The publisher of Medical Tourism Watch holds interests in other medical travel businesses. This page sets out exactly what that does and does not mean for our reporting.
The businesses themselves are named and described on our ecosystem page.
What is prohibited
- Covering a related business automatically, or as a favour.
- Selling news coverage, rankings or watchlist inclusion to anyone, related or not.
- Allowing a commercial relationship to interfere with critical reporting.
- Suppressing negative information about a related business.
- Promising coverage as part of any commercial arrangement.
What is required
Coverage that touches a related business must carry:
- a named author;
- independent verification from sources outside the related business;
- disclosure at the top of the article, in plain language, not a footnote;
- external review before publication for major stories, wherever practical;
- no patient lead-generation forms of any kind.
Rankings, watchlists and reports
Where a related business is eligible for a ranking, watchlist or report, its commercial connection is disclosed in the published methodology and beside its entry. Related businesses receive no scoring advantage.
Advertising by related businesses
Related businesses may advertise on the same published terms as anyone else. Doing so grants them nothing editorially, exactly as set out in our sponsored content policy.
Buying a service from a business connected to the publisher does not secure coverage, favourable reporting, ranking inclusion or protection from criticism. Neither does declining to.
What readers should do
Hold us to this. If you believe coverage of a related business has been soft, unbalanced or insufficiently disclosed, tell us through the contact page or our corrections process, and we will address it publicly.
This policy sits under our main editorial policy. Ownership and funding are on the transparency page.