A small business owner who designs portable healthcare rooms or “pods” called their regional ADA center and received valuable guidance on how to improve accessibility. The pods are created for individuals who would like to see a medical provider but doesn’t have easy access to a clinic. They will be placed in grocery stores and pharmacies nationwide.

Each healthcare pod is equipped with a screen through which people can communicate and interact with a doctor. Originally the designer of the pods intended to include healthcare instruments such as a thermometer and blood pressure cuff, as well as a light and camera, allowing the doctor to perform a remote physical exam. After calling the ADA Center, he received crucial feedback regarding accommodations for individuals with differing disability limitations. For example, some individuals may not be able to grasp an instrument with a closed fist, while others may not be able to transfer into a different chair within the room. He also had to take into consideration communication accommodations for individuals with hearing difficulties and/or low vision. Priority was also placed on allowing individuals fully accessible entry to the pods after booking an appointment.

Using the feedback from the ADA center the owner was able to redesign the pods to make them fully accessible. Examples of changes include easy to grasp medical instruments, the ability to request closed captioning or a video interpreter, a foldable built-in chair allowing better access for wheelchairs, and a physically accessible card reader allowing for pod entry. Thanks to the ADA, over the next two years fully accessible pods will be placed in grocery stores and pharmacies nationwide allowing full inclusion for all.