AI Communication Services Acceptable Use Policy

AI Communication Services Acceptable Use Policy

1. Purpose

This AI Communication Services Acceptable Use Policy (Policy) applies to all Practice Customers using Healthengine's AI Communication Services, including AI Receptionist, Smart Recalls, Smart Appointment Reminders, Smart SMS messaging, patient engagement campaigns and any other artificial intelligence enabled or automated patient communication service or functionality made available by Healthengine from time to time.

This Policy forms part of the Practice Customer Agreement. Capitalised terms not defined in this Policy have the meaning given in the Practice Customer Agreement.

2. Permitted Use

Practice Customers may use AI Communication Services only for legitimate healthcare practice operations, including:

appointment booking and scheduling;
appointment confirmations and reminders;
recalls and clinical reminders;
patient follow up communications;
patient engagement relating to healthcare services;
practice administration;
responding to patient enquiries; and
any other purpose approved by Healthengine in writing.

Practice Customers must use AI Communication Services in a manner that promotes patient safety, privacy and compliance with applicable laws and professional obligations.

Practice Customers must use AI Communication Services only where the communication is reasonably intended to support patient care, continuity of care, patient engagement, informed healthcare decision making or practice administration, and where the communication is reasonably likely to be beneficial to the recipient patient.

3. Clinical Responsibility

Practice Customers remain solely responsible for:

all healthcare services provided to patients;
determining whether a patient should receive a recall, clinical reminder or other communication;
determining the timing, frequency and appropriateness of communications;
reviewing and actioning patient responses where required;
maintaining appropriate clinical records; and
all clinical decision making.

AI Communication Services are administrative tools only and must not be relied upon as a substitute for professional clinical judgement.

4. Prohibited Uses

Practice Customers must not use AI Communication Services:

(a) Clinical Advice and Decision Making

to diagnose, treat or manage medical conditions;
to provide clinical advice without appropriate practitioner review;
to make treatment recommendations;
to determine the urgency of a patient's condition;
to perform clinical triage; or
to make decisions regarding patient care without appropriate human oversight.

(b) Emergency Communications

for emergency communications;
for urgent or time-critical communications where delay, error or non-delivery may create a risk to patient safety; or
as a substitute for direct patient contact where urgent clinical intervention may be required.

(c) Inappropriate Patient Promotion and Influence

to encourage, promote or induce patients to acquire healthcare services that are not clinically appropriate or reasonably required;
in a manner that may improperly influence, pressure or manipulate a patient's healthcare decisions;
in a manner that may compromise a patient's ability to make informed healthcare choices;
to market products or services of third parties; or
in an unethical, coercive or misleading manner.

(d) Unlawful or Inappropriate Communications

to send communications that are misleading, inaccurate or deceptive;
to send spam or communications that breach applicable marketing, privacy or electronic messaging laws;
to harass, intimidate or improperly pressure patients;
to impersonate any individual or organisation;
to send excessive, repetitive or intrusive communications, or otherwise use AI Communication Services in a manner reasonably likely to be perceived as harassment; or
for any unlawful purpose.

5. Human Oversight

Practice Customers must maintain appropriate oversight of AI Communication Services and ensure that suitably trained personnel are available to:

monitor communications generated or sent using AI Communication Services;
review patient interactions where necessary;
correct inaccurate information;
intervene in communications where required; and
manage escalations to practice staff.

Practice Customers must not deploy AI Communication Services in a fully automated manner where doing so may create a risk to patient safety.

6. Patient Communications

When using AI Communication Services, Practice Customers must:

obtain all consents required by law before communicating with patients;
comply with all applicable privacy, health records, electronic messaging and spam laws;
ensure patients are able to contact the practice through alternative communication channels;
clearly identify the practice as the sender of communications;
ensure communications are consistent with applicable professional standards and regulatory requirements; and
only use AI Communication Services in respect of patients with whom they have an existing patient relationship or other lawful basis for communication and must immediately cease communications where a patient has opted out or withdrawn consent.

Where AI generated communications are used in patient interactions, Practice Customers must take reasonable steps to ensure patients are informed that AI technology may be used to assist with those communications.

Practice Customers must not use AI Communication Services to create or send targeted marketing communications based on a patient's health information, diagnosis, treatment history, medications or other sensitive information, except where the communication constitutes a clinically appropriate recall, reminder, follow-up communication or other communication directly related to the patient's care.

7. Patient Opt Outs

Practice Customers must respect and promptly action any patient request to opt out of receiving communications where required by law.

Practice Customers must not use AI Communication Services to circumvent, override or otherwise interfere with any patient communication preferences or opt out requests.

8. Accuracy and Verification

AI generated content may be incomplete, inaccurate or inappropriate in particular circumstances.

Practice Customers must ensure that communications generated using the AI Communication Services contain only the personal information (including health information) reasonably necessary for the purpose of the communication.

Practice Customers are responsible for:

verifying information generated by AI Communication Services where appropriate;
reviewing communication templates before use;
ensuring communications remain clinically and operationally appropriate; and
correcting any errors identified in communications generated by AI Communication Services.

Healthengine does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness or suitability of AI generated content.

8. Recalls and Clinical Reminders

Practice Customers acknowledge and agree that:

they are solely responsible for determining which patients receive recalls and clinical reminders;
they are solely responsible for the content and appropriateness of recalls and clinical reminders;
recalls and clinical reminders should be appropriate and reasonably directed towards improving patient care or continuity of care;
recalls and clinical reminders must not be used primarily as a means of generating patient demand for healthcare services;
delivery of a communication does not guarantee receipt, review or action by a patient; and
Healthengine does not assume responsibility for patient follow up, recall management or continuity of care.

9. Monitoring and Enforcement

Healthengine may monitor use of AI Communication Services for quality assurance, safety, compliance, product improvement and security purposes.

Healthengine may suspend, restrict or terminate access to AI Communication Services where it reasonably believes:

use of the services creates a patient safety risk;
the Practice Customer has breached this Policy;
the Practice Customer has breached applicable laws or regulations; or
continued use may expose Healthengine, patients or third parties to material risk.

10. Updates

Healthengine may update this Policy from time to time in accordance with the Practice Customer Agreement.

Continued use of AI Communication Services after an updated Policy takes effect constitutes acceptance of the revised Policy.