should be to improve access for all, it’s easy to see how removing the barriers for one removes the barriers for all. How often have you seen clients struggling to carry a cat carrier while opening the front door? Or restrain an energetic dog on a lead while juggling a child and trying to open the door? Just because most people can ‘manage’ something doesn’t mean that reducing the barriers won’t benefit them.
It’s hard to know how many pet owners don’t seek veterinary care due to accessibility issues. Whether that’s not being able to take pets on public transport, mental health problems, mobility issues or hearing issues limiting their ability to get to and interact with the veterinarian. We don’t capture this data, so we just don’t know.
If you search ‘accessibility and veterinary care’, most results are concerned with the economic accessibility of veterinary services. However, there are some resources out there regarding using inclusive design to improve the physical accessibility of veterinary practices.
How to start making veterinary practices more accessible
- Ensure at least one entrance to your practice is paved and flat, with a ramp for any height changes and a clear sign indicating where this entrance is.
- Ensure your car park has accessible spaces, is close to the entrance and has sufficient signage.
- Switch to automatic exterior doors that are wide and have flat thresholds.
- Keep floors free of doormats or other hurdles, and ensure they are clean and dry.
- Lower your reception desk to allow easy communication.
- Ensure restrooms have plenty of space, grab bars, and low washbasins.
- Engage in a conversation with your team about ongoing accessibility improvements to the clinic.
The Australian Human Rights Commission has an excellent resource on its website about improving accessibility in businesses. I would encourage you to read it and reflect on your own clinic and how you might make it a more accessible space.
Lack of accessibility limits access to our world
I’m fortunate to have only experienced temporary impairments throughout my life, however I have many family members and friends who live with disability and I know how limiting the world can be when it’s not accessible for all. It’s distressing not to be able to access a space or seek care because the environment is not designed for people like you. As a service industry, it makes sense for veterinary facilities to be accessible for our staff and clients.
We need to have a much bigger conversation around disability inside and outside our profession. Registration with veterinary boards is notoriously ‘unfriendly’ to those with disabilities, and while disability advocates like Dr Alex Harrison have been raising awareness of accessibility within the veterinary profession for years, it’s time the rest of us brought this issue to centre stage.
Please leave a comment if you’ve encountered accessibility issues in the veterinary profession. What do you think we should do to encourage greater accessibility to the benefit of all?
This post first appeared on Dr Bronwyn Orr Vet Matters Blog: Accessibility
