Terms and Conditions

Agreement to these terms

These Terms and Conditions are an agreement between you and the operators of Hearts+. By creating an account or using the platform, you agree to these terms and to the Hearts+ Usage Policy, which is part of them. How we collect, protect, and use your information is described in the Hearts+ Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, do not use the platform.

What Hearts+ is

Hearts+ is a self-care platform for adults managing heart failure at home. At its center is SAHRA, a virtual self-care assistant that checks in with you, answers self-care questions, and helps you follow the care plan your clinicians gave you. Hearts+ operates as part of a research program, and access is by invitation from the research team; there is no public sign-up.

Not medical advice

Hearts+ and SAHRA support your self-care between visits with your care team. They do not diagnose conditions, prescribe or change medications, or replace your clinicians, and nothing on the platform is medical advice. Always follow the guidance of your care team. If you believe you are having a medical emergency, call 911 immediately; do not use Hearts+ to report an emergency.

Your account

You need an account to use Hearts+, and you must be at least 18 years old to have one. Give accurate information when you create it, keep your password private, and tell us promptly through Help and support if you believe someone else has used your account. You are responsible for activity under your account. You can change your password at any time in Settings, or recover it from the sign-in screen if you have forgotten it.

Acceptable use

Your use of Hearts+ must follow the Hearts+ Usage Policy. The Usage Policy is part of these terms, and violating it is a violation of these terms.

Your privacy

Hearts+ is a health platform, and your information is health information protected under HIPAA. The Hearts+ Privacy Policy describes what we collect, how it is protected, who can see it, and the rights you have over it. For everything about your information, the Privacy Policy governs.

Text messaging

Text messaging is an optional part of Hearts+. You are never required to agree to text messages in order to enroll, to receive care, or to use any other part of the platform. You can use the Hearts+ mobile or web app instead, and declining text messages does not affect your care, your access to Hearts+, or your participation in the study.

Text messaging is turned on only with your active consent, and only for a mobile number you give us. At enrollment, your clinician or study coordinator reviews a written text messaging authorization with you, and you choose whether to accept it. You can also add and verify your own mobile number in the app under Settings, which requires you to confirm a one time code sent to that number. We do not send messages to any number until one of these steps is complete.

If you turn text messaging on, SAHRA sends messages that support your care plan. These include a prompt to create a four digit PIN when you first enroll, reminders about your medications and readings, confirmations of what you have logged, answers to questions you text, and one time codes when you verify your number. We do not send marketing or promotional text messages.

Message frequency varies and depends on how you use the service and on the reminders in your care plan. Message and data rates may apply, and any charges from your mobile carrier are your responsibility. Carriers are not liable for delayed or undelivered messages, and delivery depends on your carrier and on conditions we do not control.

You can stop text messages at any time by replying STOP to any message, which unsubscribes that number and confirms that no further messages will be sent. Reply HELP for help, or text MENU to see your options. You can also turn text messaging off in the app under Settings, or ask the research team to turn it off for you. Stopping text messages does not end your participation in Hearts+ or in the study, and your care is not affected.

Give us only a mobile number that belongs to you and that you are authorized to enroll. Tell us promptly through Help and support if your number changes or if you stop using it, so that your health information is not sent to someone else.

How we handle your mobile number is described in the Hearts+ Privacy Policy. We do not sell your mobile number, and no mobile information is shared with third parties or affiliates for their own marketing or promotional purposes.

The research study

Hearts+ operates as part of a research study. Your participation in the study is governed by the informed consent you accepted when you enrolled: it controls how study data is collected and used, how research results are handled, and how you can withdraw. If these terms and the consent ever disagree about research data or study participation, the consent controls. Withdrawing from the study is always available to you and is described in the consent.

Content and ownership

The Hearts+ software, design, and content belong to the operators of Hearts+ and their licensors. We grant you a personal, non-transferable right to use the platform for your own self-care while you participate in the program. The information you record remains yours; you give us the permission we need to store and process it to provide the service, as described in the Privacy Policy.

Changes to these terms

We may update these terms as the platform develops. If we make a meaningful change, we will tell you in the app before the change takes effect, and the version number above will move. Continuing to use Hearts+ after a change takes effect means you agree to the updated terms.

Ending participation

You can stop using Hearts+ at any time, and you may withdraw from the study as the consent describes. We may suspend or close an account that violates these terms or the Usage Policy, or where the study requires it. If that happens, we will tell you why. The Privacy Policy continues to govern your information after an account closes.

Disclaimers and limitation of liability

Hearts+ is provided as is and as available, as part of a research program. The service may be unavailable at times, may change, and may contain errors, and we do not warrant otherwise. To the fullest extent the law allows, the operators of Hearts+ and the research team are not liable for indirect, incidental, or consequential losses arising from your use of the platform. Nothing in these terms limits any liability that cannot be limited by law, and nothing in them alters our obligations for your health information under HIPAA.

Contact

For questions about these terms, use Help and support in the app, or contact the research team using the details in your consent document.