Amherst COVID-19

Although the Town of Amherst has a website with vaccine information and COVID-19 resources, 30,000 residents are calling weekly with questions that the website answers.

OBJECTIVES

How might we create a clear pathway for residents of Amherst to access easy-to-understand COVID-19 vaccine information, including eligibility and availability in their area?

SUCCESS METRICS

Help Amherst residents locate a provider in their county and feel confident in signing up online.

1

Increase # of dose two signups

Increase two dose regimen completion rate

Data coming soon

Data coming soon

SUCCESS METRICS

Help Amherst residents understand how to sign up with providers and reach out to them for assistance.

2

Reducing the # of callers asking for assistance filling out provider signup forms

reduction in calls

Content and Design Examples

Provided recommendations for all website pages based on health literacy data.

REMOVE ALERT BANNERS

Why: Primary purpose of site is to provide vaccine info. Alert banner should only be used for alert messaging 

REPHRASE THE HEADER TO BE DIRECT AND ACTION-ORIENTED
Try: COVID-19 Resources for Amherst Residents, or similar

CUT “welcome to the resource page…” copy.

MOVE THE COVID-19 CONCERN CONTENT TO A LOWER VISIBILITY AREA ON THE PAGE
Why: Unless encouraging residents to call/email is a top priority.
Try: Repurpose this space for more pressing content like vaccine FAQs and important updates on city openings and vaccine phases. 

NAVIGATION

Ensure all labels are human-readable and surface the right information for the right audience. Alphabetize for easier reading. 

“Testing” → “Get Tested” 
“Vaccine” → “Get Vaccinated”
“Town of Amherst” → eliminated
“Schools” → “Get School Updates”
“Resources” → “Get Support 
“Food Support” 
“Health and Prevention”
“Housing Resources”
“Resources for Seniors” 
“Small Business Support”
“Unemployment and Finances”
“Give/Get Help” → “Give Back” 

ACCESSIBILITY and Usability

Based on best practices. View the full audit presentation here.

Perhaps this is a Google Sites bug. id attributes should be unique on pages. 


Why: WCAG 2.0 Level A 4.1.1 Parsing states that in content implemented using markup languages, elements have complete start and end tags, elements are nested according to their specifications, elements do not contain duplicate attributes, and any IDs are unique, except where the specifications allow these features. Read a more plain language description.
Try: Run a code validation check, if possible.

CRITICAL

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NAVIGATION

Ensure all labels are human-readable and surface the right information for the right audience. Alphabetize for easier reading. 

NAVIGATION

Ensure all labels are human-readable and surface the right information for the right audience. Alphabetize for easier reading. 

high fidelity mockups

These mockups were created with an emphasis on mobile responsiveness due to the high amount of mobile browser users.

86%

~4,200

calls per week (down from ~30,000)