Editorial and Compliance Standards for Healthcare Content
- Objective
- Hold every patient-facing draft to one standard for voice, accuracy, and regulatory compliance.
- My Role
- I wrote these standards and apply them to every draft I produce, across more than 70 client accounts.
- Outcome
- Every draft I produce is held to these standards, including 630+ client blogs a quarter.
These are the standards I apply to every draft of patient-facing healthcare content: websites and blogs for mental health, interventional psychiatry, and pain care practices. Each rule comes with the reason it exists, and most include an example.
Voice and Reading Level
Rule
Write at a conversational reading level and keep it from getting technical. When a clinical term is needed, explain it in plain language.
Why
People reading these pages have often tried more than one treatment already. Dense clinical language reads as distant at the moment they need to feel understood.
Write
Ketamine acts on glutamate, a chemical messenger that brain cells use to communicate.
Avoid
Ketamine is an NMDA receptor antagonist that modulates glutamatergic neurotransmission.
Compassion First
Rule
Lead with the condition the reader is living with. Acknowledge their pain and that they do not deserve it. Bring in treatments only after the reader feels understood.
Why
Readers arrive carrying something heavy, often after more than one treatment. Opening with their experience shows them the practice understands what they’re going through.
Write
You took the medication. You gave it time. You still don’t feel like yourself, and you deserve more than that.
Avoid
Our advanced infusion therapy delivers relief when other treatments fail.
Off-Label Language
Rule
When a treatment is used outside its FDA-approved labeling, say so plainly in the body copy, the FAQ, and the disclaimer.
Why
Implying approval for a use the FDA has not approved misleads patients and creates regulatory risk for the practice.
Write
Ketamine is FDA-approved as an anesthetic. Its use for depression is off-label.
Avoid
Ketamine is an FDA-approved treatment for depression.
FDA Status Wording
Rule
Drugs are FDA-approved. TMS devices, including branded systems, are FDA-cleared. Describe any product only by the indications on its label or clearance.
Why
Approval and clearance are different regulatory pathways, and the wrong word misstates a product’s status.
Write
TMS is an FDA-cleared, non-invasive treatment.
Avoid
TMS is an FDA-approved treatment.
Trademark Usage
Rule
Use every brand name in its required form, every time it appears.
- SPRAVATO® appears in all capitals with the ® symbol, every time it appears.
- Branded TMS devices, such as NeuroStar, appear in their registered form.
Why
Manufacturers set how their marks appear, and consistent usage keeps copy accurate across hundreds of pages.
Write
SPRAVATO®, NeuroStar
Avoid
Spravato, Neurostar
Research Figures
Rule
Pair every figure with the study population it came from, cite the source, and state that it does not represent the practice’s own patient outcomes.
Why
A figure without its population reads as a promise to the patient reading it.
Write
In one trial of adults with treatment-resistant depression, 64% responded within 24 hours, compared with 28% in the comparison group. These results come from a research study and do not represent this practice’s patient outcomes (American Journal of Psychiatry, 2013).
Avoid
64% of patients feel better within a day.
No Promised Results or Timelines
Rule
No page promises a result or says how soon one will come.
Why
Individual responses vary, and a promise the treatment does not keep damages the patient’s trust and the practice’s standing.
Write
Individual responses vary, and no result or timeline can be promised.
Avoid
Feel better in days.
Honest Candidacy
Rule
Describe candidacy as something an evaluation determines. After evaluation, a patient may be an excellent candidate, a 50/50 candidate, or not yet ready.
Why
Treatments have real eligibility requirements, and readers deserve an accurate picture before they book.
Write
A psychiatric evaluation helps determine whether this treatment may be appropriate for you.
Avoid
This treatment works for everyone.
Medication Safety
Rule
Any page that discusses medication tells readers not to stop or change a prescription without talking to their prescriber.
Why
A reader acting on marketing copy alone could stop a medication abruptly and be harmed.
Write
Do not stop or change any medication without talking to your prescriber.
Crisis Language
Rule
Where content touches suicidal thoughts or severe depression, include crisis resources and state plainly what a treatment does not do.
Why
Some readers are in crisis when they find these pages, and they need a direct path to help.
Write
SPRAVATO® has not been shown to prevent suicide or reduce suicidal thoughts or behavior. If you are in crisis, call 911, or call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
Disclaimers and Sources
Rule
Every page closes with a medical disclaimer. Clinical claims cite their sources, such as FDA labeling and peer-reviewed studies.
Why
Readers and reviewers can check every claim, and the disclaimer makes clear the page does not replace a clinical evaluation.
State-Level Variation
Rule
Advertising regulations and insurance language vary by state. Copy is checked against the rules for the state where the practice operates.
Why
A claim or insurance statement that is acceptable in one state can be a violation in another.