Introduction
Who Is IFM?
The Institute for Functional Medicine (“IFM”) is a global leader in the field of functional medicine, offering both premier functional medicine education and functional medicine certification programs, and IFM has Accreditation with Commendation awarded by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (“ACCME”). IFM is a Washington state 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation, headquartered at 505 South 336th Street, Suite 600, Federal Way, Washington 98003 USA.
IFM’s Website
IFM’s website(s) and/or IFM’s mobile application(s) (collectively the “Website”) offers free resources and information in furtherance of the widespread adoption of functional medicine, including, without limitation, articles, videos, and the Find a Practitioner tool (collectively “IFM Materials”).
Why Are These Terms of Use Important?
By accessing the Website, You are agreeing to abide by and be subject to these Terms of Use, including any supplemental terms. If You are not in agreement with these Terms of Use, please do not access the Website. IFM’s Terms of Use, including any terms and conditions incorporated by reference hereto, the Privacy Policy, and any supplemental terms shall constitute the entire agreement between You and IFM with respect to Your use of the Website (the “Agreement”). In the event of conflict, precedent will be as follows: 1) the Privacy Policy, 2) supplemental terms, and 3) these Terms of Use. For clarity, if You purchase any IFM services or products, the Terms of Service and any applicable supplemental terms will govern said purchases. You will be referred to as “You” or “Your” or “Yourself” herein. IFM and You are collectively referred to herein as the “Parties” and individually each as a “Party.”
What Is Covered in These Terms of Use?
These Terms of Use outline what is expected from You when navigating and interacting with the Website, the IFM Materials found therein, and others who use the Website.
PLEASE READ THIS AGREEMENT, INCLUDING ANY SPECIFIC AND/OR SUPPLEMENTAL TERMS, CAREFULLY BEFORE USING THE WEBSITE. BY USING THE WEBSITE, YOU AGREE TO BE BOUND BY THIS AGREEMENT.
Agreement
REPRESENTATION
By accessing the Website, You represent and warrant to comply with the Code of Conduct, as amended from time to time.
SUPPLEMENTAL TERMS
This Agreement governs the use of the Website in general. More specific and/or supplemental terms and conditions may apply to some activities, including but not limited to, creation or use of an IFM account. Any supplemental terms and conditions are in addition to these Terms of Use, and, in the event of a conflict, the supplemental terms will prevail over this Agreement. If You do not agree to the applicable supplemental terms and conditions disclosed, You should not engage in the impacted activities.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
IFM’s Intellectual Property:
All content featured or displayed on or accessed through the Website, including, without limitation, text, graphics, photographs, images, moving images, sound, articles, educational content documents, tools, and illustrations are owned by IFM, its licensors, vendors, agents, and/or content providers (collectively “Website Content”). All elements of the Website Content constitute IFM’s or IFM’s licensors’ intellectual property, and IFM reserves all rights thereto. As between the Parties, IFM owns all right, title, and interest in the Website Content, including but not limited to any patents, copyrights, trademarks, or any other proprietary rights in or associated therewith. Except as may be otherwise explicitly provided for in this Agreement, You agree to not use IFM’s intellectual property without prior written consent by IFM. Consents can be requested at [email protected] and may be granted or rejected at IFM’s sole discretion.
Subject to the Restrictions set forth herein, IFM encourages You to share Website Content that is publicly available via links to the Website with others, and said use will not require additional consents from IFM.
If Your use of the Website includes access to tangible information or content not available to the public (i.e., accessible only via an IFM account or log in) but not requiring a purchase (collectively “IFM Materials”), subject to the Restrictions set forth herein, IFM hereby grants You a non-exclusive, limited, revocable, non-sublicensable and non-transferable license to use the IFM Materials as follows (“License”):
- Free Resource License: You may use the IFM Materials in accordance with this Agreement for Your personal use only. Without prior written consent from IFM, You may not share the IFM Materials with anyone, including patients, or allow public access thereto, including, without limitation, using the IFM Materials for patient care, publications, lectures, webinars, conferences, and/or Your Website. If You wish to use IFM Materials with Your patients, You can become an IFM Member by visiting https://www.ifm.org/join-us/membership.
Restrictions:
You may not modify, perform, display, reproduce, distribute or otherwise use the IFM Materials unless You have obtained IFM’s express consent to do so. Additionally, You may not use IFM Materials for any commercial purposes without IFM’s prior written consent. Commercial purposes refers to any activity that is intended to provide a benefit to a business or individual, including, without limitation, providing IFM Materials to provide a value to customers or bring in new customers or profiting directly or indirectly from the IFM Materials. Consents can be requested at [email protected] and will be granted or rejected at IFM’s sole discretion.
The term of Your License will be the term communicated upon access. If no term is communicated upon access, then the term of Your license will be co-terminus with the term of this Agreement. IFM can revoke Your License at any time in its sole discretion and with no liability to IFM. If Your account is closed or terminated, this License will also automatically end. If Your License comes to an end, You must immediately cease use of and destroy all copies of the IFM Materials in Your possession.
Exclusions:
For clarity, access to IFM Materials requiring a purchase will be governed by the Terms of Service and the relevant supplemental terms and conditions.
The above licenses do not apply if Your access to IFM Materials was obtained through an organizational membership (i.e., the organization that You are a part of purchased access on Your behalf). If access was obtained through an organizational membership, the terms of that organizational membership will apply to You, and You should look to Your organization for guidance on applicable licensing.
Additionally, the above licenses do not apply if Your access to IFM Materials is related to the Certification Program, which will be separately governed by the Certification Terms and Conditions, as amended from time to time.
If You provide services to IFM, please govern Yourself by the applicable agreement between You and IFM.
Your Intellectual Property:
You own any content You submit, post, or display through the Website (“User Content”). User Content icludes, without limitation, images, feedback, and commentary. If You share User Content with IFM through the Website, by sharing Your content on the Website, You grant IFM a non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide, fully paid, and sub-licensable license to use Your User Content as necessary to provide and improve the Website and as otherwise necessary for IFM’s business operations. You understand and agree that You are solely responsible for protecting Your User Content and that You should not share any information with IFM that You wish to remain private and confidential. IFM assumes no responsibility for the deletion of or failure to store User Content. IFM reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to remove any User Content from the Website if IFM reasonably believes content is infringing, creates a security risk, or is otherwise harmful.
If Your User Content includes Your name, picture, testimonial, or other elements of Your likeness (collectively “Likeness Content”), You hereby consent to IFM’s use of Your Likeness Content for marketing, promoting, advertising, publicity, and other related commercial purposes. To the extent Your Likeness Content constitutes information protected under Privacy Law, IFM will handle Your information in accordance with the Privacy Policy.
TO THE EXTENT LEGALLY PERMISSIBLE, YOU HEREBY WAIVE ANY RIGHTS OF ANY KIND AND UNDER ANY LEGAL THEORY TO CLAIM DAMAGES AGAINST IFM IN RELATION TO OR CONNECTION WITH YOUR USER CONTENT.
FIND A PRACTITIONER TOOL
As a public service, IFM provides You with access to Find a Practitioner. Find a Practitioner is an IFM-owned database that provides a list of functional medicine practitioners who have participated in IFM’s educational programs. You may use Find a Practitioner at Your sole risk and discretion to find healthcare professionals who are trained in the concepts and approaches of functional medicine. For clarity, IFM does not endorse or recommend any practitioners and providers. This Free Resource is for informational purposes only.
If You are utilizing Find a Practitioner, the following applies to You:
- You acknowledge and agree that selecting a practitioner from Find a Practitioner does not substitute for a thorough investigation of Your chosen clinician’s professional degree and training, licensing, Board certifications, clinical experience, scope of practice, participation (or not) in the reimbursement system, malpractice coverage, and other similar criteria.
- You acknowledge and understand that practitioners are solely responsible for their profiles, and IFM is not responsible for any inaccurate, out-of-date, or missing information within individual practitioner profiles.
- You acknowledge and understand that IFM does not investigate the education or credentials of practitioners and does not rate or rank practitioners.
- IFM is unable to advise You about any particular practitioner’s expertise or scope of practice.
- Find a Practitioner may be used for Your personal use only and may not be used for any commercial purposes whatsoever.
- You will hold IFM harmless from any damages of any kind resulting from or related to Your use of the Find a Practitioner database.
NO WARRANTY AND DISCLAIMERS
The decision to place any information on the Website does not represent a judgment on IFM’s part about the validity of specific information. IFM encourages You to evaluate and judge for Yourself. IFM reserves the right to place or pull information or resources based on Your feedback and IFM’s needs at any time. Nothing offered on the Website is intended to substitute for an individualized, thoughtful decision process by You or Your healthcare provider.
ALL INFORMATION ON THE WEBSITE AND ON ANY FREE RESOURCES YOU ACCESS THROUGH THE WEBSITE IS PROVIDED FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY AND DOES NOT SUBSTITUTE PROFESSIONAL MEDICAL ADVICE, DIAGNOSIS, OR TREATMENT. ALWAYS SEEK the ADVICE OF A QUALIFIED HEALTHCARE PROVIDER WITH ANY MEDICAL QUESTIONS. NEVER DELAY SEEKING MEDICAL ADVICE OR MAKE HEALTH DECISIONS BASED SOLELY ON THE INFORMATION OR FREE RESOURCES ACCESSED THROUGH THE WEBSITE.
IFM PROVIDES INFORMATION AND FREE RESOURCES “AS IS” AND MAKES NO WARRANTIES AND HEREBY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES AND CONDITIONS, WHETHER EXPRESS, IMPLIED, OR STATUTORY, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES, DUTIES, OR CONDITIONS OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, ACCURACY, RESULTS, OR LACK OF VIRUSES, TROJAN HORSES, DISABLING DEVICES, OR WORMS WITH RESPECT TO THE INFORMATION AND FREE RESOURCES.
ADDITIONALLY, IFM HEREBY DISCLAIMS ANY SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, INDIRECT, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES WHATSOEVER ARISING OUT OF OR IN ANY WAY RELATED TO THE WEBSITE, OR THIS AGREEMENT, EVEN IN THE EVENT OF NEGLIGENCE, STRICT LIABILITY, BREACH OF CONTRACT, OR BREACH OF WARRANTY OF IFM, AND EVEN IF IFM HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, IFM’S AGGREGATE LIABILITY RELATED TO OR IN CONNECTION WITH THIS AGREEMENT SHALL BE $50.00 USD. NO CLAIMS, REGARDLESS OF FORM, ARISING OUT OF, OR IN ANY WAY CONNECTED TO THE WEBSITE OR THIS AGREEMENT, MAY BE BROUGHT BY YOU MORE THAN ONE (1) YEAR AFTER THE CAUSE OF ACTION ACCRUED.
YOU ARE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR USE OF THE IFM WEBSITE AND INFORMATION AND FREE RESOURCES FOUND THEREIN, AND YOU USE THE SAME AT YOUR SOLE RISK.
IFM IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY LACK OF FUNCTIONALITY OR ACCESS TO ANY PART OF THE WEBSITE OR ANY LOSS OF CONTENT OR DATA.
COMPLIANCE WITH LAWS
You agree to comply with all applicable domestic and international laws, statutes, ordinances, and regulations regarding Your use of the Website. Sending unsolicited email, solicitations, or advertisements to any user of the Website is expressly prohibited.
If You believe content residing on the Website infringes a copyright, please review the DMCA Policy and take necessary steps set forth therein to report Your concern to IFM.
TERM AND TERMINATION
This Agreement will be effective on the day of first access or use of the Website (“Effective Date”) and will continue in effect for as long as You continue to use or access the Website, unless terminated by IFM as permitted by this Agreement.
You may terminate this Agreement at any time, for any reason or for no reason, by ceasing use of the Website, including any accounts You may have created in the Website.
IFM may terminate this Agreement at any time and for any reason. If informed of IFM’s decision to terminate Your access to the Website, You agree that You shall not visit the Website or seek to re-register with or access the Website through use of a different name and/or account.
If this Agreement is terminated, You must immediately cease use of any IFM Materials accessed through the Website and either return or destroy the same.
INDEMNIFICATION
You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold IFM, along with IFM’s affiliates, officers, directors, employees, subsidiaries, parent, agents, and assigns, harmless from and against any and all third-party claims, losses, liabilities, damages, expenses, and costs, including reasonable attorneys’ fees and court costs, arising directly or indirectly out of or relating to: (i) Your negligence or willful misconduct; (ii) a material breach of any of the terms of this Agreement; (iii) a violation of applicable law; (iv) Your use of the Website (including any IFM Materials found therein); or (v) Your infringement of any third party’s intellectual property rights.
PRIVACY
Your privacy is important to IFM, and we encourage You to review the Privacy Policy. The Privacy Policy describes any Personal Data that IFM may collect from You during Your use of the Website and how IFM may use said Personal Data. Personal Data as used in this Agreement refers to any information that on its own or in combination with other information can identify You and incorporates by reference any other definitions for personal data applicable under privacy law. Where use of Your Personal Data requires consent and to the extent permitted by law, by agreeing to the terms of this Agreement, You consent to IFM’s collection, use, and disclosure of Your Personal Data. In some cases, IFM may provide a separate request for Your consent. Your Personal Data will be handled in accordance with the Privacy Policy.
You acknowledge and agree that IFM may share Your Personal Data with IFM’s partners and vendors as needed to operate the Website. If You do not wish to have Your Personal Data shared in this fashion, You must inform IFM accordingly at [email protected] immediately upon the Effective Date.
Any other rights available to You under applicable privacy laws will be afforded to You.
ACCOUNT SECURITY
You understand that You may need to create an account to have access to parts of the Website. If You create an account, You agree to provide true, accurate, current, and complete information about Yourself, as prompted by the IFM Website registration form. By creating an account on the Website, You represent that You are an adult, as that term may be defined in the jurisdiction where You reside. You are entirely responsible for the security and confidentiality of Your account (including, without limitation, Your username and password) and any activities that occur in Your account. You agree to immediately notify IFM of any unauthorized use of Your account or any other breach of security of which You become aware.
You agree that You will not use any robot, spider, scraper, or other automated means to access the Website for any purpose. Additionally, You agree that You will not: (i) take any action that imposes or may impose any unreasonable or disproportionately large load on the IFM infrastructure; (ii) interfere or attempt to interfere with the proper working of the Website or any activities conducted on the Website; or (iii) bypass any measures we may use to prevent or restrict access to the Website.
CONSENT
By sharing Your email address with IFM through the Website, You consent to receive notices from IFM electronically at the email address provided. When You use certain parts of the Website, You may be given the opportunity to consent to receive communications from IFM through email, text, and/or mobile push notifications. Standard text rates will apply. You agree that such communications may be generated by automatic telephone dialing systems. You can opt out of communications by following the “Unsubscribe” directions for emails or, if via text message, by responding STOP. YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU ARE NOT REQUIRED TO CONSENT TO RECEIVE PROMOTIONAL TEXTS AS A CONDITION OF USING IFM’S WEBSITE.
THIRD-PARTY LINKS
The Website may contain links to websites that are not owned, operated, or controlled by IFM. All such links are provided solely for Your convenience. If You use these links, You will leave the Website. IFM is not responsible for any content, materials, or other information located on or accessible from any other website, including third-party links on the Website.
NO ENDORSEMENT
To the extent the Website includes references to other organizations, such references shall not constitute an endorsement of said organizations. Please refer to IFM’s Endorsement Policy for more information.
- MISCELLANEOUS
- This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement between You and IFM pertaining to Your use of the Website, including, without limitation, use of information, accounts, and Free Resources, and supersedes all prior understandings, oral or written, with regard to the subject matter herein.
- IFM may modify this Agreement and any supplemental terms and conditions from time to time for a number of reasons, including, without limitation, to reflect changes to Website Content and/or the IFM Materials and to comply with applicable laws. You are responsible for periodically reviewing this Agreement for any changes. By continuing to use the Website, You will be deemed to have agreed to and accepted any changes. If You do not agree to the changes, You must discontinue Your use of the Website. Please visit the Website for the most current version of these Terms of Use.
- This Agreement, the rights and obligations of the Parties hereto, and any claims or disputes relating thereto shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Washington, without giving effect to its conflict of laws provisions. Exclusive venue for any action hereunder will lie in the state and federal courts located in King County, Washington. Both Parties hereby submit to the exclusive jurisdiction and venue of any such court and hereby waive the defense of inconvenient forum.
- In the event of an unresolved dispute between You and IFM related to or in connection with this Agreement, You hereby agree that said unresolved dispute shall be subject to binding arbitration under the Rules of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce. By accepting this Agreement, You give up Your right to resolve any dispute arising from this Agreement by a judge and/or a jury, and You also agree not to participate as a class representative or class member in any class action litigation, any class arbitration, or any consolidation of individual arbitrations. The Parties shall seek to appoint a mutually agreeable arbitrator. All arbitration proceedings shall be confidential.
- Failure by IFM to enforce any part of this Agreement does not waive that part of the Agreement.
- If any provision of this Agreement is held invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions shall be enforced to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law.
- IFM may assign its rights and obligations under this Agreement to any party at any time without notice to You.
- Any provisions that should by their nature survive the termination or expiration of this Agreement shall survive, including, without limitation, Intellectual Property, Indemnification, Representations, No Warranties and Disclaimer, Privacy and this Miscellaneous section.
Additional Assistance
Should You have any questions regarding this Agreement, please contact us via email at [email protected] or by phone at 800.228.0622.
Last Revised: November 15, 2024