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Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | Acceptable Use Policy | Social Media

Privacy Policy

At Mental Health Commission of Canada (“MHCC”) we are committed to maintaining the accuracy, confidentiality and security of your personal information. This Privacy Policy describes the personal information that MHCC collects from or about you, how we use and to whom we disclose that information.

MHCC has developed a series of documents in order to address the specific privacy concerns of certain groupings of individuals. This Privacy Policy applies to the personal information of all individuals, unless the personal information is related to our website or is related to an individual who seeks to be, is or was employed by MHCC. Such information is dealt with in the MHCC “Website Privacy Policy” or “Employee Privacy Policy”, as the case may be.

If you are unsure of which Privacy Policy applies to you, please contact our Privacy Officer for more information.

Privacy Policy Effective for Canada

It is MHCC’s policy to comply with the privacy legislation within each jurisdiction in which we operate. Sometimes the privacy legislation and / or an individual’s right to privacy are different from one jurisdiction to another. This Privacy Policy covers only those activities that are subject to the provisions of Canada’s federal and provincial privacy laws, as applicable.

This Privacy Policy has a limited scope and application. Consequently, the rights and obligations contained in this Privacy Policy may not be available to all individuals or in all jurisdictions. If you are unsure if or how this Privacy Policy applies to you, please contact our Privacy Officer for more information.

What is Personal Information?

For the purposes of this Privacy Policy, personal information is any information about an identifiable individual, other than the person’s business title or business contact information when used or disclosed for the purpose of business communications.

What Personal Information Do We Collect?

We collect and maintain different types of personal information in respect of the individuals with whom we interact. This includes:

contact and identification information, such as your name, address, telephone number and e-mail address;
product and service related information concerning the products and services that we provide to, or receive from, you;
credit and financial information such as your payment preferences; and
business relationship information, including information related to your agreements, preferences, advisors and decision-makers, feed-back and information requested by or provided to you.

We may also collect market-related information, which may include personal information, concerning market trends and activities impacting our business. This information may include contract terms, financial information and other information for the purpose of market analysis and strategic planning. We may also collect information related to our media, investor and public relations activities and information related to our interactions with financial and other analysts and advisors.

As a general rule, MHCC collects personal information directly from you. In most circumstances where the personal information that we collect about you is held by a third party, we will obtain your permission before we seek out this information from such sources (such permission may be given directly by you, or implied from your actions).

From time to time, we may utilize the services of third parties in our business and may also receive personal information collected by those third parties in the course of the performance of their services for us or otherwise. Where this is the case, we will take reasonable steps to ensure that such third parties have represented to us that they have the right to disclose your personal information to us.

Where permitted or required by applicable law or regulatory requirements, we may collect information about you without your knowledge or consent.

Why Do We Collect Personal Information?

MHCC collects personal information to enable us to manage, maintain, and develop our business and operations, including:

to establish, maintain and manage our relationship with you so that we may provide you with, or receive from you, the products and services that have been requested;
to be able to review the products and services that we provide to you so that we may understand your requirements for our products and services and so that we may work to improve our products and services;
to be able to review the products and services that we obtain from you so that we may work with you and so that you may understand our requirements for such products and services;
to be able to comply with your requests (for example, if you prefer to be contacted at a business or residential telephone number and advise us of your preference, we will use this information to contact you at that number);
to protect us against error, fraud, theft and damage to our goods and property;
to enable us to comply with applicable law or regulatory process; and
any other reasonable purpose to which you consent.

How Do We Use and Disclose Your Personal Information?

We may use or disclose your personal information:

for the purposes described in this Privacy Policy; or
for any additional purposes for which we have obtained your consent to the use or disclosure of your personal information.

We may use or disclose your personal information without your knowledge or consent where we are permitted or required by applicable law or regulatory requirements to do so.

When do we Disclose Your Personal Information?

We may share your personal information with our employees, contractors, consultants and other parties who require such information to assist us with managing our relationship with you, including: third parties that provide services to us or on our behalf; third parties that assist MHCC in the provision of services to you; and third parties whose services we use to conduct our business.

In addition, personal information may be disclosed or transferred to another party during the course of, or completion of, a change in ownership of or the grant of a security interest in, all or a part of MHCC or its affiliates through, for example, an asset or share sale, or some other form of business combination, merger or joint venture, provided that such party is bound by appropriate agreements or obligations and required to use or disclose your personal information in a manner consistent with the use and disclosure provisions of this Privacy Policy, unless you consent otherwise.

Further, your personal information may be disclosed:

as permitted or required by applicable law or regulatory requirements;
to comply with valid legal processes such as search warrants, subpoenas or court orders;
as part of MHCC’s regular reporting activities to its affiliates;
to protect the rights and property of MHCC;
during emergency situations or where necessary to protect the safety of a person or group;
where the personal information is publicly available; or with your consent.

Your Consent is Important to Us

It is important to us that we collect, use or disclose your personal information where we have your consent to do so. Depending on the sensitivity of the personal information, your consent may be implied, deemed (using an opt-out mechanism) or express. Express consent can be given orally, electronically or in writing. Implied consent is consent that can reasonably be inferred from your action or inaction. For example, when you enter into an agreement with us, we will assume your consent to the collection, use and disclosure of your personal information for purposes related to the performance of that agreement and for any other purposes identified to you at the relevant time.

Typically, we will seek your consent at the time that we collect your personal information. In certain circumstances, your consent may be obtained after collection but prior to our use or disclosure of your personal information. If we plan to use or disclose your personal information for a purpose not previously identified (either in this Privacy Policy or separately), we will endeavor to advise you of that purpose before such use or disclosure.

As we have described above, we may collect, use or disclose your personal information without your knowledge or consent where we are permitted or required to do so by applicable law or regulatory requirements.

Choice/Opt-Out

You may change or withdraw your consent at any time, subject to legal or contractual obligations and reasonable notice, by contacting our Privacy Officer using the contact information set out below. All communications with respect to such withdrawal or variation of consent should be in writing and addressed to our Privacy Officer.

We assume that, unless you advise us otherwise, you have consented to the collection, use and disclosure of your personal information as explained in this Privacy Policy.

How is Your Personal Information Protected?

MHCC endeavors to maintain physical, technical and procedural safeguards that are appropriate to the sensitivity of the personal information in question. These safeguards are designed to prevent your personal information from loss and unauthorized access, copying, use, modification or disclosure.

Updating Your Personal Information

It is important that the information contained in our records is both accurate and current. If your personal information happens to change during the course of our relationship, please keep us informed of such changes.

In some circumstances we may not agree with your request to change your personal information and will instead append an alternative text to the record in question.

Access to Your Personal Information

You can ask to see your personal information. If you want to review, verify or correct your personal information, please contact our Privacy Officer. Please note that any such communication must be in writing.

When requesting access to your personal information, please note that we may request specific information from you to enable us to confirm your identity and right to access, as well as to search for and provide you with the personal information that we hold about you. We may charge you a fee to access your personal information; however, we will advise you of any fee in advance. If you require assistance in preparing your request, please contact the office of our Privacy Officer.

Your right to access the personal information that we hold about you is not absolute. There are instances where applicable law or regulatory requirements allow or require us to refuse to provide some or all of the personal information that we hold about you. In addition, the personal information may have been destroyed, erased or made anonymous in accordance with our record retention obligations and practices.

In the event that we cannot provide you with access to your personal information, we will endeavor to inform you of the reasons why, subject to any legal or regulatory restrictions.

Inquiries or Concerns?

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or concerns about how we manage your personal information, please contact our Privacy Officer by telephone, in writing or by e-mail. We will endeavor to answer your questions and advise you of any steps taken to address the issues raised by you. If you are dissatisfied with our response, you may be entitled to make a written submission to the Privacy Commissioner in your jurisdiction.

Privacy Officer

We have appointed a Privacy Officer to oversee compliance with this Privacy Policy. The contact information for our Privacy Officer is as follows: digital@mentalhealthcommission.ca

Revisions to this Privacy Policy

MHCC from time to time, may make changes to this Privacy Policy to reflect changes in its legal or regulatory obligations or in the manner in which we deal with your personal information. We will post any revised version of this Privacy Policy on our website www.mentalhealthcommission.ca and we encourage you to refer back to it on a regular basis. This Privacy Policy was last updated on October 21, 2010.

Interpretation of this Privacy Policy

Any interpretation associated with this Privacy Policy will be made by our Privacy Officer. This Privacy Policy includes examples but is not intended to be restricted in its application to such examples, therefore where the word ‘including’ is used, it shall mean ‘including without limitation’.

This Privacy Policy does not create or confer upon any individual any rights, or impose upon MHCC any rights or obligations outside of, or in addition to, any rights or obligations imposed by Canada’s federal and provincial privacy laws, as applicable. Should there be, in a specific case, any inconsistency between this Privacy Policy and Canada’s federal and provincial privacy laws, as applicable, this Privacy Policy shall be interpreted, in respect of that case, to give effect to, and comply with, such privacy laws.

Terms of Use

THE MENTAL HEALTH COMMISSION OF CANADA

www.mentalhealthcommission.ca

This Web site is owned and operated by the Mental Health Commission of Canada (“MHCC”). Access and use of this Web site is provided by MHCC to you on condition that you accept these Terms of Use, and by accessing or using this Web site, you agree to these Terms of Use. If you do not agree to accept and abide by these Terms of Use you should not access or use this Web site.

MHCC may revise and update these Terms of Use at anytime and without notice. You are cautioned to review the Terms of Use posted on the Web site periodically. Your continued access or use of this Web site after any such changes are posted will constitute your acceptance of these changes.

You may not interfere with the security of, or otherwise abuse this Web site or any system resources, services or networks connected to or accessible through this Web site. You may only use this Web site for lawful purposes.

We strive to ensure that visitors to www.mentalhealthcommission.ca have the best possible experience on our website. However, we recognize that it is impossible to develop applications that work identically, efficiently and effectively on all web browsers.

The MHCC website is optimized to function best using Mozilla Firefox, Chrome and any other current web browser.

Mobile Devices and Tablets

This site supports browsing from a mobile or tablet device. Content is sized and displayed based on the screen resolution and other display attributes of your device. Content is served formatted specifically for these devices.

Visit the links below to download the latest version of your favourite browser:

Mozilla Firefox
Google Chrome

Information Purposes Only

THIS WEB SITE DOES NOT CONTAIN NOR PROVIDE MEDICAL ADVICE.

The Materials are provided for informational purposes only. The Materials do not and are not intended to replace medical consultations or to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek appropriate medical advice with your personal medical and health questions. DO NOT ignore or dismiss appropriate medical advice due to your interpretation or understanding of the Materials. Call 911 immediately if you are experiencing a medical emergency.

Intellectual Property

All materials (including the organization and presentation of such material) on this Web site (the “Materials”) are the property of MHCC and its licensors and may be protected by intellectual property laws including laws relating to copyrights, trade-marks, trade-names, internet domain names and other similar rights.

The Materials may only be used and copied for your own, non-commercial, personal or educational purposes, provided that the Materials are not modified and that copyright and other intellectual property notices are not deleted. You may not create derivative works from or otherwise exploit the Materials in any way. Unless you have entered into a separate agreement with MHCC, any other use of these Materials without MHCC’s written permission is prohibited.

Currency of Web site

MHCC updates the information on this Web site periodically. However, MHCC cannot guarantee or accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, currency or completeness of the information on this Web site. MHCC may revise, supplement or delete information, services and/or the resources contained in this Web site and reserves the right to make such changes without prior notification to past, current or prospective visitors.

Linked Web sites

The Collaborative Spaces within the MHCC Web site may provide links to third party Web sites for your convenience only. The inclusion of these links does not imply that MHCC monitors or endorses these Web sites. MHCC does not accept any responsibility for such Web sites. MHCC shall not be responsible or liable, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss, caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or the reliance upon any information, content, goods or services available on or through any third party Web sites or linked resources.

Internet software or computer viruses

Due to technical difficulties with the Internet, Internet software or transmission problems could produce inaccurate or incomplete copies of information contained on this Web site. Computer viruses or other destructive programs may also be inadvertently downloaded from this Web site.

MHCC shall not be responsible or liable for any software, computer viruses or other destructive, harmful or disruptive files or programs that may infect or otherwise impact your use of your computer equipment or other property on account of your access to, use of, or browsing on this Web site or your downloading of any of the Materials from this Web site. MHCC recommends that you install appropriate anti-virus or other protective software.

Web Site and Materials Provided “As Is”

THIS WEB SITE AND THE MATERIALS ARE PROVIDED “AS IS” WITHOUT REPRESENTATION, WARRANTY OR CONDITION OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE IMPLIED REPRESENTATIONS, WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF MERCHANTABILITY, OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. MHCC DOES NOT REPRESENT OR WARRANT THAT THIS WEB SITE OR THE MATERIALS WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS OR THAT THEIR USE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR FREE.

Limitation of liability

YOU ASSUME ALL RESPONSIBILITY AND RISK FOR USE OF THIS WEB SITE AND THE MATERIALS INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION ANY OF THE INFORMATION CONTAINED THEREIN.

IN NO EVENT SHALL MHCC OR ANY OF ITS DIRECTORS, OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES, SHAREHOLDERS, PARTNERS, OR AGENTS BE LIABLE FOR ANY GENERAL, INCIDENTAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, PUNITIVE, EXEMPLARY, CONSEQUENTIAL OR OTHER DAMAGES WHATSOEVER (INCLUDING DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF PROFITS, INTERRUPTION, LOSS OF BUSINESS INFORMATION, OR ANY OTHER PECUNIARY LOSS) IN CONNECTION WITH ANY CLAIM, LOSS, DAMAGE, ACTION, SUIT OR OTHER PROCEEDING ARISING UNDER OR OUT OF THESE TERMS OF USE, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION YOUR USE OF, RELIANCE UPON, ACCESS TO, OR EXPLOITATION OF THIS WEB SITE, THE MATERIALS OR ANY PART THEREOF, OR ANY RIGHTS GRANTED TO YOU HEREUNDER, EVEN IF WE HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES, WHETHER THE ACTION IS BASED ON CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), INFRINGEMENT OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS OR OTHERWISE.

IN ANY EVENT, MHCC’S TOTAL MAXIMUM AGGREGATE LIABILITY UNDER THESE TERMS OF USE OR THE USE OR EXPLOITATION OF ANY OR ALL PART OF THIS WEB SITE OR THE MATERIALS IN ANY MANNER WHATSOEVER SHALL BE LIMITED TO FIVE ($5.00) CANADIAN DOLLARS.

SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW FOR THE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATION OR EXCLUSION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.

Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold MHCC harmless against all claims or liability asserted against MHCC arising out of or in connection with any breach by you or anyone acting on your behalf of any of these Terms of Use.

Email

Feel free to email MHCC at mhccinfo@mentalhealthcommission.ca. However, the Internet is not a fully secure medium and any communication may be lost, intercepted or altered. MHCC is not liable for any damages related to communications to or from this Web site. You agree with respect to any information provided by you to us through this Web site or via e-mail that:

MHCC has no obligation concerning such information;
the information is non-confidential;
MHCC may use, disclose, distribute or copy the information and may use any ideas, concepts or know-how contained in the information for any purpose; and
the information is truthful and disclosure of the information does not violate the legal rights of others.

Applicable law

This Web site is controlled, operated and administered by MHCC from within the Province of Ontario, Canada. This Web site can be accessed from all provinces and territories of Canada, as well as from other countries around the world. As each of these jurisdictions has laws that may differ from those of the Province of Ontario, by accessing this Web site, you acknowledge and agree that all matters relating to access to or use of this Web site shall be governed by the laws of the Province of Ontario and the federal laws of Canada applicable therein (without reference to conflicts of laws principles).

You also agree that any claims or disputes whatsoever arising hereunder shall be submitted to the exclusive jurisdiction and venue of the courts of the Province of Ontario and acknowledge that you do so voluntarily.

General

MHCC’s failure to insist upon or enforce strict performance of any provision of these Terms of Use shall not be construed as a waiver of any provision or right.

If any provision or part thereof of these Terms of Use is wholly or partially unenforceable the parties or, in the event the parties are unable to agree, a court of competent jurisdiction, shall put in place thereof an enforceable provision or provisions, or part thereof, that as nearly as possible reflects the terms of the unenforceable provision or part thereof.

Third parties, including Facebook, may use cookies, web beacons, and other storage technologies to collect or receive information from the MHCC websites and elsewhere on the internet and use that information to provide measurement services and target ads. You can opt-out of this information collection at any time by visiting: http://www.aboutads.info/choices

Acceptable Use Policy

This acceptable use policy sets out the terms between you and us under which you may access our website http:// www.mentalhealthcommission.ca. This acceptable use policy applies to all users of, and visitors to, our site.

Your use of our site means that you accept, and agree to abide by, all the policies in this acceptable use policy, which supplement our terms of website use.

http:// www.mentalhealthcommission.ca is a site operated by the Mental Health Commission of Canada (“We”). We are registered in the Province of Ontario in Canada.

Prohibited uses

You may use our site only for lawful purposes. You may not use our site:

In any way that breaches any applicable local, national or international law or regulation.
In any way that is unlawful or fraudulent, or has any unlawful or fraudulent purpose or effect.
For the purpose of harming or attempting to harm minors in any way.
To send, knowingly receive, upload, download, use or re-use any material which does not comply with our content standards.
To transmit, or procure the sending of, any unsolicited or unauthorized advertising or promotional material or any other form of similar solicitation (spam).
To knowingly transmit any data, send or upload any material that contains viruses, Trojan horses, worms, time-bombs, keystroke loggers, spyware, adware or any other harmful programs or similar computer code designed to adversely affect the operation of any computer software or hardware.

You also agree:

Not to reproduce, duplicate, copy or re-sell any part of our site in contravention of the provisions of our terms of website use.
Not to access without authority, interfere with, damage or disrupt:
any part of our site;
any equipment or network on which our site is stored;
any software used in the provision of our site; or
any equipment or network or software owned or used by any third party.

Interactive services

We may from time to time provide interactive services on our site, including, without limitation:

Online Collaborative Spaces;
Social Media Forums (including Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube).
Other interactive services.

Where we do provide any interactive service, we will provide clear information to you about the kind of service offered, if it is moderated and what form of moderation is used (including whether it is human or technical).

We will do our best to assess any possible risks for users (and in particular, for children) from third parties when they use any interactive service provided on our site, and we will decide in each case whether it is appropriate to use moderation of the relevant service (including what kind of moderation to use) in the light of those risks. However, we are under no obligation to oversee, monitor or moderate any interactive service we provide on our site, and we expressly exclude our liability for any loss or damage arising from the use of any interactive service by a user in contravention of our content standards, whether the service is moderated or not.

The use of any of our interactive services by a minor is subject to the consent of their parent or guardian. We advise parents who permit their children to use an interactive service that it is important that they communicate with their children about their safety online, as moderation is not foolproof. Minors who are using any interactive service should be made aware of the potential risks to them.

Where we do moderate an interactive service, we will normally provide you with a means of contacting the moderator, should a concern or difficulty arise.

Content standards

These content standards apply to any and all material which you contribute to our site (contributions), and to any interactive services associated with it. All contributions are publicly accessible unless otherwise stated.

You must comply with the spirit of the following standards as well as the letter. The standards apply to each part of any contribution as well as to its whole.

Contributions must:

Be accurate (where they state facts).
Be genuinely held (where they state opinions).
Comply with applicable law in Canada and in any country from which they are posted.

Contributions must not:

Contain any material which is defamatory of any person.
Contain any material which is obscene, offensive, hateful or inflammatory.
Promote sexually explicit material.
Promote violence.
Promote discrimination based on race, sex, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation or age.
Infringe any copyright, database right or trade mark of any other person.
Be likely to deceive any person.
Be made in breach of any legal duty owed to a third party, such as a contractual duty or a duty of confidence.
Promote any illegal activity.
Be threatening, abuse or invade another´s privacy, or cause annoyance, inconvenience or needless anxiety.
Be likely to harass, upset, embarrass, alarm or annoy any other person.
Be used to impersonate any person, or to misrepresent your identity or affiliation with any person.
Give the impression that they emanate from us, if this is not the case.
Advocate, promote or assist any unlawful act such as (by way of example only) copyright infringement or computer misuse.

Suspension and termination

We will determine, in our discretion, whether there has been a breach of this acceptable use policy through your use of our site. When a breach of this policy has occurred, we may take such action as we deem appropriate.

Failure to comply with this acceptable use policy constitutes a material breach of the terms of website use upon which you are permitted to use our site, and may result in our taking all or any of the following actions:

Immediate, temporary or permanent withdrawal of your right to use our site.
Immediate, temporary or permanent removal of any posting or material uploaded by you to our site.
Issue of a warning to you.
Legal proceedings against you for reimbursement of all costs on an indemnity basis (including, but not limited to, reasonable administrative and legal costs) resulting from the breach.
Further legal action against you.
Disclosure of such information to law enforcement authorities as we reasonably feel is necessary.

We exclude liability for actions taken in response to breaches of this acceptable use policy. The responses described in this policy are not limited, and we may take any other action we reasonably deem appropriate.

Changes to the acceptable use policy

We may revise this acceptable use policy at any time by amending this page. You are expected to check this page from time to time to take notice of any changes we make, as they are legally binding on you. Some of the provisions contained in this acceptable use policy may also be superseded by provisions or notices published elsewhere on our site.

Visitors to MHCC social media channels are permitted to share, post, comment, like and flag content posted in accordance with these terms and conditions, MHCC’s terms of use, and the applicable third-party platform (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, YouTube) terms and conditions.

Your comments and posts should be relevant to mental health and mental wellness and/or to other content posted on the MHCC social media channel visited. You are encouraged to stay on topic in each thread and respect others who interact with the MHCC on social media.

MHCC encourages you to submit your questions, comments and concerns; however, the MHCC’s social media accounts are considered moderated and not public forums.

Once posted, MHCC reserves the right to delete submissions that contain:

vulgar language;
stigmatizing language;
personal/corporate attacks of any kind;
offensive comments that target or disparage.

Further, MHCC also reserves the right to delete comments that are:

spam or include links to other sites;
clearly off topic;
advocate illegal activity;
promote services, products or political organizations;
infringe on copyrights or trademarks;
include personally identifiable information.

We reserve the right to monitor, block, delete or discontinue your access to any of the MHCC social media accounts, at any time, without notice and for any reason and in our sole discretion.

By posting content on any of the MHCC social media channels, you grant to us the irrevocable right to reproduce, distribute, publish and display such content and the right to create derivative works from your content, edit or modify such content and use such content for any MHCC purpose.

To remain in compliance, we suggest that you review this policy, as well as the other website policies, at regular intervals. By continuing to use after such new terms are posted, you accept and agree to any and all such modifications to this policy.

Please note that the comments expressed on MHCC social media channels do not reflect MHCC. If you have any questions concerning the operation of MHCC social media channels, please contact digital@mentalhealthcommission.ca