Website Terms of Use
Last Updated: November 1, 2022
Welcome to HeartValveSurgery.com, including our Patient Community platform, and any other websites and platforms we own and operate that link to these Website Terms of Use (collectively, the “Website”). Through the Website, Heart Valve Interactive Corp. (“Heart Valve Interactive,” “Company,” “us,” “we,” or “our”) provides several features, content, and resources for heart valve surgery patients including but not limited to our Heart Valve Learning Center, the Heart Valve Patient Community, Heart Valve Videos, the Heart Valve Surgeon Finder, the Heart Hospitals Directory, and Adam’s Heart Valve Surgery Blog, and our related services, events, social media pages, and email and other electronic communications (collectively with the Website, the “Services”).
If you choose to access the Website or make use of any of the information or materials it contains, you agree to be bound by these Website Terms of Use (“Terms”). If you do not agree to all of these Terms, do not use the Website.
PLEASE NOTE THAT THESE TERMS ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE BY COMPANY IN ITS SOLE DISCRETION AT ANY TIME. When changes are made, we will make a new copy of the Terms available on the Website. We will also update the “Last Updated” date at the top of these Terms. If you do not agree to any change(s) after receiving a notice of such change(s), you shall stop using the Website and the Services. Otherwise, your continued use of the Website or the Services constitutes your acceptance of such change(s).
The Website Does Not Provide Medical Advice
The Website, and all information contained therein (the “Content”) is provided for informational purposes only. THE CONTENT DOES NOT CONSTITUTE AND IS NOT INTENDED TO BE A SUBSTITUTE FOR PROFESSIONAL MEDICAL ADVICE OR ATTENTION BY A QUALIFIED PRACTITIONER. THE CONTENT CANNOT AND SHOULD NOT BE USED AS A BASIS FOR DIAGNOSIS OR CHOICE OF TREATMENT. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on the Website. If you think you may have a medical emergency, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room immediately. No physician-patient relationship is created by the Website or its use.
Heart Valve Interactive does not recommend or endorse any specific tests, physicians, products, procedures, opinions, or other information that may be mentioned on the Website. Neither Heart Valve Interactive nor its employees, nor any contributor to the Website (including our sponsors, such as Featured Physicians, medical device companies, and hospitals (collectively, “Sponsors”)), makes any representations, express or implied, with respect to the information provided herein or to its use. Reliance on any information appearing on the Website, or other visitors to the Website is solely at your own risk. Physicians or other medical practitioners or health care companies featured on the site (“Featured Physicians”) may have relationships with health care industry vendors. You are responsible for asking any physician with whom you consult about such relationships.
The Website may contain information describing or depicting health or medical conditions or procedures in graphic detail. If you find these materials offensive, you may not want to use the Website.
Non-Medical & Medical Professional Users
The majority of users on the Website are patients, their family members and their friends. At the same time, Heart Valve Interactive has partnered with many doctors to help educate and empower the patients in our community. The information provided by doctors is shared in articles, interviews, videos, e-books, infographics and posts. When a medical professional provides their medical opinion or medical information the status of that user is clearly identified on the Website.
Registration and Account Security
To use the Website and Services you (i) must be at least 18 years of age; (ii) have not been suspended or removed from the Website; (iii) agree to be bound by these Terms; and (iv) shall register for and use the Website and Services in compliance with any and all applicable laws and regulations. By using the Services, you acknowledge our Privacy Policy.
Account Registration. To access some features of the Services, you may be required to register for an account (“Account”). When you register for an Account, we may ask you to give us certain identifying information about yourself, including but not limited to your email address and other contact information, and to create a username and password (“Registration Information”). When registering for and maintaining an Account, you agree to provide true, accurate, current, and complete information about yourself. You also agree not to impersonate anyone, misrepresent any affiliation with anyone else, use false information, or otherwise conceal your identity from Heart Valve Interactive for any purpose.
You Are Responsible for Your Account. You are solely responsible for maintaining ¬¬-the confidentiality and security of your password and other Registration Information. For your protection and the protection of other users, we ask you not to share your Registration Information with anyone else. If you do share this information with anyone, we will consider their activities to have been authorized by you. If you have reason to believe that your Account is no longer secure, you must immediately notify us at support@heartvalvesurgery.com.
Ownership and Use of the Services
Ownership. Except as provided to you in these Terms, Heart Valve Interactive retains all rights, title, and interests (including all proprietary and Intellectual Property Rights) in and to the Services. “Intellectual Property Rights” means all rights of the following types, under the laws of any jurisdiction worldwide: (a) rights associated with works of authorship, including exclusive exploitation rights, copyrights, and moral rights; (b) trade secret rights; (c) trademark rights; (d) patent rights; (e) mask work, sui generis database rights, and industrial property rights; (f) other proprietary rights of every kind and nature; and (g) rights in or relating to registrations, renewals, extensions, combinations, divisions, and reissues of, and applications for, any of the above.
License. Subject to these Terms, you are hereby granted a limited, revocable, non-exclusive, non-transferable, non-assignable license to access and use the Services for your own personal and non-commercial use, and otherwise engaging directly with Heart Valve Interactive and other users of the Services. Any other use is expressly prohibited. This license is revocable at any time without notice and with or without cause.
Technology. The Services, and the databases and technology used by or on behalf of Heart Valve Interactive to operate the Services, and the structure, organization, and underlying data, information, and software code thereof (collectively, the “Technology”), constitute valuable trade secrets of Heart Valve Interactive and its third-party providers. Heart Valve Interactive and its third-party providers retain all right, title and interest, including, without limitation, all Intellectual Property Rights in and to the Technology and any additions, improvements, updates and modifications thereto. You receive no ownership interest in or to the Technology and you are not granted any right or license to use the Technology itself, apart from your ability to access and use the Website under these Terms. The Company name, logo, and all product and service names associated with the Services are trademarks of Company and its third-party providers (“Company Marks”) and you are granted no right or license to use them.
Restrictions. You will not, and will not permit any third party to: (1) access or attempt to access the Services except as expressly provided in these Terms; (2) use the Services in any unlawful manner or in any other manner that could damage, disable, overburden or impair the Services; (3) use automated scripts to collect information from or otherwise interact with the Services; (4) distribute, sell, resell, lend, loan, lease, license, sublicense or transfer any of your rights to access or use the Services; (5) use the Services for any purpose other than your own internal use; (7) attempt to circumvent or overcome any technological protection measures intended to restrict access to any portion of the Services; (8) monitor the availability, performance, or functionality of the Services; (9) interfere with the operation or hosting of the Services; or (10) alter, obscure, or remove any copyright, trademark, or any other notices that are provided on or in connection with the Services.
Feedback. You agree that we are free to disclose aggregate measures of usage and performance, and to reuse all general knowledge, experience, know-how, works and technologies (including ideas, concepts, processes and techniques) acquired during provision of the Services hereunder. All user suggestions for correction, change or modification to the Services, evaluations, and other feedback, information and reports provided to us hereunder (collectively, “Feedback”) will be the property of Heart Valve Interactive and you hereby assign any rights in such Feedback to us.
User Generated Content
Posting User Generated Content. The Services may function as a venue to connect users. Heart Valve Interactive is a neutral facilitator with no direct involvement in interactions on the Services or control over the truth, accuracy, quality, legality, or safety of posts made by users. As a user of the Services, exercise common sense and good judgment and refer to the Company for investigation of any use that is not in compliance with these Terms. We may provide opportunities for you to post, upload, or submit content on or through the Services (collectively, “User Generated Content”). This is entirely voluntary. You agree that you will be solely responsible for all User Generated Content that you submit to the Website, including the consequences of posting or publishing such User Generated Content.
Representations and Warranties. You represent and warrant that the use of your User Generated Content by Heart Valve Interactive or any other user of the Services does not violate the rights of any third party or any laws, rules, or regulations. Heart Valve Interactive reserves the right (but has no obligation) to review any User Generated Content, investigate, or take appropriate action against you in its sole discretion if you violate these restrictions or otherwise create liability for Heart Valve Interactive or any other person. Such acts may include removing or modifying your User Generated Content, terminating your Account, or reporting you to law enforcement authorities.
Company License to User Generated Content. By creating, posting, or sharing any User Generated Content on or through our Services, you grant Heart Valve Interactive an irrevocable, perpetual, transferrable, unconditional, unrestricted, sublicensable, worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to copy, use, reproduce, modify, remove, publish, upload, distribute, transmit, publicly display and create derivative works from your User Generated Content for any purpose, without compensation to you, including for the purpose of promoting our Services. You waive any rights you may have regarding your User Generated Content being altered or manipulated in any way that may be objectionable to you. We reserve the right to refuse to accept, post, display, or transmit any of your User Generated Content in our sole discretion.
Disclaimer of All User Generated Content. Heart Valve Interactive does not endorse any User Generated Content or any opinion, recommendation, or advice expressed on the Website and expressly disclaims any and all liability in connection with such User Generated Content. Heart Valve Interactive reserves the right to review all User Generated Content prior to posting it on the Website and to remove any User Generated Content for any reason, at any time, without prior notice, at our sole discretion.
Request for Verification. For any and all User Generated Content posted by you, we request that you provide the source information for User Generated Content when it is not personal experience or general knowledge. Personal experience is any symptom, test, treatment, etc., that the person or a close family member has undergone themselves. We request that you verify the source of all statements about statistics, data, studies, and new advancement in medicine.
Public Areas
If you use publicly available areas of the Website (“Public Areas”), such as a chat room, message board, blog, community posting or other member communities, you are solely responsible for your own communications, the consequences of posting those communications, and your reliance on any communications found in the Public Areas. Heart Valve Interactive, Featured Physicians, and its licensors are not responsible for the consequences of any communications in the Public Areas. If you think you may be having a medical emergency, call your doctor or 911 immediately.
In consideration of being allowed to use the Public Areas, you agree that the following actions shall constitute a material breach of these Terms:
1. Using a Public Area for any purpose in violation of local, state, national, or international laws;
2. Posting material that infringes on the intellectual property rights of others or on the privacy or publicity rights of others;
3. Posting material that is unlawful, obscene, defamatory, threatening, harassing, abusive, slanderous, hateful, or embarrassing to any other person or entity as determined by Heart Valve Interactive in its sole discretion;
4. Posting content for any commercial purpose or for unauthorized or unsolicited advertising purposes;
5. After receiving a warning, continuing to disrupt the normal flow of dialogue, or posting comments that are not related to the topic being discussed (unless it is clear the discussion is free form);
6. Distributing viruses or other harmful computer code, “spamming,” or harvesting or otherwise collecting information about others, including email addresses, without their consent;
7. Impersonating another person or allowing any other person or entity to use your identification for posting or viewing comments;
8. Engaging in any other conduct that restricts or inhibits any other person from using or enjoying the Public Area or the Website, or which, in the judgment of Heart Valve Interactive, exposes Heart Valve Interactive or any of its customers or suppliers to any liability or detriment of any type.
Heart Valve Interactive reserves the right (but is not obligated) to do any or all of the following:
1. Record the dialogue in public chat rooms.
2. Investigate an allegation that a communication(s) do(es) not conform to the terms of this section and determine in its sole discretion to remove or request the removal of the communication(s).
3. Remove communications which are abusive, illegal, or disruptive, or that otherwise fail to conform with these Terms.
4. Terminate a user’s access to any or all Public Areas and/or the Website upon any breach of these Terms.
5. Monitor, edit, or disclose any communication in the Public Areas.
6. Edit or delete any communication(s) posted on the Website, regardless of whether such communication(s) violate these standards.
All users must follow instruction from forum moderators. Moderators reserve the right to delete posts at the moderator’s discretion without notifying the posters. Moderators reserve the right to remove posts from any Public Areas if the moderator deems that such posts don’t bring value to users or violate any of these Terms. Removing posts is a manual process, however, so please realize that the moderators may not be able to remove or edit particular messages immediately. This policy applies to member profile information provided as part of Registration Information as well.
Neither Heart Valve Interactive nor its licensors have any liability or responsibility to users of the Website or any other person or entity for performance or nonperformance of the aforementioned activities.
Social Network Features
The Services may include features that operate in conjunction with certain third-party social networking websites that you visit, such as Facebook, that allow you to share, post, retweet or otherwise use content from the Website to interact with other social media platforms (“Social Media Features”). While your use of the Social Media Features is governed by these Terms, your access to and use of third-party social networking sites is governed by the terms posted on those sites. You are responsible for ensuring that your use of those social networking sites complies with any applicable terms of service or other agreements.
Links to Other Websites
Heart Valve Interactive does not recommend and does not endorse the content on any third-party websites. Heart Valve Interactive is not responsible for the content of linked third-party sites, sites framed within the Website, third-party sites provided as search results, or third-party advertisements, and do not make any representations regarding their content or accuracy. Your use of third-party websites is at your own risk and subject to the terms and conditions of use for such sites.
Liability of Heart Valve Interactive and its Licensors
The Services are provided on an “as is” and “as available” basis. WE DO NOT MAKE ANY COMMITMENTS ABOUT THE SERVICES, THE SPECIFIC FUNCTIONS OF THE SERVICES, THAT THE SERVICES WILL BE FREE FROM ERRORS, VIRUSES, BUGS OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS, OR THE RELIABILITY, COMPLETENESS, SECURITY, QUALITY, ACCURACY, AVAILABILITY, OR APPLICABILITY TO YOU OF THE SERVICES, ANY CONTENT PROVIDED ON THE SERVICES, OR ANY SERVICES OFFERED BY HEART VALVE VIA THE SERVICES OR ELSEWHERE ONLINE OR OFFLINE. Without limiting the foregoing, Heart Valve Interactive and its licensors and Sponsors make no representations or warranties about the following:
1. The accuracy, reliability, completeness, currentness, or timeliness of the Content provided by Heart Valve Interactive on or through the use of the Website; or
2. The satisfaction of any government regulations requiring disclosure of information on prescription drug products, medical procedures or medical devices referenced on the Website.
Limitation of Liability
EXCEPT WHERE PROHIBITED, IN NO EVENT SHALL HEART VALVE INTERACTIVE, ITS LICENSORS, SPONSORS, OR ANY THIRD PARTIES MENTIONED ON THE WEBSITE BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, INCIDENTAL AND CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, PERSONAL INJURY/WRONGFUL DEATH, LOST PROFITS, OR DAMAGES RESULTING FROM LOST DATA OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) RESULTING FROM THE USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE THE WEBSITE OR THE CONTENT, WHETHER BASED ON WARRANTY, CONTRACT, TORT, OR ANY OTHER LEGAL THEORY, AND WHETHER OR NOT HEART VALVE INTERACTIVE, ITS LICENSORS, SPONSORS, OR ANY THIRD PARTIES MENTIONED ON THE WEBSITE ARE ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. HEART VALVE INTERACTIVE, ITS LICENSORS, SPONSORS, OR ANY THIRD PARTIES MENTIONED ON THE WEBSITE SHALL BE LIABLE ONLY TO THE EXTENT OF ACTUAL DAMAGES INCURRED BY YOU, NOT TO EXCEED $50. HEART VALVE INTERACTIVE, ITS LICENSORS, SPONSORS, OR ANY THIRD PARTIES MENTIONED ON THE WEBSITE ARE NOT LIABLE FOR ANY PERSONAL INJURY, INCLUDING DEATH, CAUSED BY YOUR USE OR MISUSE OF THE SERVICES. ANY CLAIMS ARISING IN CONNECTION WITH YOUR USE OF THE SERVICES MUST BE BROUGHT WITHIN ONE (1) YEAR OF THE DATE OF THE EVENT GIVING RISE TO SUCH ACTION, OTHERWISE, SUCH CLAIM WILL BE PERMANENTLY BARRED. REMEDIES UNDER THESE TERMS ARE EXCLUSIVE AND ARE LIMITED TO THOSE EXPRESSLY PROVIDED FOR IN THESE TERMS.
Indemnity
You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold Heart Valve Interactive, its managers, members, officers, employees, agents, licensors, Sponsors, and suppliers, harmless from and against any claims, costs, fines, fees, losses, damages, actions or demands, liabilities and settlements including without limitation, reasonable legal and accounting fees, resulting from, or alleged to result from your User Generated Content or use thereof, your violation of these Terms or applicable law, or your use of the Website.
Violation of These Terms
If Heart Valve Interactive determines, in its sole discretion, that you have breached any portion of these Terms, Company reserves the right to: (i) warn you via e-mail (to any e-mail address you have provided to Company) that you have violated the Terms; (ii) discontinue your use of any Services; and (iii) pursue any other action that Company deems to be appropriate.
International Users
Our Website is targeted towards users located in the United States, however, given the nature of the Internet, our Website may be accessed in other parts of the world. If you are not a resident of the United States and you use the Website, you acknowledge, understand and agree that you are doing so on your own initiative and at your own risk, and that it is your responsibility to make sure that your use of the Website complies with all applicable local laws in the jurisdiction form where you access or use the Website. If you are located outside of the United States, by using the Website or submitting any personal information (as described in the Privacy Policy) to us, you expressly consent to the transfer, processing and storage of your personal information in the United States, a jurisdiction in which the privacy laws may not be as comprehensive as those in the country where you reside.
Jurisdiction
These Terms are governed by the internal substantive laws of the State of California, without respect to its conflict of laws principles. If any provision of these Terms is found to be invalid by any court having competent jurisdiction, the invalidity of such provision shall not affect the validity of the remaining provisions of these Terms, which shall remain in full force and effect. No waiver of any of these Terms shall be deemed a further or continuing waiver of such term or condition or any other term or condition.
You expressly agree that exclusive jurisdiction for any dispute with Heart Valve Interactive, or in any way relating to your use of the Website, resides in the courts of the State of California and you further agree and expressly consent to the exercise of personal jurisdiction in the courts of the State of California in connection with any such dispute including any claim involving Heart Valve Interactive or its affiliates, subsidiaries, employees, contractors, officers, managers, members, telecommunication providers, and content providers.
Notice and Takedown Procedures; and Copyright Agent
We adhere to the following notice and take down policy, in full compliance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 (17 U.S.C. § 512 et seq.). We may remove any materials posted on the Website upon receipt of notification alleging that such material infringes on the intellectual property rights of another (hereafter a “DMCA Takedown Notice”). To be valid, a DMCA Takedown Notice must (a) be provided to our designated agent (“Copyright Agent”), and (b) must include the following:
1. A physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed;
2. Identification of the work claimed to have been infringed, or, if multiple copyrighted works at a single online site are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works at that site;
3. Identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity and that is to be removed or access to which is to be disabled and information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to locate the material;
4. Information reasonably sufficient to permit the service provider to contact you, such as an address, telephone number, and, if available, an electronic mail;
5. A statement that you have a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and
6. A statement that the information in the notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that you are authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.
Our Copyright Agent to receive DMCA Takedown Notices is:
Heart Valve Interactive Corp.
Attn: Legal
2785 Pacific Coast Hwy
Suite 517
Torrance, CA 90505
dmca@heartvalvesurgery.com
Or call: (888) 725-4311
You acknowledge that in order for us to takedown any materials, your DMCA Takedown Notice must comply with all of the requirements set forth above. Upon receipt of a valid DMCA Takedown Notice, we may (i) remove the allegedly infringing materials, or disable access there-to, and (ii) take reasonable steps to contact the provider of such allegedly infringing materials. Upon receipt of a conforming response to your DMCA takedown Notice, we may replace the removed materials within 10 business days unless you provide a court order to restrain us from doing so.
Changes to the Website
Heart Valve Interactive may, at any time, modify or discontinue all or part of the Website, Content, or services; change, modify or waive fees required to use the Website, Content, or services; or offer opportunities to some or all users. Heart Valve Interactive may suspend or terminate your access to the Website, Content, or Services at any time and for any reason.
Complete Agreement
Except as expressly provided in a particular “legal notice” on the Website, these Terms and the Heart Valve Interactive Privacy Policy constitute the entire agreement between you and Heart Valve Interactive with respect to the use of the Website and Content. Thank you for your cooperation. We hope you find the Website helpful and convenient to use. Questions or comments regarding the Website, including any reports of non-functioning links, should be submitted by email to support@heartvalvesurgery.com, by phone to (888) 725-4311, or via U.S. mail to:
Heart Valve Interactive Corp.
2785 Pacific Coast Hwy
Suite 517
Torrance, CA 90505
The previous Terms of Service effective prior to November 1, 2022 are available here.
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