IHC Membership

Members of the IHC must agree to the following terms of use. This is an international platform for all surgeons, healthcare providers, and industry friends interested in the repair of hernia and optimizing outcomes to come together to collaborate, share, discuss, post photos, post videos, and simply post anything related to the disease of hernia. By embracing social media as a collaborative forum, we can more effectively and transparently obtain immediate global feedback that in turn has potential to improve both patient outcomes as well as the quality of care we provide. This is a private group, and posts will always be held to the highest standards available. All members wishing to join are vetted. Posts will be professional, and inappropriate posts and posts that violate USA HIPAA compliance rules will be deleted. The posts are part of a social forum, and comments are individual opinions. Anyone seeing these posts should avoid interpreting the posts as standard of care or as final medical advice. Patients who might see these posts should always consult their own doctor, not these posts, for all specific medical questions and decisions.

Industry and nonsurgeon members of IHC take an oath to LISTEN. You agree to never judge surgeons for their comments or opinions. You agree never to copy and paste, or take screen shots of, or print, or forward in any format (email, social media, etc) any items found here, and of course agree to never to use any information directly or indirectly for monetary gain personally or for your company under any circumstance. All content in the forum is not to be reproduced in any format whatsoever without written prior approval from the surgeon who made the post, and a member of the board of IHC. Should your position at your current company or job change, you will leave the group or notify Dr. Jacob immediately. HIPAA protection is mandatory, and upholding HIPAA compliance will be your own responsibility. You accept full and all responsibility for upholding HIPAA rules. You agree to hold the IHC members free of all liability that could be related to your use of this forum, both directly and indirectly. Finally, you will recruit a minimum of one surgeon you work with to also join the group. Violation of any of this oath, at any time, will lead to 1) removal from the group without warning, 2) public distribution of your violation to the entire group, and 3) it will be pursued to the extent any law permits, at your own expense.

For students, residents, fellows, and surgeons in training The original intent of the International Hernia Collaboration was to serve as a global platform for surgeons to exchange ideas, offer tips and tricks, and provide real time opinions. The information shared on the IHC is first and foremost designed to improve quality of care and lead to improved patient outcome. The intent of the IHC, however, is NOT to supplant or to be used as a resource in lieu of traditional surgical/medical textbooks or peer reviewed journal articles required in the didactic curriculum of a trainees educational course. Your approval for membership is based on you agreeing that the IHC will not serve as a resource for in-service or qualifying exams. You agree that posts relate personal opinion and not necessarily reflect the opinion of other members or the board of the IHC. You agree to post professionally and responsibly according to the guidelines of the IHC. HIPAA protection is mandatory, and upholding HIPAA compliance will be your own responsibility. You accept full and all responsibility for upholding HIPAA rules. You agree to hold the IHC members free of all liability that could be related to your use of this forum, both directly and indirectly.

For students, residents, fellows, and surgeons in training The original intent of the International Hernia Collaboration was to serve as a global platform for surgeons to exchange ideas, offer tips and tricks, and provide real time opinions. The information shared on the IHC is first and foremost designed to improve quality of care and lead to improved patient outcome. The intent of the IHC, however, is NOT to supplant or to be used as a resource in lieu of traditional surgical/medical textbooks or peer reviewed journal articles required in the didactic curriculum of a trainees educational course. Your approval for membership is based on you agreeing that the IHC will not serve as a resource for in-service or qualifying exams. You agree that posts relate personal opinion and not necessarily reflect the opinion of other members or the board of the IHC. You agree to post professionally and responsibly according to the guidelines of the IHC. HIPAA protection is mandatory, and upholding HIPAA compliance will be your own responsibility. You accept full and all responsibility for upholding HIPAA rules. You agree to hold the IHC members free of all liability that could be related to your use of this forum, both directly and indirectly.