Deborah^® Digital Privacy Policy

This website should NOT be used in urgent or emergency medical situations. If you have a medical emergency, call 911 immediately.

Effective Date: May 5, 2023

This Digital Privacy Policy applies to the website or any mobile application that may be linked to this Digital Privacy Policy (a “Service” or the “Services”) and that are provided by any “Deborah^®”-affiliated entity including Deborah Heart and Lung Center, Deborah Hospital Foundation and Deborah Specialty Physicians (“we,” “us,” or “our”) .

Deborah Hospital Foundation is a non-profit fundraising corporation. Deborah Specialty Physicians is a non-profit private physician practice. Deborah Heart and Lung Center manages the Deborah Specialty Physicians and Deborah Hospital Foundation websites. The name “Deborah” is a registered trademark of Deborah Heart and Lung Center and is used under license granted by Deborah. All Rights Reserved.

IMPORTANT NOTE: This Digital Privacy Policy applies to personally identifiable information (“PII”) that you provide to us when using the Services. In general, PII includes information such as your name, address and contact information. It also may include Protected Health Information (“PHI”) and Web Browsing Data as described below.

Protected Health Information

PHI is information that can be used to identify an individual, such as your name, address and birth date. Your PHI may be collected, for example, if you use the “Request an Appointment” feature and schedule an appointment with us. PHI is also subject to the Deborah Heart and Lung Center Notice of Privacy Practices and/or the Deborah Specialty Physicians Notice of Privacy Practices (the “HIPAA Notices”). The HIPAA Notices are separate documents that describe how, under federal law, Deborah Heart and Lung Center and Deborah Specialty Physicians may use and share your PHI as well as your rights with respect to your PHI. This Digital Privacy Policy supplements the HIPAA Notices with respect to PHI. If there is a conflict between this Digital Privacy Policy and the HIPAA Notices with respect to PHI, the HIPAA Notices will apply. The HIPAA Notices do not apply to any information that is not PHI.

Web Browsing Data

Web Browsing Data is information that identifies how you browse the Internet, such as your computer’s Internet protocol address, device and advertising identifiers, browser type, operating system, Internet service provider, pages that you visit before using the Services, the date and time of your use of the Service, information about the links you click and pages you view within the Services, and other standard server log information. We may collect your Web Browsing Data, as well as certain location information, when you use the Services, such as your mobile device’s GPS signal, or information about nearby WiFi access points and cell towers. Web Browsing Data is generally not PHI and in such case, is only subject to this Digital Privacy Policy. However, in certain circumstances, some Web Browsing Data may be considered PHI and in such case will be subject to the HIPAA Notices. Please refer to the HIPAA Notices for more information on how we may use and share PHI.

I. Collection of Information

We may collect the following kinds of information when you use the Services:

Information You Provide Directly to Us.

In connection with certain Services or activities, such as when you register with a Service, use the “Request an Appointment” feature, use the “Contact Us” feature, use one of our general health Quizzes or Risk Assessments, subscribe to our alerts, or contact us directly, we may collect some or all of the following types of information.

Contact information, such as your full name, email address, mobile phone number, and address;
Username and password, if you are registered for a mobile application;
Personal health information, including information about your diagnosis, previous treatments, general health, and health insurance, which you provide for example, when you request an appointment, or answer one of our online general health Quizzes or Risk Assessments.
Doctor reviews that you may choose to submit; and
Any other information you provide to us, such as questions about the Services.

You should not use the “Contact Us” forms, health Quizzes or Risk Assessments for urgent or emergent questions or questions of a medical nature. You should also not send any medical, confidential or sensitive information in the “Contact Us” forms. You are not communicating with a health care professional when you submit this information, and using these tools will not create a doctor-patient relationship. Quizzes and Risk Assessments will only screen for certain risk factors, providing you with information you may use to follow up with a physician for a formal diagnosis.

Information We Collect Automatically.

We collect certain Web Browsing Data automatically when you use the Services,

through use of cookies, pixel tags, Local Shared Objects (“LSO”s), and similar technologies. Cookies are small bits of information that are stored by your computer’s web browser. Pixel tags are very small images or small pieces of data embedded in images, also known as “web beacons” or “clear GIFs,” that can recognize cookies, the time and date a page is viewed, a description of the page where the pixel tag is placed, and similar information from your computer or device. An LSO is a data file that is stored in the user’s computer by visiting a website that runs a Flash application. It functions like a cookie. By using the Services, you consent to our use of cookies, pixels, LSOs and similar technologies.

We may also collect technical data to address and fix technical problems and improve the Services. Your device or browser settings may permit you to control the collection of this technical data. By using the Services, you consent to allowing us, or any party acting on our behalf, to collect this technical data.

Information from Third-Party Services.

We use third-party companies to provide advertisements of goods and services that may be of interest to you when you access and use the Services. We also place digital advertisements on other third–party websites or online services. If you access the Services from one of our digital advertisements on a third–party website, application, or other service (a “Third-Party Service”) we may receive information from the owner of the Third-Party Service related to you and that advertisement.

Third-Party Service companies may independently place or recognize a unique cookie on your browser (including through the use of pixel tags which the third party may place on your browser). They may also use these technologies, along with Web Browsing Data or other information they collect about your online use, to recognize you across the devices you use, such as a mobile phone and a laptop.

These third–parties do not receive from us any PII that you may include in “Contact Us” or “Request an Appointment” forms or which you provide in our online Quizzes and Risk Assessments.

If you would like more information about these third-party practices, or to learn how to opt out in desktop and mobile browsers on your devices, please visit http://optout.aboutads.info and http://optout.networkadvertising.org. These are third party consumer educational resource websites designated to educate and assist consumers with their digital privacy. You may also download third-party applications designated to help you opt out in mobile apps.

Information We Obtain from Other Sources.

We may receive information about you from other sources, including through third-party services and organizations. We may combine our first-party data, such as your email address or name, with other data from other sources and use this collective data to contact you (e.g. through direct mail). For example, if you visit our website and also visit one of our Heart Check Center kiosks located in community locations and provide your contact information during those visits, we may combine these two data sets to identify which of our services may be of interest to you.

II. Use of Information

We may use the information we collect online from you to:

Provide and improve the Services;
Contact you;
Fulfill your requests for our products, services, and information;
Send you information about additional clinical services or general wellness from us;
Analyze your use of the Services and user data to understand and improve the Services;
Conduct market research using your information;
Prevent potentially prohibited or illegal activities and otherwise act in accordance with our Terms of Use; and
For any other purposes disclosed to you at the time we collect your information or pursuant to your specific consent.

III. Sharing of Information

We are committed to maintaining your trust, and we want you to understand when and with whom we may share the information we collect.

Authorized third-party vendors and service providers. We may share your information with third-party vendors and service providers that help us by providing specialized services, including billing, payment processing, customer service, email deployment, business analytics, marketing our services (including but not limited to advertising, attribution, deep-linking, direct mail, mobile marketing, optimization and retargeting) advertising, performance monitoring, hosting, and data processing. These third-party vendors and service providers may not use your information for purposes other than those related to those services they are providing to us.
Legal purposes. We may disclose information to respond to subpoenas, court orders, legal process, law enforcement requests, legal claims or government inquiries, and to protect and defend our rights, interests, health, safety, and security.
Business Transfers. We may transfer your information as part of a transfer of the assets of the organization, merger, or consolidation or in the unlikely event of bankruptcy.
Protected Health Information. We may share your PHI as described in the HIPAA Notices and permitted under HIPAA. We generally will not share PHI with third parties unless permitted by HIPAA and the HIPAA Notices. Please refer to the HIPAA Notices for more information on how we may use and share PHI.
Consent. We may transfer your PHI with your consent or at your direction. We may share information for any other purposes disclosed to you at the time we collect the information or pursuant to your consent or direction. If you choose to engage in public activities on the third–party sites to which we offer links, you should be aware that any information you share there can be read, collected, or used by other users of those sites and forums. You should use caution when disclosing personal information while participating in these areas. We are not responsible for the information you choose to submit in public areas.
We will never sell your PII or PHI.

IV. Security

We use technical and other security measures to protect your PII and PHI from loss, theft, misuse, and unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, and destruction. No data storage system or transmission of data over the Internet or any other public network can be guaranteed to be 100 percent secure. Any information that you choose to transmit over the Internet is done at your own risk.

V. Third-Party Links, Content and Tracking

Some of the Services may contain links to content maintained by third–parties that we do not control. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of these third–parties, and the information practices of these third–parties are not covered by this Digital Privacy Policy.

Google Analytics is a web analytics service offered by Google that tracks and reports website traffic. Although we do not use Google Analytics services, Google Analytics may be independently enabled on your device and may use data to track and monitor your access and use of websites. You may opt-out of Google Analytics by visiting this link.

This Web site may contain links to other Web sites, and other Web sites may provide links to this Site. These links are provided for your convenience only. We do not control these other sites and do not endorse them, nor do we assume any liability or responsibility for them, including any content or services provided to you by such sites. You should not consider any link to, or from, another site as an endorsement of that site by us unless we expressly state so.

For your convenience, the Privacy Policies/Terms of Service for some of these third–party Web sites are provided below. We recommend that you read these when you access any content or services provided by such sites.

VI. International Users

We do not knowingly allow use of the Services outside of the United States. We maintain information in the United States and in accordance with the laws of the United States, which may not provide the same protections as the laws of other jurisdictions, and therefore, the Services are intended only for use within the United States. Please contact us directly by phone if you are outside of the United States and would like additional information. Any use of the Services and provision of information from outside of the United States is done at your own risk.

VII. Children

We do not knowingly allow individuals under the age of 18 to create access accounts to our Services, or collect information from children under the age of 18. If you are under 18, do not use or provide any information on this site or on or through any of the Services.

VIII. Changes to the Privacy Policy

We may update this Digital Privacy Policy from time to time. When we update the Digital Privacy Policy, we will revise the “Effective Date” date above and post the new Digital Privacy Policy on our website. We recommend that you review the Digital Privacy Policy each time you visit the Services to stay informed of our current privacy practices that apply to all information as of the revised Effective Date. You can always refuse to accept any changes by ceasing to use the Services.

IX. Questions?

If you have any questions about this Digital Privacy Policy or our practices, please email us at WebsitePrivacy@deborah.org.

Deborah® Digital Privacy Policy