HSS Web Site Terms of Use

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About the HSS Web Site

Welcome to HSS.edu, the web site of Hospital for Special Surgery. Please read these Terms of Use carefully before using this site. By accessing or using this site, you agree to be bound by these Terms of Use. The provision of information and services through this site by Hospital for Special Surgery is subject to your agreement to the Terms of Use below.

Use of Information

The HSS Web Site is intended to provide educational information for physicians, other health providers, and members of the public to assist in understanding medical developments and medical knowledge in the broad field of musculoskeletal medicine. Use of this site does not establish a physician-patient relationship. The information provided in this HSS Web Site does not constitute medical or health care advice for any individual problem and is not a substitute for medical or other professional advice and services from a qualified health care provider familiar with a patient's unique facts. Patients or individuals with other health concerns should always consult their health care providers for any health problem or medical condition, and/or prior to starting any new treatment. Physicians and other health care providers are advised to seek confirmatory information from other sources before applying principles or other information described on this site.

While HSS seeks to keep this web site up-to-date, medical treatment and knowledge change quickly and this site should not be considered as error-free or as a comprehensive source of all information on a particular topic. It is your responsibility to evaluate the information on this web site, together with your qualified health care professional. Discussion of the use of medication or other treatment on this site does not imply endorsement or recommendation by HSS, its faculty or other affiliated physicians of any such medication or treatment.

HSS, its faculty and affiliated physicians assume no responsibility for any consequence relating directly or indirectly to any action or inaction you take based on the information, services or other material on this site. Your use of this site is subject to the additional disclaimers and caveats that may appear throughout these Terms of Use and the HSS Web Site.

Links to Other Sites

Links to other sites, including those of HSS Web Site sponsors, are provided for informational purposes and do not constitute endorsements or recommendations by HSS or its faculty of those sites, or the information, materials, products or services contained on or accessible through the sites, and users' access and use of such sites, including information, material, products and services on those sites, is solely at the risk of the users. The Hospital for Special Surgery is not responsible for information provided on any site to which it is linked.

Author’s Disclaimer

Contributors to this publication are required to fully disclose any financial benefits, equity interest or royalties that they or their immediate family members have received from the commercial entities, including the manufacturers, distributors or suppliers, of the services, products, procedures or drugs discussed in this publication in the twelve months preceding publication as well as during the work on this publication (including during the conduct of any research which is reported in the publication, even if such research was conducted more than a year prior to the publication). The contributors are further required to disclose any such financial interests they anticipate in the twelve months following the completion of the work on the publication.

User Contributions

If you post materials to this site (such as on bulletin boards or chat rooms), you must agree to follow these rules: (1) you may not post or submit material that is libelous, defamatory, obscene, fraudulent, harmful, threatening, abusive or hateful, that violates the property rights of others (including, without limitation, copyright or trademark rights), that violates the privacy or publicity rights of others or that is in violation of applicable laws; (2) you may not interfere with other users' use and enjoyment of this site; (3) you may not use this site to do anything that is illegal or that violates the rights of others; (4) you may not use this site to advertise or sell products or services to others; and (5) you must immediately inform HSS if you believe that a user is infringing any copyrighted materials or is otherwise violating these Terms of Use. HSS has no responsibility for the content of any material posted by users, but HSS reserves the right in its sole discretion to (i) edit or delete any documents, information or other material submitted to or appearing on this site, and (ii) refuse access to the site to any user that violates these Terms of Use. Bulletin boards and chat rooms contain the opinions and views of other visitors to the site. HSS is not responsible for the accuracy of any messages on this site and you should always consult a physician or other qualified health care provider before relying on any information you find on this site, including, but not limited to, the information you find in the chat rooms.

By posting any materials to the HSS Web Site, you automatically grant, or warrant that the owner of such materials has clearly given HSS the royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive and fully sublicensable and transferable right and license to use, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, create derivative works from, distribute, perform and display such materials (in whole or part) worldwide and/or to incorporate them in other works in any form, media or technology now known or later developed.

Editorial Policy; Third Party Content

While the HSS Web Site Editorial Board follows a standard set of editorial procedures for any materials that it posts on this web site, it cannot guarantee the accuracy or usefulness of those materials. HSS and its faculty are distributors, not publishers, of the content supplied on this web site by visitors and other third parties. Any opinions, advice, statements, services, offers or other information or content made available on this web site by visitors or other third parties are those of the respective authors. HSS, its faculty and affiliated physicians are not responsible for materials created by third parties.

Disclaimer of Warranty; Limitation of Liability

HSS, ITS FACULTY, ITS OTHER AFFILIATED PHYSICIANS AND THEIR SUPPLIERS DISCLAIM ALL EXPRESS AND IMPLIED WARRANTIES WITH REGARD TO THE INFORMATION, SERVICES AND MATERIALS CONTAINED ON THIS SITE, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. YOUR USE OF THIS SITE IS AT YOUR OWN RISK. ACCESS TO THIS SITE MAY BE INTERRUPTED AND INFORMATION, SERVICES AND MATERIALS MAY NOT BE ERROR-FREE.

NEITHER HSS, HSS FACULTY, OTHER MEMBERS OF THE MEDICAL STAFF OF HSS NOR ANYONE ELSE INVOLVED IN CREATING, PRODUCING OR DELIVERING THIS SITE OR THE INFORMATION, SERVICES AND MATERIALS CONTAINED ON THIS SITE ASSUMES ANY LIABILITY OR RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ACCURACY, COMPLETENESS OR USEFULNESS OF ANY INFORMATION, SERVICES AND MATERIALS PROVIDED ON THIS SITE, NOR SHALL THEY BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF YOUR USE OF, OR INABILITY TO USE, THIS SITE. ALL INFORMATION, SERVICES AND MATERIALS ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED.

IN NO EVENT, SHALL HSS, HSS FACULTY, OR OTHER MEMBERS OF THE MEDICAL STAFF OF HSS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER, RESULTING FROM THE USE OF, OR INABILITY TO USE, THE INFORMATION, SERVICES OR MATERIALS ON THIS SITE, WHETHER BASED ON BREACH OF CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), PRODUCT LIABILITY OR OTHERWISE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

BY USING THIS WEB SITE, YOU ACKNOWLEDGE AND AGREE THAT THE LIMITATIONS SET FORTH ABOVE ARE FUNDAMENTAL ELEMENTS OF THESE TERMS OF USE AND THIS SITE WOULD NOT BE PROVIDED TO YOU WITHOUT THOSE LIMITATIONS. SOME STATE LAWS REGARDING LIMITATION OF LIABILITY MIGHT APPLY.

Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend and hold harmless HSS, its faculty, the other members of its medical staff, and their suppliers from any liability, loss, claim and expense (including attorneys' fees) related to (i) your violation of this Terms of Use of this web site and (ii) your posting of material to this site.

Copyright and Trademark Information

All materials and content on this web site, including text, graphics, logos, site design, images, audio and video clips, are the property of HSS, its faculty, the other members of its medical staff, or their suppliers, and are protected by U.S. and international copyright laws. All such materials may be accessed, downloaded or printed for your personal non-commercial use only. Without the prior written permission of HSS, you may not modify, copy, distribute, transmit, display or publish any material on this site, in whole or in part. Permission may be requested by sending an email to webmanager@hss.edu or you may send a fax to the Web Director, at 212.774.7240. Use of any data for which permission is granted must be acknowledged with copyright identification, identifying the origin as "Hospital for Special Surgery Web Site, HSS.edu".

Hospital for Special Surgery is a registered trademark and may not be used without the prior written authorization of HSS. Other than on search engines or other such listings, the name "Hospital for Special Surgery" may not be used without the prior written permission of HSS.

Miscellaneous; Applicable Law

These Terms of Use and the resolution of any dispute related to these Terms of Use or this web site shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of New York, without giving effect to any principles of conflicts of law. Any legal action or proceeding between HSS, its faculty or other members of its medical staff, on one hand, and you, on the other, that are related to these Terms of Use shall be brought exclusively in a federal or state court of competent jurisdiction sitting in New York, New York and/or the Southern District of New York. The failure of HSS to insist upon strict enforcement of any provision of these Terms of Use shall not be construed as a waiver of any provision or right.

Right to Change Terms of Use

HSS may, at any time and from time to time, change these Terms of Use. Any changes to these Terms of Use will be effective immediately upon posting of the changed Terms of Use on the HSS Web Site. You agree to review these Terms of Use periodically, and your use of this web site following any such change constitutes your agreement to follow and be bound by the revised Terms of Use.