Accessibility New Platform

Our Commitment to Digital Accessibility

Our vision: A healthier, more inclusive world

As part of our vision of a healthier world, BMJ Group is committed to ensuring our resources are available to as many people as possible. We are proud to support over 50 million users from more than 150 countries annually across our websites and products. We believe that everyone, regardless of their abilities, should have seamless access to the information and tools we provide.

For a comprehensive overview of our company-wide commitment, our accessibility roadmap, and our testing methodologies, please refer to BMJ Group’s accessibility statement.

This accessibility statement applies to the BMJ Journal websites which are hosted on our new platform which are listed at the bottom of this page.

How accessible are the BMJ Journal websites?

We aim to meet the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA standard to ensure all users have a positive experience. We want as many people as possible to be able to use this website and generally, you should be able to:

Distinguish all text from its background due to sufficient contrast.
Zoom in up to 200% and all content and interactive elements are still visible and functional.
Navigate all of the website using just a keyboard.
Navigate most of the website using speech recognition software.
Use most of the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver).

We are always working to improve the accessibility of BMJ Journals and have recently made the following improvements:

Skip to the main content using the keyboard.
Amendments to the tabbing order.
Improvements to colour contrast for remaining page elements.
Provision of additional link context for screen readers.

At present, some parts of the BMJ Journal websites may not yet fully conform to all aspects of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA. We are actively working to address these areas for improvement and are committed to enhancing the accessibility and usability of our digital offerings for everyone:

Videos and audio:

Some podcasts do not have written transcripts (e.g. RMD Open podcast page).
Some videos do not include captions or alternatives (e.g. the video on this Global Health article).

Keyboard access and screen readers:

Some navigation focus order is inconsistent (e.g. the top advert on the article page).
The advanced search page and some table of contents and archive pages have elements that lack visual indication of focus, such as the main navigation and footer (e.g. the BMJ Medicine advanced search page).
Some links lack sufficient context (e.g. the “here” links in the reference list of this BMJ Oncology article).

Text and images:

Some images contain important text (e.g. this BMJ Medicine article).
Many images lack alt text.

PDFs:
Some PDFs lack:

Appropriately tagged content.
Image alt text.
Appropriate colour contrast.
Appropriate font size.
Logical keyboard navigation.

How we test our products and services

To validate our progress and ensure adherence to our accessibility goals, we are establishing and implementing a multi-faceted testing approach. In our efforts to identify and address accessibility issues, we utilise methods such as:

Accessibility by design: Our commitment includes ensuring that all new product development and significant feature enhancements will incorporate accessibility best practices from the earliest design and development stages.
Continuous improvement and governance: We have established an internal Accessibility Working group comprising cross-functional representatives. This group oversees progress, shares best practices, and ensures accessibility remains a core consideration across our organisation.
Training: We have implemented an accessibility training plan so our staff can design and develop content, pages and experiences that meet the needs of all our users.
Automated accessibility tools: Used to identify common, detectable issues during development and quality assurance.
Manual testing: Conducted by our internal teams, including keyboard-only navigation and screen reader testing.
Expert audits: We work with independent accessibility experts to perform comprehensive evaluations and provide objective insights.
User feedback: We encourage and value feedback from our users, particularly those who use assistive technologies, as their direct experiences are invaluable for guiding our improvements. All feedback provided via our support channels is carefully reviewed to inform our accessibility initiatives. If you’d like to contact us, please refer to the feedback and support section below.

Specific accessibility challenges

Third-party integrations
The BMJ Journal websites incorporate content or functionalities from third-party providers such as:

Brightcove, our video hosting provider.
Podbean, our podcast hosting provider.
Hypothes.is on jitc.bmj.com.
Links to external resources, such as referenced content, society websites, and article data providers.
Authentication methods such as OpenAthens.

We acknowledge that we do not have direct control over their accessibility standards. We are working with our third-party providers to explore avenues for enhancing the accessibility of these integrated services. This includes discussions on potential improvements, advocating for WCAG 2.1 Level AA conformance, and, where necessary, evaluating alternative suppliers who demonstrate a stronger commitment to accessibility standards.

Older content
In some cases, particularly with older content or legacy features within BMJ Journal websites that predate current accessibility standards, achieving full conformance with WCAG 2.1 Level AA may present significant challenges. We are evaluating these instances to find practical solutions for older content where feasible, prioritising user impact and technical viability.

Our company-wide commitment

At BMJ Group, we are committed to digital accessibility, striving for a healthier, more inclusive world by ensuring our resources are available to everyone. For a comprehensive overview of our company-wide commitment, our accessibility roadmap, and our testing methodologies, please refer to BMJ Group’s accessibility statement.

Feedback and support

Your feedback is crucial to our ongoing efforts to improve the accessibility of the BMJ Journal websites. If you encounter any barriers accessing our content or have suggestions for how we can further improve the accessibility of our websites and mobile applications, please contact our dedicated support team. While we strive to resolve issues promptly, we appreciate your patience as we work through our comprehensive accessibility roadmap.

Email: accessibility@bmj.com
Call: +44 (020) 7387 4410
Write to: BMJ Publishing Group Limited, 5th floor, 90 Whitfield Street, London, W1T 4EZ

Last reviewed: January 2025