The Children's Clinic adheres to the principles of the Health on the Net Foundation (HON), Geneva, Switzerland. These principles are the result of discussions between medical professionals and webmasters in several countries.
The principles of the HON code are:
1. Authority
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.
All articles on this web site are written by experienced professionals. Unless otherwise stated, all articles are written by Dr. Seán J. Fennell, a developmental behavioral paediatrician certified by the American Board of Pediatrics.
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.
The information provided on this web-site is provided for educational purposes.
3. Confidentiality
Confidentiality of data relating to individual patients and visitors to a medical/health Web site, including their identity, is respected by this Web site. The Web site owners undertake to honour or exceed the legal requirements of medical/health information privacy that apply in the country and state where the Web site and mirror sites are located.
This site collects no data from site visitors other than names and email addresses. All email messages received are treated as confidential except that questions and comments may be posted on the site without revealing the identity of the sender.
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).
Links to source data will be provided as needed The date when a clinical page was last modified will be displayed at the bottom of each 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 in Principle 4.
This site does not offer any products for sale. The information on this site is provided for educational purposes.
6. Transparency of authorship
The designers of this web site will seek to provide information in the clearest possible manner and provide contact addresses that seek further information or support. The webmaster will display his/her E-mail address clearly throughout the Web site.
The email address is provided at the bottom of each page.
7. Transparency of sponsorship
Support for this Web site will be clearly identified, including the identities of commercial and non-commercial organisations that have contributed funding, services or material for the site.
All costs associated with this web site are borne by Dr. Seán J. Fennell, the clinic's medical director. Neither the clinic nor the web site receives any funding from any other organisation.
8. Honesty in advertising & editorial policy
If advertising is a source of funding it will be clearly stated. A brief description of the advertising policy adopted by the Web site 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.
This site does not carry any advertising.
HON asks that site visitors who consider a Website displaying the HON code logo to be in violation of any of these principles notify the webmaster/owner of the site. If you believe that this site is not adhering to these principles, please contact the webmaster, and contact the HON Foundation.