Code of Conduct

Community Rules & Etiquette and Privacy Guidelines

Thank you for being part of our community. To ensure the best possible experience for all members, we have established some basic guidelines for participation.

By joining and using this community, you agree that you have read and will follow these rules and guidelines. You also agree to reserve discussions and shared files and content to that best suited to the medium. This is a great medium with which to solicit the advice of your peers, benefit from their experience, and participate in an ongoing conversation. Questions should be directed to shsmd@aha.org or via the Contact Us link on this site.

Please take a moment to acquaint yourself with these important guidelines. In order to preserve a climate that encourages both civil and fruitful dialogue, we reserve the right to suspend or terminate membership in this community for anyone who violates these rules.

The Rules

Solicitation and Self-Promotion
Solution provider members must not respond to member discussion posts—within or outside of the MySHSMD Online Community—with solicitations and/or self-promotion. Responses must be sent within the MySHSMD Online Community and must adhere to the following rules. This also includes those posting or responding anonymously. 

SHSMD reserves all rights to edit or delete posted messages it considers inappropriate, off-topic, or self-promotional. SHSMD may deny access to anyone who violates these rules.

Content
  • Any information you share or link to must be informational in nature, adding to the body of knowledge.
  • Do not self-promote any individual, company, product, or service. This includes using terms such as “clients,” “products,” “services,” and “testimonials.” Instead, focus on best practices and key findings.
  • However, companies listed in the MySHSMD Company Directory are encouraged to include the following in the footer of any MySHSMD Discussion Posts: Learn more about on our profile in the MySHSMD Company Directory.
  • Do not link to content or events that require users to provide their contact information.
  • Job advertisements are not allowed. To advertise a job, please post it through the SHSMD Career Center.
  • Surveys are not allowed unless pre-approved by SHSMD.
  • While you are welcome to respond and post anonymously, referrals will not be approved by those wishing to post anonymously.

Contact Information

  • Your signature must contain your full name, title, and organization.
  • You may include your e-mail address and website in your signature, but refrain from encouraging offline contact by using phrases such as “call me” or “e-mail me.”

Legal

  • Do not post any information or other material protected by copyright without the permission of the copyright owner.
  • Use caution when discussing products. Information posted on the lists and in the libraries is available for MySHSMD users to see, and comments are subject to libel, slander, and antitrust laws.  
  • All defamatory, abusive, profane, threatening, offensive, or illegal materials are strictly prohibited. Do not post anything that you would not want the world to see or that you would not want anyone to know came from you.

Discussion Group Etiquette

  • Keep discussions and comments professional and relevant to the topic at all times.
  • Only send a message to the entire list when it contains information that everyone can benefit from. Do not send messages such as "e-mail me", "if you want more information", “thanks” or “me, too” to the entire list. (Use the “Reply to Sender” link.)
  • Do not send administrative messages, such as “remove me from the list.” Instead, use the web interface to change your settings or to remove yourself from a list.
  • Post your message or documents only to the most appropriate lists or libraries. Do not spam several lists or libraries with the same message.
  • State concisely and clearly the topic of your comments in the subject line.

Disclaimer

This site is provided as a service for the members of SHSMD. SHSMD is not responsible for the opinions and information posted on this site by others. We disclaim all warranties with regard to information posted on this site, whether posted by SHSMD or any third party; this disclaimer includes all implied warranties of merchantability and fitness. In no event shall SHSMD be liable for any special, indirect, or consequential damages or any damages whatsoever resulting from loss of use, data, or profits, arising out of or in connection with the use or performance of any information posted on this site.

By posting material, the posting party warrants and represents that he or she owns the copyright with respect to such material or has received permission from the copyright owner. In addition, the posting party grants SHSMD and users of this site the nonexclusive right and license to display, copy, publish, distribute, transmit, print, and use such information or other material.

SHSMD reserves the right to reject any message for any reason. SHSMD reserves the right to terminate access to any user who does not abide by these guidelines.

Privacy Policy

By visiting AHA websites, including but not limited to www.shsmd.org and my.shsmd.org, you are accepting the practices described in the AHA Privacy Policy: www.aha.org/help/privacy.shtml and Terms of Use: www.aha.org/2022-07-14-termsofuse.shtml

These guidelines may change at any time. Be sure to review these guidelines periodically to ensure familiarity with the most current version.