Accessible Information on Transgender Topics
TransCare Guide
Publication and Content Use Policy for TransCare Guide
TransCare Guide is intended to serve as a reliable, accessible, evidence-based information repository on trans health. The purpose of the website is to organize, summarize, and make medical and research knowledge accessible in a clear, balanced, and responsible manner, while maintaining scientific fairness, respect for the trans community, and transparency toward readers.
1. Eligibility to Submit Content
Any person over the age of 18 may submit content for publication on the website, regardless of religion, origin, gender, sexual orientation, nationality, disability, or worldview, provided that the content complies with the terms of this policy.
In exceptional cases, publication of content by writers under the age of 18 may be considered, subject to guardian approval and the discretion of the website team.
2. Types of Content That May Be Submitted
The following may be submitted to the website:
Research summaries;
literature reviews;
systematic reviews;
meta-analyses;
original research;
educational or medical articles;
critical analyses of scientific literature;
evidence-based explanatory articles;
community content with clear informational value;
personal testimonies with informational, educational, or community value.
3. Prohibition of Harmful or Inciting Content
Content that is harmful, degrading, inciting, discriminatory, or demeaning toward any person or group may not be uploaded to the website.
This prohibition applies even when the content is claimed to be “supported by studies” or “data-based.” The use of research data does not justify degrading language, dehumanization, harmful generalizations, or hostile ideological framing.
4. Respectful Language and Gender Identity
Content on the website must be written in respectful language toward transgender and gender-diverse people.
Misgendering, deadnaming, degrading wording, presenting gender identity as a joke, threat, or pathology, or using language intended to diminish, demean, or undermine the humanity of people must be avoided.
When medical discussion of biological sex, anatomy, physical characteristics, or medical procedures is required, it must be done in a factual, accurate, and respectful manner.
5. Neutrality, Balance, and Scientific Fairness
The purpose of the website is to present medical and scientific information in a manner that is as balanced, clear, and reliable as possible.
Content whose primary purpose is political, ideological, religious, or anti-religious propaganda, rather than the presentation of relevant medical or research information, may not be uploaded. However, articles dealing with health policy, medical ethics, or patient rights may be published, provided they are based on reliable sources and presented in a factual, balanced, and respectful manner.
TransCare Guide is committed to presenting medical information carefully, transparently, and fairly. Research conclusions must not be exaggerated, correlational findings must not be presented as certain causation, significant study limitations must not be omitted, and data must not be used selectively to promote a predetermined conclusion.
6. Source and Reliability Requirements
Any research-based or medical content must include clear references to the sources on which it is based.
A clear distinction must be made between:
research findings;
the author’s interpretation;
clinical experience;
personal testimonies;
hypotheses or open questions.
Unsupported claims must not be presented as certain facts.
In any medical content, the level of evidence on which it is based should be indicated whenever possible, and a distinction should be made between controlled studies, observational studies, reviews, clinical guidelines, expert opinions, and personal testimonies.
7. Tagging and Classification of Content
All content published on the website will be classified, whenever possible, according to its type: research summary, literature review, systematic review, meta-analysis, original research, explanatory article, personal testimony, critical analysis, or community content.
The purpose of this classification is to allow readers to understand the nature of the content, the weight of the evidence on which it is based, and the level of caution required when reading it.
8. Medical Information Is Not Personal Advice
The information on the website is intended for knowledge, education, and accessibility purposes only.
Content published on the website should not be regarded as a medical diagnosis, a personal treatment recommendation, an instruction to change medication, or a substitute for consultation with a physician, endocrinologist, surgeon, psychiatrist, psychologist, speech-language pathologist, or any other qualified professional.
9. Prohibition of Self-Directed Medical Instructions
Instructions for self-administered medical treatment, changing medication dosages, starting or stopping hormone therapy, using prescription medication without medical supervision, or instructions that may cause medical harm may not be published on the website.
Medical treatments may be discussed only in a research-based, explanatory, or critical manner, while emphasizing that treatment decisions must be made with a qualified medical professional.
10. Content Dealing With Mental Crisis, Suicidality, or Self-Harm
Content dealing with suicidality, self-harm, or severe psychological distress will be published only in careful, non-graphic, and non-detailed language, while avoiding the presentation of methods, instructions, or descriptions that could encourage self-harm.
When necessary, the content will include referrals to support services, crisis lines, or a recommendation to seek professional help.
11. Explanatory Articles and Research Summaries
Explanatory articles and research summaries must undergo editorial review and source checking by an additional person before publication.
The review will verify that the sources were reasonably understood, that the conclusions do not exceed the evidence, and that the content is written clearly, in a balanced manner, and without misleading the reader.
12. Literature Reviews
Literature reviews will be published on the website only after being reviewed by at least two different reviewers with relevant educational, professional, research, or clinical background in the field discussed.
The reviewers will examine the level of accuracy, balance, source quality, whether the limitations of the evidence are addressed, and whether the conclusions indeed follow from the literature presented.
13. Academic Studies, Systematic Reviews, and Meta-Analyses
Systematic reviews, meta-analyses, and original studies will be published after review by at least two reviewers, and when possible three, with at least one reviewer having clearly relevant academic, clinical, or research training.
In the case of a systematic review or meta-analysis, the search method, databases, search terms, inclusion and exclusion criteria, method of assessing study quality, and review limitations should be indicated whenever possible.
Publication of a study or review on the website is not necessarily equivalent to publication in a scientific journal, unless explicitly stated otherwise.
14. Personal Testimonies
Personal testimonies may be published as standalone content or as part of an article when they have clear informational, educational, or community value.
A personal testimony will be presented as such only, and not as general research evidence. A personal experience, whether positive or negative, must not be presented as proof that a certain outcome is expected for the entire community or for all patients.
The website team may require editing, removal of identifying details, the addition of contextual notes, or the presentation of supplementary research information alongside a personal testimony.
15. Publication of Information on Risks, Complications, and Regret
The website allows the publication of information about risks, complications, regret, treatment limitations, and negative outcomes, provided that the information is presented in a factual, evidence-based, balanced, and non-degrading manner.
Legitimate medical criticism will be accepted when it is based on reliable sources and presented professionally. Degrading, fear-based, or dehumanizing framing, or selective use of data for ideological deterrence, will not be accepted.
16. Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest
Every author, editor, and reviewer is required to declare possible conflicts of interest, including financial, professional, organizational, public, research, or personal connections that may influence the content.
If a conflict of interest exists, it will be transparently noted alongside the publication or may lead to rejection of the content, at the discretion of the website team.
17. Use of Artificial Intelligence Tools
Authors who used artificial intelligence tools for drafting, summarizing, translating, processing content, or locating sources are required to independently verify the accuracy of the information and sources.
Content based on unverified sources, nonexistent citations, or summaries that were not checked against the original source may not be submitted.
The website team may request disclosure of the use of artificial intelligence tools and require enhanced source verification before publication.
18. Privacy, Personal Information, and Medical Documents
Identifying details, personal medical information, photographs, medical documents, or testimonies about another person may not be published without explicit consent.
Content that reveals sensitive personal information about a third party may not be uploaded, even if the information was published elsewhere.
The website team may remove or edit any content that violates a person’s privacy, reveals sensitive personal information, or may cause personal, medical, or social harm.
19. Copyright and Author Responsibility
The author is responsible for ensuring that the submitted content is original or that it is used lawfully.
Texts, images, graphs, tables, documents, or other materials protected by copyright may not be uploaded to the website without appropriate permission, an appropriate license, or limited fair use accompanied by clear attribution to the source.
The website team may remove any content suspected of violating copyright or third-party usage rights.
20. Use Rights for Website Content
Content published on the website is intended to make information accessible to the public, and the website encourages responsible use of it for personal, educational, community, explanatory, or therapeutic purposes.
Website content may be used for non-commercial purposes, subject to the following conditions:
the content must not be altered in a way that misleads, takes statements out of context, or misrepresents the website’s conclusions;
the content must not be presented as personal medical advice or as a substitute for medical consultation;
the content must not be used for incitement, degradation, fearmongering, ideological propaganda, or harm toward the trans community or any other group.
Incorporating the content into a paid product requires prior approval from the website team, unless otherwise stated on the publication page.
The website may set different licensing terms for different content, depending on the type of content, its source, applicable copyright, and the consent of the authors.
21. Editorial Discretion
The website team will consider publishing any relevant content that complies with this policy, but reserves the right to reject, edit, request revisions, or remove any content that does not meet the website’s professional, editorial, or ethical standards.
The website team is not obligated to publish every submission, even if the content meets some of the criteria listed in this policy.
22. Appeal and Resubmission
An author whose content was rejected may request a general explanation for the rejection and submit a revised version.
The website team will consider the revised version according to the terms of this policy, but is not obligated to publish it.
23. Corrections, Updates, and Removal of Content
The website may update, correct, or remove content if inaccuracies, new sources, changes in medical guidelines, ethical or professional issues, or concerns that the content may mislead readers are discovered.
All medical content on the website will include, whenever possible, a publication date and a date of last update. When new evidence is published or professional guidelines change, the website will strive to update the content accordingly.
24. Guiding Principle
TransCare Guide strives to create a reliable, critical, and accessible knowledge space — one that respects the trans community, the complexity of scientific evidence, and people’s right to make informed medical decisions about their bodies and health.
The purpose of the website is not to promise outcomes, not to frighten people away from treatment, and not to promote a predetermined position — but to make accurate, balanced, and useful knowledge as accessible as possible.
Better information can lead to better care.