Why this policy exists
SecondMedic was built around a simple belief: every person in India deserves access to trustworthy healthcare, regardless of where they live or what time it is. That belief applies just as much to the information we publish as to the doctors we connect patients with. When someone is worried about a symptom at midnight, or trying to understand a lab report they just received, the last thing they need is content that is vague, outdated, or written to rank on search engines rather than to genuinely help them.
"Every article, test guide, and health resource on SecondMedic is written with one patient in mind: someone sitting at home in India, without easy access to a specialist, trying to understand what is happening in their body. We owe that person accuracy, clarity, and honesty."
SecondMedic Medical Editorial BoardThis editorial policy sets out exactly how we create and review our health content. It is not a compliance document. It is the working standard our content team follows every day, and the basis on which every doctor who reviews content for SecondMedic agrees to participate.
Our editorial workflow
Every piece of health content on SecondMedic follows six defined steps before it reaches a patient. No article is published until all six are complete, and no step is skipped because of deadlines or content volume targets.
Topic identification and gap analysis
We start by identifying what patients are actually searching for and asking about. Our content team reviews the most common questions submitted through SecondMedic's Ask a Doctor feature, tracks recurring health concerns raised during online consultations, and analyses search data for health topics specific to India. We prioritise topics where patients are encountering poor or conflicting information online, and where SecondMedic's network of doctors, lab services, and pharmacy can offer a useful, actionable answer. A topic enters the content pipeline because a real patient needs a reliable answer to it, not because it generates traffic.
Source research and evidence gathering
Before any writing begins, the assigned writer builds a source file for the topic. This file must include at least three primary references from peer-reviewed journals indexed on PubMed, plus any applicable guidelines from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the World Health Organization (WHO), or a relevant national specialist body such as the Association of Physicians of India (API), the Research Society for the Study of Diabetes in India (RSSDI), or the Cardiological Society of India (CSI). We do not use other health websites as primary sources. If a claim cannot be traced to an original published document, it does not appear in our content.
Content creation by qualified writers
SecondMedic's health content is written by medical writers with science or health qualifications. Writers are not generalists who cover any topic assigned to them. Each writer is matched to content categories within their training: a writer with a background in pharmacology handles medicine content, a writer with clinical nutrition training handles metabolic and diet content. This matching is enforced at the briefing stage. The brief given to every writer also specifies the reading standard we target, clear enough for a patient with no medical training to follow, and precise enough that a reviewing doctor would not find it clinically misleading.
Medical review by a specialist doctor
Every article is reviewed by a named doctor before it is published. The reviewer holds an MBBS degree at minimum, and in most cases holds a postgraduate qualification (MD, MS, DM, or fellowship) relevant to the article's topic. The reviewer's job at this stage is clinical accuracy only. They check whether the information is consistent with current Indian clinical practice, flag any claims that could be misunderstood or misapplied by a patient without guidance, and confirm that the article does not overstate or understate the seriousness of any condition or symptom. The reviewer's full name and credentials are displayed on the published article. They take professional responsibility for what they approve.
Citation and reference verification
After the doctor's review is complete, a second team member independently checks every cited source in the article. The checker opens each reference, confirms that the article's claim accurately represents what the original source says, and verifies that the source has not been retracted, superseded, or contradicted by more recent guidelines. Any claim that cannot be verified at this step is either rewritten with a verifiable source or removed entirely. References are listed at the bottom of every article in a standardised format so that readers can access the original source for any claim we make.
Final approval and publication
The article is approved for publication by SecondMedic's editorial lead only after steps 1 through 5 are documented as complete. The published page displays the name of the writer, the name and credentials of the reviewing doctor, the publication date, and a clear medical disclaimer. The article is also marked up with structured data (schema.org) so that the authorship, review status, and publication date are machine-readable by search engines and AI platforms. This structured markup is part of how we signal that our content meets the standards required of professional health content in India.
What we hold ourselves to
Six principles govern every content decision at SecondMedic. These are applied at every stage of the editorial workflow, not just at the review stage.
Clinically accurate
Every factual claim is sourced, every dosage range is verified, and every lab test reference range is checked against current NABL and ICMR standards. If we cannot verify a claim, we do not publish it.
Transparently authored
Every article names the person who wrote it and the doctor who reviewed it, with their full credentials. Anonymous health content has no place on SecondMedic.
Fully cited
We reference the original source for every factual statement. Readers can follow any reference to the published article, guideline, or government publication it came from.
Written for patients
Our content is written for a person in India with no medical training who needs a real answer. We do not write for search engine rankings or to impress clinicians. We write to help the patient reading at home.
Commercially independent
No brand, medicine, diagnostic test, or commercial partner can influence what our articles say. Our editorial team does not take instructions from SecondMedic's commercial or sales divisions.
Supportive of doctor-patient care
SecondMedic's content helps patients understand their health and ask better questions when they speak to a doctor. It is designed to support that conversation, not replace it.
Where our information comes from
SecondMedic only references primary, published sources. We do not cite other health websites, aggregated content, or unverified online material. Every source we use must meet the criteria below.
The doctors who review our content
SecondMedic's Medical Editorial Board is made up of licensed doctors and specialists who review content only in their area of clinical expertise. Each reviewer's name and credentials appear on every article they approve. They take professional responsibility for what they sign off on.
Dr. [Name]
Dr. [Name]
Dr. [Name]
Dr. [Name]
Dr. [Name]
Dr. [Name]
Full profiles including credentials, clinical experience, and consultation availability are on the SecondMedic Doctors page.
Medical disclaimer
This content is for information only, not a substitute for professional medical advice
All health, medical, and diagnostic content published on SecondMedic is intended for general educational purposes only. It does not constitute medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment recommendations for any individual. Health information varies depending on a person's individual circumstances, medical history, age, and other factors that only a qualified doctor can properly evaluate in a clinical consultation.
Always consult a qualified, registered medical practitioner before making any decisions about your health, starting or stopping any medication, or acting on information you have read on this platform. If you are experiencing a medical emergency, call emergency services (112) or go to your nearest hospital immediately.
SecondMedic connects patients with licensed doctors for teleconsultation. The content published on this website is separate from, and does not represent, the clinical advice given by a SecondMedic doctor during a personal consultation.
Questions about our editorial standards
Common questions from patients, journalists, and healthcare professionals about how SecondMedic creates and maintains its health content.
Questions about our editorial standards?
Our editorial team is available for questions from patients, journalists, researchers, and healthcare professionals about how we create and maintain our health content.
