About Us: Meet the NCOA Adviser Reviews Team
About the Reviews Team
The NCOA Reviews Team researches products and services that help older adults age safely and independently. To date, we have helped more than 50,000 people make decisions that have positively impacted their health and well-being.
Our testing process
We approach every story with our readers in mind. When we begin to research a product or service, we collect a wide variety of data points, including published studies in peer-reviewed journals, relevant reviews, expert consultations, and more. We then conduct surveys of real consumers to understand their user journey. We use the results of our surveys to design proprietary scoring mechanisms that reflect the needs of these consumers and allow us to objectively evaluate each of the brands we cover.
It is most important to us that we put ourselves in the shoes of our readers, so we conduct hands-on tests of the products and services we write about and coordinate focus groups to add to our first-person insights. We put brand claims under the microscope, analyzing the service range of medical alert systems to the exact number of feet, for example, and submerging hearing aids in dunk tanks to see if the brands’ water resistance claims are accurate.
Throughout our process, we conduct regular interviews with experts in the field and stay up to date with scientific studies and industry regulations. We believe our work here is never done, and we continue to add to our research and insights, so that we’re always the best resource for our readers.
- 11,600+ hours of research and testing
- 15 surveys with over 8,500 total respondents
- Held 3 focus groups
- Spoke with over 29 experts in the field
Our editorial process
After our content is written by health writers who are subject matter experts in their fields, it is reviewed by our in-house team of expert editors. The stories are then sent to outside fact-checkers for review before they are scrutinized by a medical reviewer from our review board. Stories are then edited for a second time by another member of the editorial team.
Next, the article is built and reviewed again by a managing editor. Finally, it is reviewed again by an editor and a subject matter expert at NCOA. If you’ve lost count, that’s eight different people who review our content before it reaches you.
Meet our writers
Our in-house roster of writers includes registered dietitians, mental health advocates, physical therapists, nurses, lawyers, and a doctor of natural medicine. They are first and foremost protective of our readers’ time, health, and well-being. Our writers put our audience first in everything they do.
“After researching OTC hearing aids and mystery shopping 11 brands, I bought a pair for my dad, who has had hearing loss for at least 15 years. He loves them and says he can’t believe he waited this long to begin using hearing aids.”
Cara Everett, senior writer
“‘Health equity at any age’ is part of what motivates me to research and write about topics like mental health and mobility for NCOA. My research and writing allows me to connect with the day-to-day experiences of older adults outside of the doctor’s office. When it comes to cultivating a healthy lifestyle, knowing really is half the battle. Everyone should be able to get the information to make the best choices for their health.”
Vanessa Ling, senior writer
“Some of the issues I’m writing about in our Local Care content—finding assisted living for a loved one, determining whether or not a loved one needs memory care—are things I’m encountering in my own life. As a result, I’m acutely aware of my audience. The more reliable and resource-rich my articles are, the more we help our readers.”
Kate Van Dis, writer
“I absolutely love all the firsthand testing data we collect to share with our readers. One of my favorite challenges as a writer on our Reviews Team is weaving this data into an interesting narrative and telling a story for our readers.”
Emily Breaux, writer
Meet our editors
With a combined 65.5 years of experience, our editors carefully comb each piece of content to bring only the best, most helpful stories to life for our readers. Alongside our outside team of independent fact-checkers, they pore over each story, editing meticulously for accuracy.
“As an editor on this team, I love that I’m helping shape content that’s truly helping people. Health, wellness, and aging are topics that apply to everyone, and knowing we’re providing unbiased, accessible, helpful information backed by testing and editorial integrity is incredibly fulfilling.”
Katrina Randall, editor
“Finding a team of brilliant people who care so deeply about creating content that tangibly improves the lives of others is the best gift an editor can ask for in life. I am grateful to be part of a creative team that’s dedicated to providing intelligent, reliable, trustworthy content that serves readers in the best way possible—through empathy and abiding respect.”
Victoria Heuer, editor
About our medical review board
Every story we write is reviewed by a member of our medical review board who specializes in the area they review. Our writing team works closely with their individual medical reviewers to make sure our stories are medically factual and include the most current research.
Our team loves hearing from you, so please email us at reviewsteam@ncoa.org.