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What's inCapitalHealth all about?Our goal is to educate patients about their individual conditions so they are 'in the know'. The authors of the articles are all medical consultants in London who are internationally recognised as leaders in their field. Our team has accumulated many years of experience working with senior doctors and we know the London medical world inside out. We're working hard to promote the city as a centre of medical excellence for the world.
What type of information will I find here? For each therapeutic area we have asked a top specialist to explain the latest philosophies and treatment options in a professionally produced article. Each article contains information which would usually only be shared between healthcare professionals. inCapitalHealth's mission is to 'translate them' into plain English for the benefit of patients.
Can I find this information anywhere else on the web?
The
articles you'll find here were written exlusively for inCapitalHealth
which means in all cases this is where they first appeared. Following
publication we usually distribute a press release to 700+ media outlets
and journalists. In addition we also circulate a copy of the article to
our London doctor electronic database consisting of more than 3,500
consultants and GPs.
Advertising Policy
We do not allow any advertising, banners, pop-ups or other irritating gizmos to appear on the site. All you will find is genuine, impartial medical education. Here are some links to sites where we think good work's being done or where inCapitalHealth appears in a directory.
Disclosure
The medical education articles in inCapitalHealth are available to patients completely free of charge. Articles are written by independent, senior academic and practicing medical experts from a 'what's the best information for patients' stance. The content on the Website is regularly updated; the ultimate aim is to cover all the therapeutic areas.
Revenue Generation
Once the editorial has been written we seek sponsorship from relevant, associated healthcare companies. Some of the articles on the website are sponsored, some are not. The sponsors have no input to the content of the articles. All editorial contributions are by invitation only, no-one can pay to appear in inCapitalHealth.
Links
While sponsors have absolutely no editorial input to the finished articles they are allowed to have an optional electronic link from the article to their own website. In the case of hospital sponsors this facility provides a useful facility for patients seeking access to services. Where appropriate, we also place links to other useful sources of information irrespective of sponsorship.
Compliance with ABPI Code of Practice
It is inevitable that in some cases drugs will be mentioned in the articles. In these instances and if there is pharmaceutical company involvement, inCapitalHealth will comply with UK guidelines. These guidelines are regulated by the Association of British Pharmaceutical Companies (ABPI). There is good communication for all articles between inCapitalHealth and the ABPI when sponsorship is involved. inCapitalHealth believe that it is important to maintain excellent standards of conduct.
What is the Code of Practice?
The ABPI Code of Practice for the Pharmaceutical Industry covers the promotion of medicines for prescribing to health professionals and the provision of information to the public about prescription only medicines. The Code also sets standards relating to the provision of information to patients and the public.
Joint working and the ABPI Code of Practice for the Pharmaceutical Industry
The ABPI has recently issued guidance notes on joint working between pharmaceutical companies and others for the benefit of patients. Joint working must be for the benefit of patients but it is expected that the arrangements will also benefit the NHS and the pharmaceutical company or companies involved.
Arm's length arrangement
The Code states that it is possible for a company to sponsor material, produced by a third party, which mentions its own products, and not be liable under the Code for its contents, but only if there has been a strictly arm's length arrangement between the parties. In practical terms the arrangements must be such that there can be no possibility that the pharmaceutical company has been able to exert any influence or control over the final content of the material. inCapitalHealth operates such an 'arm's length' arrangement.
Our sponsors are not allowed to:
- Initiate the material or suggest the concept
- Influence the content/balance/scope of the material
- Choose or direct payment of the authors
Be unambiguous about sponsorship
The Code states that material relating to medicines and their uses which is sponsored by a pharmaceutical company must clearly indicate that it has been sponsored by that company. Companies must also ensure, however, that the wording of the declaration of sponsorship accurately reflects the company's involvement. For instance, it would be misleading to refer to an 'unrestricted educational grant' on a piece which has been initiated by a company and which consists almost wholly of data supplied by the company, even if the piece itself had been written by a third party. An arms length arrangement should not be implied when in practice a company has been inextricably linked to the production of a piece.
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