Terms of Service – Clinic Users

Last updated: August 10, 2021

These terms have since been updated, please head to this page for the latest updates to HotDocs Terms of Service for Clinic Users.

1. Background

1.1 HotDoc Online Pty Ltd ABN 84 159 662 558 (We, Our or Us) provides the HotDoc online platform that enables Clinics to manage medical appointment bookings, communicate with their Patients, and utilise other related functionalities (the Platform).

1.2 In these Terms, a reference to You or Your is a reference to a Clinic User, who has authorisation from their Clinic to access the Platform on its behalf.

1.3 These Terms set out the basis on which We permit You to access the Platform. By accessing and using the Platform, You agree to be bound by these Terms, as amended from time to time.

1.4 We may amend these Terms at any time by publishing the amended version on Our website or by otherwise providing written notice to You. Any such amended version will apply to Your Use of the Platform from the date of its publication or Our written notice to you.

We’re always striving to improve the platform. Because we want these Terms to stay relevant, we might need to update or change them every now and then. We’ll publish any updated versions on our website and let you know if there are significant changes you’d probably want to know about.

2. Acceptable use and your obligations

2.1 When you access the Platform through the Clinic’s Account you are acting on behalf of Your Clinic.

2.2 You must only use the Platform for its intended purpose, as described in these Terms.

2.2 In accessing or using the Platform, You must:

(a) comply with Our directions and restrictions regarding access to and use of the Platform, including, where applicable, any instructions to remove any information or data from the Platform;

(b) ensure that all information provided or uploaded to Us or the Platform, or any third party services facilitated by the Platform, including any data or information about Patients, is and remains true and correct;

(d) ensure that You comply with any relevant statutes, regulations, laws and codes of practice when using the Platform, such as (but not limited to) when You:

(i) send Recalls, Results, Reminders or other communications to Patients under 18 years of age; and

(ii) process and respond to a Repeats request which is received from a Patient User via the Platform;

(e) not use or rely upon the Platform in relation to, any critical, emergency or acute care medical circumstances;

(f) not permit any unauthorised person to access or use the Platform;

(g) immediately cease any use of the Platform that, in Our reasonable opinion, does not constitute acceptable use and has been detailed in a notice from Us to You;

(h) if You become aware of any actual or potential misuse of the Platform by other Clinic Users, Patient Users, or any other third parties, notify Your Clinic as soon as reasonably possible;

(i) use the Platform for lawful purposes only, and not rent, lease, convey, adapt, translate, reverse engineer, de-compile or disassemble all or any part of the Platform;

(j) not infringe any person’s rights, including intellectual property and proprietary rights, rights of confidentiality or contractual rights;

(k) not include any material that contains any virus or harmful code, or program that is designed to impair the performance of the Platform or any device accessing the Platform; and

(l) not publish or link to any malicious content, or engage in conduct that is unlawful, defamatory, obscene, threatening, harassing, abusive, slanderous, hateful or embarrassing to any other person, or which is reasonably likely to damage Our reputation or Our products and services.

Your clinic will have a registered account with us. You will be acting on behalf of your clinic when you access the platform. We really love our platform, and we want to protect it and our users – so if you don’t comply with the above list of very important things, it might just break our hearts (and get you into legal strife). And while it’s a great platform, it’s not a doctor or a lawyer – don’t rely on it in critical situations, and don’t disregard any laws or codes of conduct which apply to how your clinic operates.

3. Data

3.1 We take the security of the Platform and the privacy of its Users very seriously. You agree that:

(a) You will not do anything to prejudice the security or privacy of Our systems or of the information on Our systems;

(b) You take all reasonable steps to protect the security of Your login details for accessing the Platform; and

Keep your login details safe, and report any security issues or concerns to your Clinic. And (this is important), make sure you do the right thing in terms of keeping the platform secure.

3.2 We will do all things reasonable to ensure that the transmission of data occurs according to accepted industry standard, however You accept that the internet is not a fully secure environment and we cannot accept responsibility for misuse or loss of, or unauthorised access to or disclosure of, information where the security of the information is not within our control. If You provide Us with information via the internet, You do so accepting this risk.

Like most ways of sending messages, the internet is not without risk. It’s important for you to be aware of this, and to understand that some risks (like hacking) can be outside of our control.

4. Privacy

4.1 You acknowledge and agree that:

(a) in order to provide You with access to and the functionality of the Platform, we may need to collect and use Your Personal Information;

(b) We will collect and handle any Personal Information and Health Information of all Users and Patients in accordance with:

(i) Our Privacy Policy located at https://www.hotdoc.com.au/practices/privacy-policy (Privacy Policy), as amended from time to time; and

(ii) applicable privacy laws;

(c) You must ensure that any Personal Information or Health Information You create or have access to as a result of Your use of the Platform is collected, handled and retained by You in accordance with applicable privacy laws in relevant jurisdictions;

(d) You must only use or disclose Personal Information or Health Information which is collected by Us and shared with You for the primary purpose for which that Personal Information or Health Information was collected (being to manage a Booking or otherwise communicate with the relevant individual, depending on the circumstances); and

(e) to enable Us to provide you with the full functionality of the Platform and our services, We will collect, synchronise, store and access certain information, including Your Personal Information.

4.2 Notwithstanding anything else in these Terms, You must ensure that You have:

(a) obtained all necessary consents from individuals (including Your Patients) whose Personal Information or Health Information may be provided or uploaded to the Platform (including any third party services facilitated by the Platform) or to Us directly, prior to providing or uploading that Personal Information or Health Information; and

(b) provided all necessary notifications to such individuals in relation to Our collection of their Personal Information or Health Information, as required by applicable privacy laws.

Eyes starting to glaze over? Maybe it’s time to grab a coffee (or a healthier equivalent!), because the above section is really, really important. It explains what we both need to be doing when collecting, handling and sharing personal and health information, so that everyone is on the same page on the important topic of privacy. While we’re at it, you should also read our privacy policy here.

5. Suspension or termination of access

5.1 We may, in Our sole discretion, suspend or revoke a Clinic User’s or ability to access the Platform, including their ability to use the Platform to accept, make or manage Bookings or facilitate other interactions with Patients.

If a particular practitioner is (in our opinion) unsuitable to use our platform, we may refuse or revoke their access and use. We really hope we won’t need to do either of these things (but our lawyers say we need to keep our options open…just in case).

6. Liability and indemnity

6.1 To the extent permitted by law, You acknowledge and agree that:

(a) Your use of the Platform is at Your own risk; and

(b) We provide the Platform only, and are not responsible or liable for the conduct or activities of any third parties, including third party service providers, Patients and other Users;

(i) any illness, injury, or death resulting from use of the Platform; or

(ii) any other any direct or indirect, incidental or consequential damages, loss or corruption of data, or any other similar or analogous loss resulting from Your access to, use of, or inability to use the Platform or any content, whether based on warranty, contract, tort, negligence, in equity or any other legal theory, and whether or not We knew or should have known of the possibility of such loss.

6.2 Certain rights and remedies may be available under the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) or similar legislation of other States or Territories and may not be permitted to be excluded, restricted or modified. Apart from those that cannot be excluded, We together with Our related entities exclude all conditions and warranties that may be implied by law, however any liability for breach of any implied warranty or condition that cannot be excluded is restricted, at Our option, to:

(a) the re-supply of services, or payment of the cost of re-supply of services; or

(b) the replacement or repair of goods, or payment of the cost of replacement or repair.

While our platform is pretty great, nothing is perfect. Our lawyers tell us it’s a good idea to include the above to ensure we’re not responsible for actions we can’t control or if something goes wrong (such as an inability to use the platform or a technical error). Also, remember how we mentioned the possibility of legal strife earlier? If you breach these Terms, it could cause us significant damage and you’ll be responsible for any mess this makes for us (including financial ones!).

7. Interpretation

7.1 The following terms are used regularly throughout these Terms and have a particular meaning:

(a) Account means a registered account for a Clinic which enables access to, and use of certain functionalities of, the Platform.

(b) Booking means an appointment with a Practitioner that is made using the Platform.

(d) Clinic means a medical practice, healthcare practice, Practitioner or other organised or incorporated body that provides healthcare services and has entered into a Software User Agreement or other signed written agreement with Us for access to and use of the Platform.

(e) Clinic User means any individual authorised to use the Platform by a Clinic.

(g) Health Information has the meaning given to that term by the Privacy Act.

(i) Patient means a person about whom information is stored within the Platform or is otherwise shared You with Us, and who is or has been a patient or consumer of Your health services.

(j) Patient User means any individual who is a patient of, or makes a Booking request for, You or Your Practitioners and who either:

(i) accesses the Platform in any way; or

(ii) receives a communication from, or otherwise interacts with, You via the Platform.

(k) Personal Information has the meaning given to that term by the Privacy Act.

(l) Practitioner means a medical practitioner, health professional or other individual with whom appointments may be made and managed via the Platform.

(m) Privacy Act means the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth).

(n) Recall means a clinical reminder sent to a Patient via the Platform.

(o) Reminder means an upcoming appointment reminder sent to a Patient via the Platform.

(p) Repeats means the Platform functionality which enables Patients to request a repeat prescription or referral from their Practitioner.

(s) Results means the Platform functionality which enables Clinics to provide results to Patients.

Terms means these Terms of Service.

(t) User means any Patient User or Clinic User.

7.2 The following rules apply to any interpretation of these Terms unless the context requires otherwise:

(a) headings are for convenience only and do not affect interpretation;

(b) the singular includes the plural and the opposite also applies;

(d) a reference to a clause or item refers to clauses and items in these Terms;

(e) a reference to legislation is to that legislation as amended, re-enacted or replaced, and includes any subordinate legislation issued under it;

(f) mentioning anything after includes, including, or similar expressions, does not limit anything else that might be included;

(g) a reference to a party to these Terms or another agreement or document includes that party’s successors and permitted substitutes and assigns (and, where applicable, the party’s legal personal representatives); and

(h) a reference to a person, corporation, trust, partnership, unincorporated body or other entity includes any of them.

The above sections explain what the capitalised terms we use throughout these Terms mean, and also has some general rules about how this contract should be read. Phew! You made it. Now let’s get on with connecting you with your patients!