HPSC Web Guidelines

HPSC recognises the need for standards and procedures appropriate for medical and health web sites. As such HPSC will endeavour to follow the following guidelines: 

1. Authoritative  
Any medical or health advice provided and hosted on this site will only be given by medically trained and qualified professionals unless a clear statement is made that a piece of advice offered is from a non-medically qualified individual or organisation.
                                                                                                
2. Complementarity 
The information provided on this site is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between a patient/site visitor and his/her existing physician.
                                                                                                    
3. Privacy 
Confidentiality of data relating to individual patients and visitors to a medical/health website, including their identity, is respected by this website. The website owners undertake to honour or exceed the legal requirements of medical/health information privacy that apply in the country and state where the website and mirror sites are located.
                                                                                                      
4. Attribution 
Where appropriate, information contained on this site will be supported by clear references to source data and, where possible, have specific HTML links to that data. The date when a clinical page was last modified will be clearly displayed (e.g. at the bottom of the page).                                                                                                            
5. Justifiability
Any claims relating to the benefits/performance of a specific treatment, commercial product or service will be supported by appropriate, balanced evidence in the manner outlined above in Principle 4.  

6. Transparency
The designers of this website will seek to provide information in the clearest possible manner and provide contact addresses for visitors that seek further information or support. 
                                                                                                    
7. Financial disclosure
Support for this website will be clearly identified, including the identities of commercial and non-commercial organisations that have contributed funding, services or material for the site.
                                                                                                       
8. Advertising policy 
If advertising is a source of funding it will be clearly stated. A brief description of the advertising policy adopted by the website owners will be displayed on the site. Advertising and other promotional material will be presented to viewers in a manner and context that facilitates differentiation between it and the original material created by the institution operating the site.

The HPSC website does not host any form of advertisement.

Last updated: 11 July 2018