Health Writer Hub

Medical Writing Courses & Certification

Learn effective editing techniques and edit your writing with confidence

12 lectures • 24 handouts • 12 quizzes • Certificate • Access on any device • Teacher: Michelle Guillemard

medical editing course

Our Principles of Health & Medical Editing course will teach you how to:

  • Develop an effective, fool-proof editing process
  • Identify and fix common medical writing errors
  • Apply the different styles of editing
  • Implement specific editing techniques for research and evidence
  • Enhance your writing skills significantly

COURSE OUTLINE

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Trusted
More than 2000 students in 42 countries have taken our courses.

Flexible
Learn at your own pace, from anywhere in the world, with unlimited access.

Accredited
We’re independently accredited for quality, academic standards and professional development.

Comprehensive
12 lessons will walk you through the entire process of editing medical content.

What you’ll learn

Principles of Health & Medical Editing is an essential guide to editing health and medical content.

  • Professionally edit your work
  • Fix common writing errors
  • Cite research and references correctly
  • Develop a simple, clear editing process
  • Self-edit your work quickly and efficiently
  • Learn fundamental grammar and punctuation rules
  • Confidently improve the style and presentation of your work
  • Proofread like a pro

Who is this course for?

Our students are new and experienced writers, editors and professionals who:

  • Want to learn essential medical editing rules and strategies
  • Need to review content written by other people
  • Lack specific editing skills
  • Want to offer editing as a freelance service
  • Aspire to write better health and medical content.

How does this course work?

Here’s what you can expect.

medical editing course

12 engaging lessons

  • Start learning as soon as you join
  • Work through the lessons at your own pace
  • Email your teacher whenever you have questions.

Editing assessment

  • Complete the optional editing assessment
  • Get personalised feedback on your editing skills
  • Feel supported in your editing journey.
medical editing course

What’s included?

Industry-leading resources full of essential editing and proofreading techniques.

  • 12 comprehensive lessons (audio lectures and text modules) meeting the core learning objectives
  • 24+ handouts, checklists and recommended reading links enhancing every lesson’s learning objectives
  • One assessed editing task to put your new editing know-how to the test
  • 12 quizzes and assessments to help you reflect and put the learnings into practice
  • 14+ free health writing webinars to enhance your learning objectives
  • Personalised feedback and all your questions answered
  • Certificate upon completion (75% pass rate required)
  • CPD accreditation for your annual CPD requirements
  • Lively student-only Facebook group of 1000+ writers
  • Ongoing access so you can dive back in whenever you need a refresher
  • Loyalty discounts giving you 30% off every other course
  • World-class eLearning platform for a seamless learning experience.

What are the benefits and opportunities after I complete the course?

After you complete Principles of Health & Medical Editing, you will have:

medical editing course
  • Editing skills to help you improve your first drafts right away
  • Confidence to edit your own work effectively and efficiently
  • Knowledge to ensure your work is best-practice and industry-standard.

Course curriculum

12 lessons full of best-practice advice you can start using today.

Part 1: You have the first draft. Now what?

  • Editing is a mindset – understanding the editing process.
    Discover the fine art of improving your own work.
  • The differences between editing and proofreading.
    Learn why understanding these differences matters.
  • How to critique your first draft.
    Determine the big-picture changes needed to ensure your content achieves its goals.

Part 2: Addressing common writing dilemmas

  • The importance of structure.
    Determine the most appropriate structure for your first draft.
  • Readability and relevance.
    Learn how to edit your draft into easy-to-understand content for your target audience.
  • Correct editing techniques for research and evidence.
    Make sure the work includes accurate health claims and quality, credible references.
  • Effective consumer health referencing techniques.
    Discover how to correctly reference your consumer health content.

Part 3: Health & medical editing specifics

  • Health & medical writing best practices.
    Get super-useful checklists covering the essential best practices of high-quality health & medical writing, including health literacy, engagement, persuasion and behaviour change.
  • How to conduct a compliance edit.
    Determine whether your first draft is compliant with local guidelines, rules, regulations and legislation.
  • Grammar and punctuation rules, and editing tools.
    Learn how to address common issues relating to grammar and punctuation, and discover which editing tools are most useful for your needs.

Part 4: Future strategies

  • Essential editing efficiency strategies.
    Learn how to edit your own work efficiently and thoroughly – even when you have limited time.
  • How to write a better first draft next time, and a recap.
    Consolidate all the techniques in this course and develop strategies to write a better first draft next time.

Part 5: Editing task

  • Editing assignment with personalised feedback.
    Complete the included editing assignment and get personalised feedback on your editing skills.

Alumni Bonuses!

Free templates, checklists, planners and 10+ hours of online learning (value $500).


  • 14 webinars – webinar topics include quoting for jobs, finding clients, CV writing, finding employed work, website essentials, subcontracting, marketing and more!
  • Freelance Career Planner (new in 2022!) - map out your freelance career transition confidently with our detailed planner
  • Foundations of Readability & Plain English Checklist (new in 2022!) - ensure your writing captures the essential readability techniques all health writers need to know
  • Writing templates - simplify the writing process with our handy templates
  • COVID-19 communication resources - stay updated with the latest health communication best practices

Join a supportive group of like-minded health writers

When you join Principles of Health & Medical Editing, you become a member of the Health Writer Hub Alumni – a smart, diverse and friendly community of 1000+ health writers from around the world. Alumni benefits include:

  • Loyalty discounts – 30% off any other Health Writer Hub course
  • Writing challenges – goals to keep you motivated and accountable
  • Global networking – connect with health writers from around the world
  • A supportive group of health writers – ask questions and share advice
  • Immediate access – join the group as soon as you sign up.

Certified and accredited

Accredited for quality and standards.

medical editing course certificate

Principles of Health & Medical Editing is an approved Continuing Professional Development (CPD) course, independently accredited with the CPD Certification Service – one of the world’s leading independent CPD accreditation institutions.

As an accredited medical writing course, Principles of Health & Medical Editing meets the required standard of CPD at a global level. The course’s learning value and structure conform to global CPD guidelines and principles, complementing the CPD policies of professional institutes and academic bodies.

Student feedback

Read 100+ student reviews of other Health Writer Hub courses.

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Your teacher

Who I am, and why I want to help you succeed.

michelle guillemard

Hi – I’m Michelle Guillemard, founder of Health Writer Hub (you can read more about me here).

Working alone, I never have the luxury of a second pair of eyes; I am the writer, editor and proofreader. Developing effective editing and proofreading processes took years. But I now have a toolkit of health and medical editing techniques that boost my writing confidence, improve the quality of my work and impress my clients. And in Principles of Health & Medical Editing, I’m sharing everything I know about editing with you.

Editing your own work is NOT easy – but, with the right techniques, a good edit will transform your first draft into an engaging, effective piece. I created this course to give aspiring health writers actionable tips and essential editing skills.

If you’re ready to learn effective techniques for editing your own work and improving your health & medical writing skills, Principles of Health & Medical Editing is the course for you!

My teaching method

I teach this course, and all my courses, through a combination of audio lectures (podcast style) and text resources. I also offer a range of video content, including bonus webinars and regular student interviews.

After experimenting with different combinations over the years and listening to student feedback, I am confident that delivering lectures in both audio AND text format is the most effective way for you to learn about health writing.

Consume the content however you like:

  • Listen and read the transcripts at the same time
  • Listen and take your own notes
  • Listen away from your computer
  • Read the transcripts only.

Many students have told me they enjoy listening to the lectures while driving, walking, hiking, running or cleaning the house! You're free to do whatever works best for you.

Frequently asked questions

What you need to know.

Can I email you during the course if I have a question?
Yes – in fact, I want you to contact me! My full support is included in this course. I will answer any questions you have along the way, and I will talk to you about your next steps once you have finished the course.
Can I take this course if I'm American/ English/ Australian/ European?
I often get students contacting me and asking this question. I have designed ALL my courses to be relevant for any English-speaking writer, anywhere. I don’t believe that your location should limit your health writing career prospects and everything that is taught in this course is applicable at a global level. I’ve had students from Australia, America, New Zealand, Asia, Europe and the UK take this and other courses.
How much does the course cost?
Principles of Health & Medical Editing costs USD $199. You can convert the fee to your local currency via the xe.com currency conversion website.
Do you offer a guarantee?
It’s critical to me that everyone who signs up for Principles of Health & Medical Editing gets the most out of their course. I want you to be satisfied that the course content is exactly as described on this page, and I very much care about providing a high-quality, valuable course for all students. Once your course has commenced, there are no refunds if you are suddenly unable to complete the course. If you are not happy with the course content after you have reviewed the first lesson, I encourage you to let me know so we can discuss your concerns together. If we can’t agree, you may be eligible for a refund less $50 administration fee.
How do I sign up and access the course?
To sign up for the course, click on the button on this page. You will then be asked to complete your payment via Stripe. This course is priced in USD and will convert to your local currency on payment. You will receive a confirmation receipt and order number after you complete your payment. As soon as you register, you can log in and access your course.
How long will I have access?
You have ongoing access to the course and all updates. Your access will last as long as Health Writer Hub is around (10 years and counting!).
How much time do I need to set aside?
I recommend you allow around one hour per lesson to read the content, review the recommended reading, complete the quiz and consider any action points. However, everyone is different, and these timings are only a guide.
How is this course different from other similar courses?
Principles of Health & Medical Editing is a one-of-a-kind health & medical editing course! Most other similar editing courses focus on writing in general or other forms of medical writing. This course is 100% geared to editing consumer health & medical content.
Do you offer loyalty discounts?
I do indeed! All students who take one of my courses will receive a voucher for 30% off any of my other courses. You can get in touch with me if you have any questions about this.
How often is the material updated?
I review and update the course content throughout the year. I survey students after they have completed the course, and their suggestions are incorporated. Additionally, I am constantly keeping up to date with new industry trends and looking for the latest advice to include – helping to ensure the content is always as relevant and current as possible.
Can you help me set up a freelance writing business?
This is a health & medical editing course. designed to teach you about health and medical editing. While I discuss aspects of running a freelance business, it’s not just a freelance health writing course. If you’re interested in a comprehensive course on how to set up a freelance writing business, take a look at my freelance medical writing course.
I have a question – how can I contact you?
I welcome questions, and am happy to hear from you. You can reach me via the contact form here.