Editorial and Content Policy

Editorial & Content Policy

Liver Foundation’s editorial oversight occurs at 2 levels:

  1. Strategic development of new features and content is managed by Liver Foundation staff and suppliers to ensure usability and overall quality of the website and its content.
  2. Content strategy, development and publishing is overseen by the Clinical and Scientific Committee to ensure all health and clinically related content is trustworthy, based on the latest scientific and clinical evidence, and appropriate.

Editorial guidelines

Content on the Liver Foundation website needs to adhere to Liver Foundation’s editorial guidelines.  In line with our policy to collaborate rather than duplicate effort, the Liver Foundation adopted Health Direct’s Editorial Guidelines in 2022.

Health Direct says: “These guidelines were produced to ensure Health Direct Australia’s digital services, such as websites, tools, applications and widgets, follow best editorial practice, use consistent, correct and consumer-focused language and that all content is optimised for digital consumption and search engines”. We believe them to be best practice and of the highest standard.

Medical Advice

The consumer information published by the Liver Foundation is in no way meant to be a replacement for clinical advice.  Our content is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between an individual and their health care professional/s.

Health literacy

Australians who use Liver Foundation’s online and other services come from a wide variety of backgrounds and demographics. They also vary in their ability to access health-related information, and to understand and make decisions about their own health — their overall ‘health literacy’.

Liver Foundation aims to provide consumers with accessible, understandable, inclusive and judgement-free information that will allow them to make informed decisions about their own health and build their health literacy.

Accessibility

Content is to be published in simple English, with any medical terms linked to the plain English glossary .

We consider the diversity of our audience and use inclusive, non-judgemental language. Wherever possible content is presented in multiple formats and in a way that is easily translated by tools such as Google translate.  In time, and as budget allows,  content will be made available in multiple languages to increase accessibility.

Content development process

Liver Foundation’s content development process includes the following phases:

  1. Content planning and creation — content ideas are sourced from frequently asked questions that come through our helpline, feedback from the clinical community, community surveys, recommendations from our Clinical and Scientific Committee members, assessment of information provided by like organisations operating in other countries and insights gained through publicly available online search data.
  2. Clinical and editorial reviews — clinical content is fact checked and peer reviewed by the appropriate health professionals; all information is editorially reviewed and sub-edited in line with Liver Foundation’s editorial guidelines.
  3. Audit and evaluation — new content is audited every two years by representatives of Liver Foundation’s Clinical and Scientific Committee, with feedback also sought from consumer representatives, ensuring both a user-centric approach and continuous content improvements.

Content maintenance and quality assurance

All content is reviewed on a regular basis to make sure it is complete, accurate and trustworthy. Our standard review frequency is every 2 years, with some topics reviewed more often due to the nature of the subject matter. ‘Last reviewed’ dates appear clearly on individual pages.

Sources and attribution

Our health information is evidence-based, with content supported by reliable sources. Liver Foundation uses both Australian and international, non-commercial sources, including:

  • clinical practice guidelines and/or position statements
  • Australian government department statements
  • reviews in peer-reviewed literature
  • Australian data and statistics
  • assessed partner organisations

The sources of the material are referenced on our web pages. All references cited provide a title to identify the source and a link to the source website where possible.

Contributors

Liver Foundation Clinical and Scientific Committee

  • Associate Professor Simone Strasser (Chair) – Hepatologist
  • Professor Gary Jeffrey – Hepatologist
  • Professor Winita Hardikar – Paediatric Hepatologist
  • Associate Professor Paul Clarke – Hepatologist
  • Barbara Moore (CNC – Retired)

Consumer Representatives

For input into the content plan

  • Respondents to online community surveys
  • Patients and carers who access our phone and email Helpline

For review of consumer information prior to publication

  • Nicole S
  • Caroline K
  • David Smith

Liver Foundation CEO

Megan Collins – CNC, Liver Transplant and HCC

Write Media – Medical specialist writing services.

Advertising

Liver Foundation does not accept advertising in its published content.

Funding Sources

All sponsors are clearly identified on our Supporters page.  When working with Industry, Liver Foundation adheres in the strictest terms to the Medicines Australia Code of Conduct, regardless of whether the sponsor is a signatory.

This means that sponsors do not have any input into the development of our content plan or the nature of the content itself.

At times a private individual may choose to fund content development around a topic with which they have lived experience.  When this occurs, if the content is not already part of the Liver Foundations Content Development Plan, the proposal goes through the Clinical and Scientific Committee to be assessed for its relevance, usefulness, and accuracy.  If approved, the donor funds are accepted. The donor is invited to contribute to the existing content development process as a consumer reviewer.  Editorial control is retained by Liver Foundation.

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