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This document explains how PolyVoice Companion (PVC) works, what information is processed, and the terms that apply when you use the app. It is written for patients, caregivers, clinicians, and care-team members.
PVC is operated by Canadian Shield Health Care Services (CSHCS). Where PVC is provided by or on behalf of a clinic, hospital, or other healthcare organization, that organization may have additional policies that also apply.
This notice is designed to align with CSHCS governance practices, including our AI and Data Governance Policy and our risk and privacy management processes.
PVC helps users capture voice-based information and generates draft documentation such as transcripts, summaries, and structured notes (e.g., SOAP).
AI-generated content is always a draft. A qualified user must review and approve it before it is used in any official record or clinical workflow.
CSHCS does not train or fine-tune AI models using identifiable patient or client data.
We collect only the information needed to provide the service, support the user, secure the system, and measure performance.
We provide clear warnings about limitations (e.g., background noise, accents, overlapping speakers) and recommend verification of key details.
If we use third-party service providers to process information (such as cloud services), we require appropriate safeguards and contractual protections.
For the purposes of this notice:
“You” means the person using PVC (patient, caregiver, clinician, or authorized care-team member).
“Personal Information” means information that identifies you, directly or indirectly.
“Personal Health Information (PHI)” means health information about an identifiable individual.
“AI” means automated systems used to support transcription, language detection, summarization, and draft note generation.
“Draft Output” means transcripts, summaries, or notes generated by PVC that must be reviewed by a human before use.
PVC is a voice-first, multilingual platform that supports:
Voice capture and secure upload (asynchronous capture).
Automatic language detection and transcription.
Optional translation to English or French.
Draft structured documentation such as SOAP-style notes and summaries.
Optional patient-facing summaries and instructions (where enabled by the organization).
PVC uses AI to convert audio into text and to generate draft documentation. At a high level, PVC: (1) processes audio to generate a transcript; (2) uses the transcript to generate a structured draft note or summary; and (3) presents the draft to the user for review and editing.
AI in PVC is designed to support documentation. It does not diagnose conditions, recommend treatment, or make autonomous clinical decisions.
PVC uses enterprise-grade AI services (for example, Azure-hosted AI models) for inference. CSHCS configures these services with security and privacy safeguards.
CSHCS does not use identifiable patient or client data to train or fine-tune the underlying models. AI processing is performed only to generate the outputs requested by you or your organization.
Can: transcribe audio; detect language; draft summaries and structured notes; highlight potential risk signals when configured by your organization.
Cannot: verify clinical truth; guarantee completeness; replace professional judgment; create an official medical record without review.
Cannot: ensure perfect accuracy in noisy environments, with overlapping speech, or with uncommon medical terms.
AI outputs may contain errors. Common causes include background noise, multiple speakers talking at once, strong accents or dialects, and unclear audio.
To reduce risk, PVC includes and recommends:
Human review: a clinician or authorized user must review, correct, and approve draft outputs.
Verification of key facts: medications, dosages, allergies, diagnoses, and follow-up instructions should be double-checked.
Speaker clarification: if diarization is enabled, confirm that speakers are correctly attributed.
Escalation: when the content indicates urgent concerns, follow your organization’s clinical escalation workflow.
Audio recordings you choose to capture or upload.
Typed notes or edits you enter into the app.
Optional profile or organizational identifiers needed to manage access (e.g., role, clinic/team).
Transcripts, translations, summaries, and structured draft notes (e.g., SOAP).
System logs needed to maintain security and reliability (e.g., timestamps, device/app version).
Performance metadata (e.g., time-to-generate, cost and usage metrics).
We do not sell personal information.
We do not use identifiable patient or client data to train or fine-tune AI models.
We do not use your content for advertising.
We use information to:
Provide the core service (transcription, summarization, draft note generation).
Support users and respond to requests.
Secure the system, prevent fraud, and investigate incidents.
Monitor performance and reliability, including client-specific analytics.
Meet legal and contractual obligations (where applicable).
When users edit draft notes, PVC may collect non-identifying metadata (for example, time spent editing, frequency of edits, or workflow timing). This metadata is used to improve the experience for the relevant client/organization and to evaluate program performance. Edits and related metadata are not used to improve AI models globally.
CSHCS uses reputable third-party service providers (such as cloud hosting and security services) to operate PVC. We require safeguards, confidentiality obligations, and security controls appropriate for healthcare data.
Where possible, CSHCS configures services to store and process information in Canada. If any processing occurs outside Canada, CSHCS (or the deploying healthcare organization) will provide notice and obtain consent where required by law and policy.
Role-based access control (RBAC) and least-privilege access.
Encryption in transit (e.g., TLS) and encryption at rest for stored data and backups.
Secure handling of API credentials and secrets.
Logging and monitoring to detect suspicious activity.
Security incident and privacy breach response procedures.
Retention periods may depend on the deploying organization’s clinical and legal requirements. CSHCS supports configurable retention policies where feasible. When data is no longer required, it is securely deleted or de-identified in accordance with applicable policy.
Depending on the context (patient vs. clinician; clinic vs. public organization), you may have rights to access, correct, or request deletion of your information. Requests are handled in coordination with the deploying organization where applicable.
Access and correction: request access to your information and correct inaccuracies.
Consent and withdrawal: where consent is the basis for processing, you may withdraw consent (subject to legal/clinical record requirements).
Questions or complaints: contact us using the information below.
CSHCS maintains an incident management program for security incidents and privacy breaches. Where required by law or contract, we will notify the relevant organization and/or affected individuals in a timely manner, and we will take reasonable steps to contain, investigate, remediate, and prevent recurrence.
Do not upload content you do not have the right to share.
Do not attempt to reverse engineer or misuse the system.
Use PVC in accordance with your organization’s clinical policies and applicable law.
Report suspected issues or inaccuracies to your organization or CSHCS.
PVC provides draft documentation assistance and is not a substitute for professional judgment. CSHCS does not guarantee that AI-generated outputs will be error-free. Users are responsible for reviewing and approving outputs before use.
We may update this notice from time to time to reflect changes in technology, law, or our practices. The “Last updated” date at the top indicates when changes were made. Material changes will be communicated through the app or the relevant organization where appropriate.
For questions about this notice, privacy, or AI transparency, contact:
CSHCS Privacy and Security Office
Email: bii@canadianshieldhealth.com
Address: New Sudbury Centre 2nd Floor 1033 Barrydowne Road, Unit 206A, Sudbury, ON, P3A 5Z9
Phone: 705-618-7233 ext 0