FEATURE TECHNOLOGY
RESOURCES
What we mean by digital inclusion: https://digital.nhs.
uk/about-nhs-digital/our-work/digital-inclusion/whatdigital-inclusion-is
What is Web accessibility?: https://abilitynet.org.uk/
accessibility-services/what-is-digital-accessibility
Definitions
Digital literacy refers to: ‘Those capabilities that fit
someone for living, learning, working, participating and
thriving in a digital society’ (Health Education England).
Digital divide refers to: ‘The problem of some members
of society not having the opportunity or knowledge to
use computers and the internet that others have’ (https://
dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/digital-divide).
As occupational therapists we should approach
digital accessibility in the same way we would access to
the built environment. This is led by the person’s need
and desire for participation in an occupation, requiring
activity analysis to help identify any adaptations or
adjustments.
These might be ensuring accessible entry ramps,
appropriate toilet facilities, suitable lighting, and/or
adapting the activity that takes place within the space
so that it includes people with a range of sensory and/or
cognitive needs.
Similarly, we equally need to tailor our input to enable
access to the digital space. Providing the equivalent of
virtual ramps and aids that will assist in getting access to
online occupations.
This could be a simple how to guide, recommending
equipment to overcome physical needs, setting up
accessibility tools on a person’s device, or structuring
an activity so that it includes regular breaks and check
ins to ensure understanding and engagement, aiding
participation and increasing the inclusivity in the online
occupation.
Digital experience
Digital experience includes accessibility, but is also
concerned with how individuals and groups participate in
virtual environments.
Many of us will be able to reflect on our own personal
experiences of engaging in new ways with health and
care services, online banking, as well as an array of
digital social activities. This has provided us with an
invaluable experience of the digital world and specifically
what we like and what we don’t.
With the increasing move of many of our meaningful
activities to the online space, there is a role for
occupational therapists to support people to participate
in meaningful activities in roles that matter to them online.
To do this will mean having an awareness of the
structural barriers of connectivity and affordability (cost,
coverage, access to devices in households etc), as well
as exploring the different views, past experiences and
our own familiarity and ability in different online spaces.
Although digital literacy/access is fast becoming
a basic need, it is still often a luxury for many
disadvantaged groups. Occupational therapists need to
have the right knowledge and skills to enable people to
participate.
They need to embrace the new online landscape and
seek out initiatives that will allow their practice to develop
and reflect the new environments and occupations that
the people they work with could participate in.
Who could be digitally excluded?
In the UK, 21.3 per cent of the whole population
are without basic digital skills. Some sections of the
population are more likely to be digitally excluded than
others, including: older people; people in lower income
groups; people without a job; people in social housing;
people with disabilities; people with fewer educational
qualifications, excluded or left school before 16; people
living in rural areas; homeless people; and people whose
first language is not English.
If we take a closer look at older people, although
a significant and growing number of older adults are
online, only 47 per cent of adults aged 75 years and
over recently used the internet (Larson-Lund 2018). This
group may experience a range of barriers.
Essential digital skills are also correlated to higher
social grade levels, taken up more in urban environments
and less prevalent amongst women (Helsper and van
Deursen 2017).
In 2019, the proportion of recent internet users
was lower for adults who were disabled (78 per cent),
as defined by those who identified as disabled in the
Equality Act, compared to those who were not disabled
(95 per cen). The difference between internet use in
disabled and non-disabled adults was greater in the
older age groups. For adults aged 75 years and over,
41 per cent of disabled adults and 54 per cent of nondisabled
adults were recent internet users (ONS 2019 )
People with a disability are three times more likely to
have never used the internet. In 2014, four million people
with a disability had never been online (NHS England
2018), with those who experience most problems online
also having the most difficulty obtaining high-quality
support even when it is available (Helsper and van
Deursen 2017).
While this digital divide is not a new phenomenon
(Clayton and Macdonald 2013), the increasing move
of many of our favourite occupations and interactions
58 OTnews July 2020