Our Policies

Method2Model

Privacy and Policy

This page explains how Method2Model.com works: what is free, what is paid, how we handle your data and code, and what you can expect from us during a project.

These are practical working policies for our decision-support modeling services. They are not a replacement for a formal contract, statement of work, or NDA. In case of any conflict between these policies and a specific written project agreement or NDA, the written agreement or NDA will prevail.

1. Services and stages

We provide research and decision-support modeling in clearly separated stages.

Stage 0 – Free feasibility check

You send us a short, non-sensitive description of your current method or protocol and the decision you would like support for (for example 2–10 pages or slides, or a structured summary). We review it and send you a short written answer about:

  • Whether the method and decision look modelable as defined on this site
  • What would need to change or be clarified (if anything)
  • A rough suggestion of possible next steps or a recommendation not to proceed

Stage 0 is completely free and without obligation. It is intended as an initial reality check, not as a binding commitment to work together.

Stages 1–4 – Paid work

All work after Stage 0 is paid and scoped in writing:

  • Stage 1 – Method → architecture (Logic Lock, Assumptions Map / MRR)
  • Stage 2 – Architecture → model and formulas (Formula Pack + I/O Contract, FDR + ISS)
  • Stage 3 – Model → code and tool (runnable package + verification evidence)
  • Stage 4 – Simulation runs and reporting (optional managed runs under NDA/DPA)

Pricing, timelines, and deliverables for each stage are agreed in writing before we start that stage. Descriptions on this page are indicative; the signed proposal, SoW, or contract defines the actual scope.

2. Communication and responsibilities

All project communication normally happens through:

  • The project dashboard (messages and files), and
  • Email notifications connected to that dashboard.

To keep the project moving, the client is expected to:

  • Read and respond to questions and drafts in a reasonable time
  • Provide clarifications, corrections, or approvals when requested
  • Tell us about any major changes to the study method, protocol, constraints, or target decision as early as possible

If we do not receive answers after repeated reminders, we may pause the project until communication resumes. Significant delays in feedback may require updated timelines or re-scoping.

3. Data, privacy, and NDA

We treat all methods, protocols, and datasets you share as confidential project information.

We are happy to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) before you send any non-public material. Where data-processing agreements (DPA) are needed, these will be discussed and agreed separately.

As a default practice:

  • We do not publish or share your raw data, except as required by law or by a written agreement with you.
  • We do not include identifiable patient data in any public material.
  • You are responsible for ensuring that any data you upload are de-identified according to your local regulations, institutional policies, and ethics approvals. We cannot assess compliance with all jurisdiction-specific rules on your behalf.

We may use anonymised, aggregated, or synthetic data for internal testing and for examples, as described in the “Code, models, and case summaries” section below.

Data storage:

  • Project files are stored in secure, access-controlled systems.
  • Access is limited to the project team and to you (and people you authorize on your side).

More technical details about storage and retention may be provided in a separate Policies & Data document or in the specific project agreement, where applicable.

4. Code, models, and case summaries

We believe in transparency about how models work. At the same time, we respect that your method and data are yours.

By default, for each project we may create:

  • A generalized version of the model code (with confidential details removed),
  • A small synthetic or anonymised example, and
  • A short case summary describing the modeling problem in broad terms (without confidential operational details or real patient identifiers).

This generalized code and case summary may be:

  • Published on our GitHub as an example or template, and/or
  • Described as a brief case study on our website or in presentations.

For example, we might publish a generic “two-compartment PK model template” or a “simple tumor–immune dynamics model” without mentioning your drug, protocol, dataset, institution, or any identifiable project details.

We do not publish:

  • Your raw data,
  • Full protocols with identifying operational details, or
  • Any information that would reasonably allow others to reconstruct your confidential method or patient-level data.

If you prefer that no public example is created from your project, you can request this in writing at the start of the project. Once we have confirmed this “no-publication” policy in writing, we will not use that project as a public example.

5. Ownership and use

Your original methods, protocols, and datasets remain your intellectual property.

Models and code developed specifically for your project:

  • Are provided to you under the license terms described in the project agreement.
  • May also be used by us in anonymised and generalized form as templates or building blocks in other projects, unless we explicitly agree otherwise in writing.

You will have access to the version of the code that is built for your project, as defined in the stage deliverables. We do not guarantee compatibility with every system, environment, or future software version unless explicitly stated in the agreement.

If a project is intended to lead to shared publications, co-authorship and contributions will be discussed on a case-by-case basis before submission.

6. Payments and access to files

Stage 0 is free.

For Stages 1–4, we provide:

  • A written scope and price for each stage, and
  • An approximate timeline, assuming reasonable response times from you.

For each stage:

  • We work up to a draft deliverable within the agreed scope.
  • You review and request minor changes or clarifications.

When the stage is approved and the agreed payment is completed, we:

  • Unlock and deliver the final files in your project dashboard (reports, code, notebooks, etc.), and
  • Send you an email confirming that the files are available for download.

Until payment for a stage is completed, draft files may be shared for review, but final downloadable versions and full code repositories may remain locked, watermarked, or accessible only in read-only form. Fees for completed stages are normally non-refundable, unless otherwise agreed in writing.

7. Scope and limitations (important)

Our work is research and decision-support modeling.

We do not provide:

  • Direct medical advice to patients,
  • Regulatory approvals, or
  • Clinical decision-making for individual cases.

All models are approximations of reality:

  • They depend on your assumptions, your data, and modeling choices.
  • They cannot guarantee clinical outcomes, regulatory acceptance, funding success, or commercial results.

You remain responsible for:

  • How you interpret and use model results in your own decisions,
  • Ensuring that any study, trial, or intervention based on these results complies with applicable laws, regulations, institutional policies, and ethical approvals.

We strongly recommend that you treat the outputs as one input among many in your scientific and clinical decision-making. To the extent permitted by applicable law, we are not liable for indirect, incidental, or consequential losses arising from how you choose to use or not use the modeling results.

8. Changes to these policies

We may update these policies from time to time as our services evolve. When we make material changes, we will:

  • Update the date at the top of this page, and
  • Apply the new version only to future projects or to new stages that have not yet started, unless otherwise agreed in writing.

If you have questions about any part of these policies, please contact us before sending sensitive material or starting a new stage.