In order to produce and maintain high quality in all products, A.D.A.M. has continually supported and refined its editorial process. An overview of this process is provided below. The process covers all content A.D.A.M. develops textually as well as its award-winning visuals.

Visual - All visuals are conceptualized, created, and reviewed by medical illustrators. All of the medical illustrators at A.D.A.M. have Master’s degrees in medical illustration or equivalent work experience. Additionally, physicians and/or anatomical PhD’s have reviewed a majority of the visuals for accuracy.

Textual - Most of A.D.A.M.'s articles were initially developed by physicians. Each quarter, A.D.A.M. updates between 300 to 600 articles. A.D.A.M. uses board-certified physicians for the review of most of its articles. As physicians review each article, they set the review schedule for that article based on their awareness of how fast the topic area is changing. Our editorial standard is to objectively communicate the current standard of medical practice. All authors or reviewers must disclose any actual or potential conflict of interest. Anything that might be perceived as a conflict of interest will be clearly disclosed on every relevant article.

The general flow of the editorial process is provided below. The process is divided into 5 steps.

Step 1 – Content Development
In Step 1, medical writers or medical illustrators develop content. Previously published content is tagged for review and is internally reviewed for any additions or deletions. Additionally, since A.D.A.M. has built its reputation on the outstanding quality of its visual content, textual content is reviewed to add new or appropriate compelling visual content. Acquired content, depending on the source, may enter the editorial process at this stage.

Step 2 – Content Review
In Step 2, members of the Content Review Board (CRB) review content. The CRB consists of physicians, who are specialists in their field. These physicians provide information on the medical accuracy of the content.

Step 3 – Content Editorial
In Step 3, A.D.A.M.’s editorial staff reviews the content for grammar, style and consistency. The editorial staff reviews all content, both textual and visual. A content quality assurance check is also performed. Acquired content, which has demonstrated adherence to the criteria of the CRB and A.D.A.M. editorial standards, may enter the editorial process at this stage.

Step 4 – Content Production
In Step 4, the content is indexed, stored in a data management environment, coded and tagged for presentation. A technical and content quality assurance check is also performed during this step.

Step 5 – Content Publication
In Step 5, content is provided to customers. Licensees integrate the A.D.A.M. content with their Internet sites and provide feedback to the editorial process in the form of customer queries and inquiries. Content is regularly updated. In most cases, the update cycle is quarterly. Once a customer receives an update, they have a contractual obligation to implement the updated content on their site.

For more information, please review the A.D.A.M. Editorial Policy, located at the following URL: