Institutional Framework

1.1 Name and acronym

The network's official name is HANDS — Hand and Arm Network for Digital Sports.

1.2 Nature of the network

HANDS is an international network of hand and upper-limb surgeons, with the participation of professionals from related fields (physiotherapists, sports physicians, researchers), dedicated to the care, research, and education of Esports athletes' health.

1.3 Mission

To advance the care, research, and education of Esports athletes' health, with a focus on hand and upper-limb injuries, through an international collaborative network of surgeons and allied professionals.

1.4 Vision

To be an international reference in Esports athlete health, contributing to the formation of a field of medical practice adapted to the digital reality through research, education, and clinical care.

1.5 Values

2.1 General Assembly

The General Assembly is the network's highest deliberative body.

Composition: all members in good standing, according to the categories set out in section 3.

Powers

• Approve and amend the network's bylaws
• Elect the Board of Directors
• Approve annual activity and financial reports
• Deliberate on strategic matters submitted by the Board of Directors
• Deliberate on structural changes to the network (creation or dissolution of committees, changes to membership categories)

Frequency: ordinary annual meetings, and extraordinary meetings when convened by the Board of Directors or upon request of at least one third of the voting members.

2.2 Board of Directors

The Board of Directors is the network's permanent executive body.

Composition: President, Vice-President, Secretary-General, Treasurer, and the coordinators of the permanent committees.

Term: two years, with the possibility of one consecutive re-election to the same office.

Powers

• Conduct the day-to-day management of the network
• Represent HANDS institutionally
• Convene the General Assembly
• Approve the admission of new members, upon recommendation of the competent committees
• Approve institutional partnerships and industry partnerships (the latter per section 5.1)
• Conduct the network's financial management — including fundraising, execution, accountability, and custody of resources — as long as the operational volume does not justify a dedicated financial structure
• Present an annual report to the General Assembly

2.3 Permanent committees

Four permanent committees operate in a specialized manner, each responsible for a strategic area of the network.

2.4 Working groups

Working groups are technical bodies, whether temporary or permanent, subordinate to one of the permanent committees. They differ from committees by having a narrower scope, limited autonomy, and a lighter structure. They are created on demand, with a defined timeframe and deliverables.

4.1 Benefits

• Belonging to an international network dedicated to Esports athlete health
• Access to scientific collaboration with peers in other countries
• Participation in multicenter research projects
• Access to the network's educational programs
• Recognition of expertise: an institutional distinction granted to members who demonstrate qualified work in the field (publications, structured clinical care, participation in network projects), solely for use in network materials and contexts. It does not constitute professional certification, a specialty title, or clinical accreditation.
• Participation in institutional events and partnered initiatives
• Access to summaries, reports, and reviews produced by the Technology Observatory

4.2 Obligations

• Adherence to the institutional code of conduct
• Payment of annual dues where applicable (differentiated by member type)
• Active participation in the bodies in which the member is enrolled
• Declaration of conflicts of interest where applicable (especially ties with industry partners)
• Appropriate institutional representation in the contexts where the HANDS identity is used

5.1 Industry Partners Policy

HANDS recognizes the strategic value of relationships with companies in the commercial sector, but maintains a deliberate separation between membership (driven by scientific and institutional affinity) and industry partnership (driven by financial or material contribution). Industry partners are not members of the network and hold no governance role whatsoever.

Principles

• Operational separation: the bodies responsible for scientific decisions (the Scientific Committee, the Technology Observatory) do not negotiate industry partnerships; the bodies that negotiate partnerships (the Board of Directors) do not interfere with the scientific agenda.
• Radical transparency: the list of industry partners is public, kept up to date, and disclosed in institutional materials and related scientific publications.
• Non-exclusivity: HANDS may accept partnerships with competing companies; no partnership confers exclusivity in any field of research or activity.

Eligibility

Commercial companies with a demonstrable interest in the health, ergonomics, or performance of Esports athletes may apply for industry-partner status:

• Manufacturers of peripherals (keyboards, mice, controllers, headsets, monitors)
• Manufacturers of ergonomic furniture
• Video-game publishers and commercial leagues
• Streaming platforms and digital sports technology
• Pharmaceutical and medical-device companies, with additional disclosure rules

Ineligibility

• Sports betting operators and Esports betting houses
• Companies subject to a documented sanction or conviction for predatory practices targeting minors
• Manufacturers of energy drinks and supplements for gamers (reassessment planned after 36 months)
• Companies that contractually demand prior review rights, editorial approval, or influence over the scientific agenda

Final approval of each partnership rests with the Ethics and Compliance Committee, ratified by the Board of Directors. HANDS reserves the right to decline a partnership on documented reputational grounds, even where the company is formally eligible.

Categories

• Annual Industry Partner: a renewable twelve-month contractual relationship, upon a financial contribution defined in an annually revised schedule.
• One-off Supporter: an in-kind or financial contribution toward a specific initiative, without ongoing status.

Rights of the industry partner

• Listing in official materials as an industry partner (never as a member)
• Use of the institutional logo per the network's visual standard
• Invitation to institutional events
• Access to public research summaries (reports, white papers)
• The right to propose topics of interest for research, with no guarantee of adoption

Restrictions on the industry partner

• No voting rights in any governance body
• No seat on permanent committees or scientific working groups
• No access to primary research data
• No right of prior approval or review of publications
• No use of the HANDS identity in commercial products
• No right of institutional representation (“HANDS member”, “endorsed by HANDS”)
• No exclusivity of partnership category

Structural safeguards

• Concentration limit: no industry partner may account for more than 25% of the network's total annual revenue.
• Scientific independence: the Scientific Committee deliberates on the research agenda without the participation of bodies involved in partnership fundraising. Technology Observatory studies may reach critical conclusions about partners' products without that constituting a breach of contract.
• Annual review: each partnership is reassessed annually by the Ethics and Compliance Committee.
• Termination: HANDS may end a partnership without refund in the event of a breach of terms; the partner may end it with sixty days' prior notice.
• Streaming: a partnership with streaming platforms does not extend endorsement to the platform's monetization model.
• Pharmaceutical and medical-device companies: mandatory disclosure of any financial relationship (talks, consulting, royalties) between network researchers and the partner in all relevant publications.

5.2 Financial sustainability

HANDS adopts a mixed funding model, combining its own and external sources, with priority given to sources that preserve the network's scientific independence.

Revenue sources

• Member dues: regular contributions from members by category, with amounts differentiated by membership type and country of origin.
• Industry partnerships: contributions from industry partners under the specific policy (section 5.1).
• Institutional support: contributions from academic institutions, medical societies, and public funding bodies.
• Research grants: submissions to calls from national and international funding agencies and foundations.
• Events: revenue from the network's own or partnered events, where applicable.

Principles of use

• Funds raised are allocated exclusively to the network's core activities and the maintenance of its infrastructure
• Decisions on raising, using, and holding resources rest with the Board of Directors, with annual accountability to the General Assembly
• Grants and scholarships administered by the network follow objective, publicly disclosed selection rules

Safeguards

• Concentration limit: no single source may account for more than 25% of annual revenue (a rule extended to non-industry sources)
• Independent annual audit once the budget exceeds a threshold to be defined in the internal regulations
• Public accountability, in line with the Transparency Policy (section 5.3)

5.3 Transparency policy

HANDS commits to active transparency in its operation, across three dimensions.

Transparency on governance

• The current composition of all bodies (Board of Directors, committees, working groups) published and kept up to date on the network's website
• Minutes of the deliberative meetings of the Board of Directors and the General Assembly made available to members
• A calendar of terms and elections published annually

Transparency on institutional and commercial relationships

• A public, up-to-date list of industry partners, with partnership category
• A public, up-to-date list of institutional members
• Mandatory declaration of conflicts of interest in the network's scientific publications
• Disclosure of the funding sources of specific projects

Transparency on the network's construction process

• The network commits to maintaining continuous documentation of its creation, structuring, and operation, including relevant institutional decisions, milestones reached, and roadmap updates
• This documentation is consolidated in complementary institutional records