Privacy policy and terms of use

Privacy policy

The Québec Medical Appointment Scheduler is a governmental service for scheduling appointments for family medicine online. The service is managed by the Régie de l’assurance maladie du Québec (RAMQ). Therefore, the privacy policy of this organization applies to this website.

To find out more about their privacy practices on this website, please refer to RAMQ’s Privacy policy webpage.

Terms of use

The present terms of use constitute a legal agreement between you and RAMQ regarding the access and use of the website www.rvsq.gouv.qc.ca​. La RAMQ may change the terms of use of the Québec Medical Appointment Scheduler, with the new terms being published on this website.

By using the Québec Medical Appointment Scheduler, you consent to:

• RAMQ for the communication of your personal information and, if applicable, information relating to your treating professional to medical clinics and health professionals so that your request for a medical appointment can be processed.
• Medical clinics and health professionals for the storage and use of your personal information and, if applicable, information relating to your treating professional, in order to improve the services related to the management of your appointment requests, for as long as the services related to appointments are available.

You may withdraw your consent at any time by giving reasonable notice to RAMQ, the medical clinic or the health professional you are consulting.

All personal information you provide, or disclosed by RAMQ when using the Québec Medical Appointment Scheduler is protected in accordance with the Québec Health Insurance Act, the Act respecting Access to documents held by public bodies and the Protection of personal information, the Act respecting the protection of personal information in the private sector, and any other applicable legislation.

By using the Québec Medical Appointment Scheduler, you agree to all the following terms of use and to the RAMQ Privacy policy.

Access to the Québec Medical Appointment Scheduler

Every citizen with a Québec Health Insurance Card can access the Québec Medical Appointment Scheduler. Non-eligible citizens (e.g., those having been outside Québec for an extended period) or those whose Health Insurance Card is expired can still schedule an appointment. They will be notified, however, that they must normalize their situation before attending their appointment.

The clinic is responsible for making sure that patients are covered by the Québec public health insurance plan when they attend their appointment.

Free service

The Québec Medical Appointment Scheduler is a service offered free of charge by the Québec government through RAMQ. No fee whatsoever is billed for scheduling an appointment with this online service.

However, clinics, at their discretion, may bill patients for missing or cancelling an appointment or for being late. RAMQ is not responsible for any such fee, which is not reimbursable.

Service availability

At any time, RAMQ may change or temporarily interrupt the Québec Medical Appointment Scheduler, for instance, to improve the service, without prior notification to clinics and citizens. RAMQ is not liable for any prejudice resulting from these changes or temporary interruptions.

Synchronization with the orchestrator

The Québec Medical Appointment Scheduler is aligned with the government appointment orchestrator (Hub). It is an IT solution for harmonizing and managing appointments with front-line health professionals. It improves access to appointment booking in medical clinics by showing all available slots according to the type of consultation, regardless of the appointment booking platform used by the clinics. Despite the efforts expended, the Québec Medical Appointment Scheduler is not immune to synchronization problems with this orchestrator. RAMQ cannot in any way be held liable for any prejudice caused by such a problem.

Search within a distance range of a postal code

One feature of the Québec Medical Appointment Scheduler allows for searching available appointments in clinics within a given distance range (perimeter) of a postal code set by a person. By offering “general” available time-slots, the clinics enable citizens located within this search perimeter to obtain an appointment in their clinic.

The postal code perimeter is as the crow flies and does not take into account driving distances. The actual driving distance may be greater. Québec Medical Appointment Scheduler users alone must determine whether the distance is acceptable.

Text message transmittal (SMS)

RAMQ assumes the cost of automated text messages sent via the Québec Medical Appointment Scheduler.

Additional fees for text messages and Internet data may apply depending on the users’ contract with their cell phone provider (e.g., a package not covering text message reception). RAMQ is not liable for these fees. In case of doubt, users are invited to check the details of their cell phone package with their provider.

SMS reminders are sent between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m.

Standard text messaging fees (SMS)

The RAMQ text messaging service is provided without any additional fee to anyone having a cell phone with a pre-paid package or monthly package covering text messaging (standard fee). The fee applicable for the RAMQ common short code 64636 number is the same as that applicable for sending a text message to a close relation. In case of doubt, users are invited to contact their cell phone company to avoid additional fees.

Data fees

Text messages sent by RAMQ may contain a hyperlink. If the user clicks on the link, data fees will apply according to the cell phone package. These are the same data fees as those applicable when accessing the Internet with a cell phone. In case of doubt, users are invited to contact their cell phone company to avoid additional fees.

Block receipt of text messages

The RAMQ text messaging service is not a subscriber service. No unsolicited text message may be received from the RAMQ common short code number. It is possible to block the receipt of text messages from this number by changing the communication preferences in the Québec Medical Appointment Scheduler for each appointment taken, using the unique reference number.

Automated telephone calls

All automated telephone calls (confirmations and reminders) are sent out between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. to the number indicated in the “Home telephone” field. By selecting “Telephone” in the preferred means of communication, citizens accept that certain information (including their first name, the date and time of the medical appointment, and the name of the clinic) will be read to them by the automated voice system when they pick up the receiver. If they are absent and have voice mail, an automated message will be left. If they do not answer at the first automated call, a second call will be made three hours later.

For an appointment confirmation, there is a 10-minute lag between the time the appointment is made and the time an automated message is issued. If both the confirmation and reminder are slated for the same day, only the confirmation will be issued.

Email transmittal

Confirmation and reminder emails sent to citizens are partially personalized by the clinics. RAMQ is not liable for the content of the personalized portion of these emails.

Appointment confirmations are sent in the minutes following the scheduling of the appointment in the Québec Medical Appointment Scheduler.

It is possible that emails may wind up in the spam (junk mail) folder. Citizens are responsible for checking their incoming emails.

Appointment cancellation

The clinic is responsible for establishing the deadline given to patients for canceling appointments online. The deadline, varying according to clinic, is 24 h or less before the appointment. Past this deadline, patients are invited to call the clinic directly to cancel an appointment. In such case, the clinic may charge a cancelation fee.

Links to other websites

The Québec Medical Appointment Scheduler may direct users to other websites. This does not mean that it approves of the content of these sites nor of the content of sites accessible through them. Given that RAMQ is unable to monitor these sites, it cannot guarantee the accuracy and completeness of their content, advertisements, products, services or other materials made available by or through such external sites or sources. Furthermore, RAMQ cannot be held liable for any damage or loss resulting from the use of these other websites.

Information entry

Some information entered by clinics will be used for producing emails, text messages (SMS) and automated telephone calls, including for appointment confirmations and reminders. Citizens and clinics must be vigilant when entering this information.

Intellectual property

The brand name Québec Medical Appointment Scheduler is the property of RAMQ, which holds the exclusive intellectual property rights thereto.

Legal system

The service Québec Medical Appointment Scheduler is governed by the law applicable in Québec. Any dispute related to the access or use of this service will be submitted to the exclusive jurisdiction of Québec courts.