USE OF THE ONLINE BOOKING SYSTEM

By consenting to the use of email the patient will be granted access to the Algonquin Family Health Teams secure online booking system.

This system allows patients to:

  • Communicate with the Lakeview Physician staff in a secure online environment

  • Become informed about important Lakeview Physician Clinic announcements (including clinic closures, programs, events, or changes in practice) and receive our summer and winter patient newsletters

PLEASE NOTE ALL EMAIL COMMUNICATION WITH THE LAKEVIEW PHYSICIAN CLINIC THAT OCCURS OUTSIDE OF THE SECURE ONLINE PORTAL IS SUBJECT TO THE FOLLOWING:

RISKS OF USING EMAIL

The Algonquin Family Health Team and Lakeview Physician Clinic offer patients the opportunity to communicate by email. Sending patient information includes several risks of which the patient should be aware. The patient should not agree to communicate with Lakeview Physician staff via email without understanding and accepting these risks.

The risks include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • The privacy and security of email communication cannot be guaranteed.

  • Employers and online services may have a legal right to inspect and store emails that pass through their system.

  • Email is easier to falsify than handwritten or signed hard copies. In addition, it is impossible to verify the true identity of the sender or to ensure that only the recipient can read the email once it has been sent.

  • Emails can introduce viruses into a computer system and potentially damage or disrupt the computer.

  • Email can be forwarded, intercepted, circulated, stored, or even changed without the knowledge or permission of the physician or the patient. Email senders can easily misaddress an email, resulting in it being sent to many unintended and unknown recipients.

  • Email is permanent. Even after the sender and recipient have deleted their copies of the email, backup copies may exist on a computer or in cyberspace.

  • The use of email to discuss sensitive information can increase the risk of such information being disclosed to third parties.

  • Email can be used as evidence in court.

CONDITIONS OF USING EMAIL

Lakeview Physicians clinic staff will use reasonable means to protect the security and confidentiality of email information sent and received. However, because of the risks outlined above, Lakeview Physician staff cannot guarantee the security and confidentiality of email communication, and will not be liable for improper disclosure of confidential information that is not the direct result of intentional misconduct of the physician. Thus, patients must consent to the use of email for patient communication.

Consent to the use of email includes an agreement with the following conditions:

  • Emails to the patient concerning diagnosis or treatment may be printed in full and made part of the patient's medical record. Because they are part of the medical record, other individuals authorized to access the medical record, such as staff, billing personnel, and other health care professionals on our team who are part of your care, will have access to those emails.

  • Email communication is not an appropriate substitute for clinical examinations. The patient is responsible for following up on Lakeview Physician staff email and for scheduling appointments where warranted.

  • The patient should not use email for communication regarding sensitive medical information, such as sexually transmitted diseases, AIDS/HIV, mental health, developmental disability, or substance abuse. Similarly, the physician will not discuss such matters over email.

  • Lakeview Physicians is not responsible for information loss due to technical failures.

  • The patient will notify Lakeview Physicians should there be any change in email address.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR COMMUNICATING BY EMAIL

To communicate by email, the patient shall:

  • Limit or avoid using an employer's computer.

  • Inform the Lakeview Physicians of any change in the patient's email address.

  • Review the email to make sure it is clear and that all relevant information is provided before sending to Lakeview Physicians staff.

  • Inform the Lakeview Physicians staff that the patient received the email.

  • Take precautions to preserve the confidentiality of emails, such as using screen savers and safeguarding computer passwords.

  • Withdraw consent only by email or written communication to Lakeview Physicians staff.

  • Should the patient require immediate assistance, or should the patient's condition appear serious or rapidly worsen, the patient should not rely on email. Rather, the patient should call his/her family doctor's office for consultation or appointment, visit the office or take other measures (such as calling an ambulance) as appropriate.

PATIENT ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I acknowledge that I have read and fully understand this consent form. I understand the risks associated with the communication of email between Lakeview Physicians staff and me, and consent to the conditions outlined herein, as well as any other instructions that the Lakeview Physicians staff may impose to communicate with patients by email. I acknowledge Lakeview Physicians staff’s right to, upon the provision of written notice, withdraw the option of communicating through email. Any questions I may have had were answered. I am at least 16 years of age and competent to contract on my own behalf.

I wish to receive email from my family doctor and/or the Lakeview Physicians Clinic and/or Algonquin Family Health Team in the terms outlined above.