Healthcare Excellence Canada – Website Terms of Use

1. Introduction

Healthcare Excellence Canada works with partners to share proven healthcare innovations and best practices in patient safety and quality. Working together with patients and other partners, we can deliver lasting improvement in patient experience, work life of healthcare providers, value for money and the health of everyone in Canada. The organization is a not-for-profit charity funded by Health Canada. Information is available at www.healthcareexcellence.ca (“Website”). In these Terms of Use, references to Healthcare Excellence Canada include its directors, officers, employees, agents, and other representatives.

2. Limited Licence

You are granted limited rights to use the Website and Healthcare Excellence Canada reserves all other rights in the Website not granted to you in writing in these Terms of Use. By accessing and using the Website, including the content on the Website, you are confirming your agreement to comply with all applicable laws, these Terms of Use, and any other policies posted on the Website, each of which is deemed to be incorporated into and form an integral part of these Terms of Use. If you do not agree to these Terms of Use, you are not permitted to use and must exit the Website without accessing any other pages. As long as you comply with these Terms of Use, Healthcare Excellence Canada grants you a personal, limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable licence to use the Website.

3. Amendment

Healthcare Excellence Canada may, in its sole and absolute discretion, and without prior notice, amend or replace these Terms of Use. Your continued use of the Website after modification of these Terms of Use will constitute your agreement to the modification.

4. Disclaimer

You may use the Website at your sole risk. All materials, documentation, information, tools, resources, and other items provided on the Website (collectively “Materials”) are “as is” and “as available”. The information contained in the Website could contain technical inaccuracies or typographical errors. Healthcare Excellence Canada reserves the right to make changes to any information contained within the Website at any time and without notice.

Healthcare Excellence Canada makes no warranties, representations, guarantees, or covenants, including implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, title, quiet enjoyment, accuracy, completeness, or non-infringement in respect to the Website and the Materials. Healthcare Excellence Canada assumes no responsibility or liability arising from any error, omission, opinions expressed by authors, or use of any information contained on the Website or in the Materials to the fullest extent permissible under applicable law. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, Healthcare Excellence Canada makes no representations or warranties regarding the Website and/or the Materials including, without limitation, no representation or warranty that: (i) the Website or the Materials will be compatible with your computer, mobile or other device and/or software; (ii) the Website or the Materials will be accurate, reliable, complete, current, timely or suitable for any particular purpose; (iii) that the operation of the Website will be uninterrupted or error-free; (iv) that defects or errors in the Website or the Materials will be corrected; (v) that the Website or the Materials will be free from viruses, Trojan horses, malware, worms or other harmful components; and (vi) that communications to or from the Website will be secure and/or not intercepted.

In no event shall Healthcare Excellence Canada be liable for any special, indirect or consequential damages or any damages whatsoever resulting from loss of use, data or profits, whether in an action of contract, negligence or other tortious action, arising out of or in connection with the use of this Website. You acknowledge and agree that you are using the Website and the Materials, if applicable, at your own risk and liability.

All information contained within the Website is available in both English and French. Users should be aware that some information from external sources is available only in the language in which it has been provided.

5. Informational/Educational Purposes Only

It is not the intention of Healthcare Excellence Canada to provide specific medical advice or replace the judgment of a healthcare professional, but rather provide users with information to better understand matters related to patient safety and quality improvement in health services.  The Materials are provided for informational/educational purposes only and do not necessarily reflect the views of Healthcare Excellence Canada, Health Canada or any other third party.

6. External Links

The Website may link to, or be linked to, websites not maintained by or related to Healthcare Excellence Canada. Healthcare Excellence Canada provides such links for your convenience only. The inclusion of a link on the Website does not constitute Healthcare Excellence Canada’s endorsement, approval, affiliation, or sponsorship. It is your responsibility to review and comply with the terms and conditions of linked websites and to take the necessary precautions to protect yourself from malicious, disruptive, or otherwise harmful software or data, including using anti-virus software.

Healthcare Excellence Canada is not responsible for the content of any third-party website, nor does it make any representation or warranty of any kind regarding any third-party website including, without limitation: (i) any representation or warranty regarding the legality, accuracy, reliability, completeness, timeliness, security, suitability of any content on any third-party website; (ii) any representation or warranty regarding the merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose of any material, content, software, goods, or services located at or made available through such third-party websites; and (iii) any representation or warranty that the operation of the third-party website will be uninterrupted or error free, that defects or errors in such third-party websites will be corrected, or that such third-party websites will be free from viruses or other harmful components.

7. Website Use

It is prohibited to misuse the Website, including use of the Website in such a manner that interferes with another person’s use or enjoyment of the Website or the Materials. It is prohibited to use the Website in any way that is designed to compromise the security of the Website or the integrity of Materials such as hacking, corrupting, or destroying Materials, or the intentional introduction of viruses. You agree that you will not use the Website or any Materials for any purpose that is unlawful.

Accessing the Website from locations where the Materials are illegal is prohibited and anyone accessing the Website from outside of Canada is doing so at his or her own discretion and is responsible for compliance with local laws.

The transmission of data or information over the internet or other forms of networks may not be secure, and is subject to possible loss, interception or alteration while in transit. Healthcare Excellence Canada cannot guarantee security of any communication to or from the Website. Healthcare Excellence Canada does not assume any liability for any damage you may experience or costs you may incur as a result of any electronic transmissions over the internet, other forms of networks or otherwise while using the Website. You should take reasonable and appropriate precautions to ensure compatibility of any website you visit with your specific computer, mobile or other device. Healthcare Excellence Canada does not assume any responsibility or risk for your use of the internet.

8. Privacy

Healthcare Excellence Canada’s Website Privacy Policy, as amended from time to time (“Website Privacy Policy”), is incorporated by reference into these Terms of Use and is available at [Privacy Policy]. Please carefully review it. By accessing or otherwise using the Website, you signify that you have read, fully understand, and agree to be bound by the Website Privacy Policy.

9. Intellectual Property

Healthcare Excellence Canada owns or has a licence to all intellectual property in and to the Website and Materials, including images, text, code, logos, designs, and documents, unless otherwise identified as belonging to a third party. No part of the Website or Materials may be reproduced, stored, or transmitted in any form or by any means without the written permission of Healthcare Excellence Canada, except as set out in these Terms of Use. Healthcare Excellence Canada grants permission to individuals and organizations to download or print information from the Website for non-commercial purposes only. Any person may reproduce short excerpts from Healthcare Excellence Canada’s reports and publications, provided the source and authors of the material are fully acknowledged. As a courtesy, the consent of authors of such material should be obtained. For other kinds of copying, such as copying for general distribution, advertising or promotional purposes, or for resale, arrangements must be made by contacting Healthcare Excellence Canada via [insert contact details]. Except as expressly provided, your use of the Website and/or any Materials does not grant or transfer to you any ownership or other rights in the Website and/or any Materials, and nothing herein or within the Website and/or any Materials shall be construed as conferring on you or any other person or entity any license under any Healthcare Excellence Canada or any third party intellectual property or other rights.

10. Limitation of liability

Healthcare Excellence Canada will not be liable to you in contract, tort (including negligence or gross negligence), or otherwise for any loss or damage whatsoever, including without limitation loss of information, programs, or data, or for direct, indirect, special, incidental, consequential, punitive, or exemplary damages, however caused or arising in connection with the Website, even if Healthcare Excellence Canada has been notified of the possibility of such damage or loss or if such damage or loss was foreseeable. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, Healthcare Excellence Canada will not be liable to you in connection with any Materials or the actions of other users. You agree that your sole remedy for any claim, loss, damage, costs or expenses is to cease using the Website and the Materials.

11. Release and Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Healthcare Excellence Canada from and against all liabilities, losses, claims, damages, penalties, actions, suits, demands, levies, costs, expenses, and disbursements including any and all reasonable legal and adviser fees and disbursements of whatever kind or nature which may at any time be suffered by, imposed on, incurred by, or asserted by Healthcare Excellence Canada (“Claims”) arising out of or connected with your use of the Website, your violation of these Terms of Use, or your violation of any rights of another person or organization in connection with the Website.

In addition to, and without limiting, any other protection of Healthcare Excellence Canada, you shall indemnify and hold harmless Healthcare Excellence Canada from and against any and all Claims against Healthcare Excellence Canada arising from or out of any negligence, willful misconduct, or bad faith arising out of or connected with your use of the Website, your violation of these Terms of Use, or your violation of any rights of another person or organization in connection with the Website.

You agree that Healthcare Excellence Canada may assume the defense and control of any matter for which you are required to indemnify Healthcare Excellence Canada and you agree to cooperate, at your own cost, with Healthcare Excellence Canada defense of these claims. You agree not to settle any matter without the prior written consent of Healthcare Excellence Canada.

12. Entire Agreement

These Terms of Use, including any policies incorporated by reference herein, constitute the entire agreement between you and Healthcare Excellence Canada regarding the Website and Materials and supersede all other communications, representations or agreements, whether oral or written, between you and Healthcare Excellence Canada regarding these matters.

13. Jurisdiction

These Terms of Use shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Province of Ontario and such laws of Canada that are applicable therein. You agree to submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of the Province of Ontario in connection with any matter arising out of or relating to the Website or these Terms of Use.

14. General

If any term or provision of these Terms of Use is held by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, it shall be severed, and the remaining provisions shall remain in full force without being invalidated in any way. You may not assign, convey, subcontract or delegate your rights, duties or obligations hereunder. Healthcare Excellence Canada will not be considered to have waived any of its rights or remedies described in these Terms of Use unless the waiver is in writing and signed by Healthcare Excellence Canada. No delay or omission by Healthcare Excellence Canada in exercising its rights or remedies will impair or be construed as a waiver. Any single or partial exercise of a right or remedy will not preclude further exercise of any other right or remedy. The failure of Healthcare Excellence Canada to enforce the strict performance of any provision of these Terms of Use will not constitute a waiver of the right of Healthcare Excellence Canada to subsequently enforce such provision or any other provisions of these Terms of Use. The headings used in these Terms of Use are included for convenience only and have no legal or contractual effect.

15. Contacting Us

If you have any questions about these Terms of Use or the Website, please contact us via info@hec-esc.ca.

Last update: March 1, 2021