About Surfbound Health
Clinical Standards & Content Checking
This page explains how Surfbound Health presents, sources, checks, and maintains the medical and health information published on this website. Our goal is to be transparent about what our educational content is — and what it is not.
The purpose of our educational content
Surfbound Health publishes educational content — guides, articles, and research summaries — to help people better understand health topics such as GLP-1 weight-loss medications, treatment options, and telehealth. We write this content so that readers can ask better questions and make more informed decisions together with a licensed provider.
Our educational content is informational only. It is not a substitute for a consultation with a licensed medical professional, and reading it does not create a patient–provider relationship.
General education vs. individualized medical advice
There is an important difference between general health information and individualized medical advice:
General education
Describes a medication, condition, or topic for a broad audience. It does not account for any single reader's health history, medications, or circumstances.
Individualized medical advice
A specific recommendation about whether a treatment is appropriate for you, given by a licensed provider who has reviewed your personal information.
Surfbound's website provides general education. Decisions about whether any medication is appropriate for you are made only through a licensed-provider evaluation — not through website content.
How we source medical information
When we write about medications, conditions, or clinical evidence, we prefer authoritative primary and secondary sources over general references. Where applicable, our source preference is roughly:
- FDA prescribing information — the official drug label, including indications, dosing, warnings, and contraindications.
- FDA safety and regulatory communications — drug safety communications, recalls, and guidance, including statements about compounded medications.
- NIH / PubMed-indexed primary research — original peer-reviewed studies and systematic reviews.
- Peer-reviewed clinical trials — randomized controlled trials and well-conducted observational studies.
- Major professional medical organizations — clinical practice guidelines and position statements from recognized bodies.
- Government health sources — agencies such as the FDA, NIH, and CDC.
This is a preference, not a rigid rule. The most appropriate source depends on the specific claim being made, and we aim to use the strongest available evidence for each statement.
Clinical-trial results vs. Surfbound treatment outcomes
We distinguish between what a clinical trial showed and what any individual can expect from treatment. Clinical-trial results describe average outcomes across a specific study population under controlled conditions. They do not guarantee that any particular person will experience the same result.
Surfbound Health does not publish its own treatment-outcome statistics or make quantitative weight-loss guarantees. When we reference a number, we aim to attribute it to the underlying study or source. An individual's results depend on factors a licensed provider evaluates — including medical history, medication, dose, adherence, and lifestyle.
FDA-approved vs. compounded medications
We are explicit about the difference between FDA-approved medications and compounded formulations. FDA-approved drugs have been reviewed by the FDA for safety, effectiveness, and quality.
Compounded medications are prepared by pharmacies to meet a specific patient's needs, but are not FDA-approved. They have not been reviewed by the FDA for safety, effectiveness, or quality. Surfbound discloses this distinction in its educational content and wherever compounded options are discussed.
How our content is checked
Surfbound Health checks its educational content against authoritative sources and regulatory guidance before publication. This is an editorial and source-checking process performed by Surfbound Health — it is not a physician review of website content, and we do not present it as one.
We aim for accuracy at the time of publication and revisit content periodically to reflect new evidence or guidance. Where a specific operational detail of our process is not published, we describe it at a general level rather than claim a procedure we cannot verify.
Substantive updates and corrections
When evidence, guidance, or our understanding changes in a way that meaningfully affects a piece of content, we update it. Substantive updates are reflected in the content itself and, where appropriate, in the page's revision date.
If we discover that a factual error was published, we correct it. Our correction process is:
- Identify — we confirm the error against the underlying authoritative source.
- Correct — we update the content so the statement is accurate.
- Verify — the correction is reviewed to confirm it resolves the inaccuracy.
Reporting a possible factual error
If you believe any content on this website contains a factual error, we want to hear from you so we can review it. Please include the page URL and a description of what you believe is incorrect, along with any source you think we should review.
Please do not include sensitive personal health information in your message. For questions about your own care, contact your provider directly.
Licensed-provider evaluation is separate from education
Surfbound's educational content and its clinical services are separate. Whether a treatment is appropriate for you is determined only through an independent licensed-provider evaluation, which reviews your medical history and other relevant information. Website education never substitutes for that evaluation, and no content on this site is intended to direct a specific treatment decision for any individual.
Commercial disclosure
Surfbound Health is a telehealth platform operated by Open Water Rx LLC. Our educational content exists alongside commercial services, and we disclose this relationship. We aim to keep educational information accurate and clearly separated from promotional messaging, so readers can tell the difference between what is informational and what is an offer of services.
Surfbound and Surfbound Health are trade names of Open Water Rx LLC. Educational content on this website is provided for general information only and does not constitute medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of a qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have about a medical condition or treatment.