Privacy Policy

Privacy Policy for Pennsylvania Academy of Ophthalmology
Effective Date: June 20, 2010 

Our Policy
Pennsylvania Academy of Ophthalmology (“PAO” “we” “us,” or “our”) respects and understands our website users’ concerns about confidentiality and privacy, and we take reasonable steps to ensure that any information you give us is handled in a safe and responsible manner. Because of our respect and understanding, we have developed this Privacy Policy which discloses the privacy practices of the PAO and describes the information we collect about you during your use of our site and what use we may make of that information.

It is important to remember that by using our site, you agree to the terms of this Privacy Policy. We suggest that you refer to this Privacy Policy on a regular basis as it may change, at any time in the PAO’s sole discretion, in order to allow us to take advantage of any technological advances or for business purposes or legal reasons.

Information That We May Collect
We collect your information in different areas of our site. The exact information collected and how it is collected varies depending on the areas of our site that you use. Some information is collected automatically such as URLs, and some information is provided by you voluntarily.

When you register as a member, we collect personal information, including, without limitation, name, address, e-mail address, telephone number, licensing information, and medical education number.  We also collect information you provide for contributions to PAO’s Political Action Committee (“PA Ophthalmology PAC”), such as bank account information and credit card information. We may also disclose your information and the amount of any contributions you make through PA Ophthalmology PAC as may be required by any local, state or federal election commission or otherwise as required by law. If you do not want to provide us with this information or any other requested information, please do not complete any forms. Additionally, the site may allow you to voluntarily disclose information to us through a survey or in an e-mail. 

In the course of using our site, we may also automatically track certain information about you. This information may include the date and time you access our site, the URL that you just came from (whether this URL is on our site or not), which URL you go to next (whether this URL is on our site or not), what browser you are using, and your Internet Protocol (IP) address. Many sites automatically collect this information. We do not collect or use this information to create a profile about you, except in certain limited cases for members of the PAO. We may also decide to use cookies on certain pages of our site. Cookies can help us understand how you use our site, so that we may make changes to improve the user experience. Cookies are also used when members log in, and may be stored for your convenience in order to assist you with the login process the next time you visit our site. Cookies are stored on your hard drive, not on our site. Most cookies are “session cookies,” meaning that they are automatically deleted at the end of a session. By modifying your browser preferences, you have the choice to accept all cookies, to be notified when a cookie is set, or to reject all cookies. For more information on how to modify your browser preferences, see the “Unofficial Cookie FAQ” at www.cookiecentral.com/faq.

Our Use of Your Information
We internally use personally identifiable information to improve our goods and services, to statistically analyze site usage, to improve our content, to customize our site’s content and layout, and for maintenance purposes. We believe these uses allow us to improve our site and better tailor it to meet our users’ needs. We may also disclose or use personally identifiable information to investigate and respond to any violations of our policies then in effect from time to time.

Due to the PAO’s affiliation with the Pennsylvania Medical Society, the Pennsylvania Medical Society hosts and manages the PAO member data. The PAO uploads all information concerning the PAO site users and members to the Pennsylvania Medical Society database each day. All users of the data base have access to the stored information.

We may use personally identifiable information to deliver information that, in some cases, is targeted to your needs and interests, such as promotional e-mails, targeted banners and promotions. If you are a registered member, you may receive occasional mail from us announcing events, new information, or updates to our website.  If you do not wish to receive such mailings, please send us an e-mail to pao@pamedsoc.org indicating your e-mail address or mailing address as applicable and asking us to remove you from our mailing list.

We can (and you authorize us to) disclose any information about you as required by law, including voluntary disclosures to law enforcement agencies and government officials, as we, in our sole discretion, believe necessary or appropriate.

Unfortunately, due to the existing regulatory environment, we cannot ensure that all of your private communications and other personally identifiable information will never be disclosed in ways not otherwise described in this Privacy Policy. By way of example (without limiting the foregoing), third parties may unlawfully intercept or access files, transmissions or private communications. Therefore, we do not promise, and you should not expect, that your personally identifiable information or private communications will always remain private under all circumstances.

Third Party Collectors of Information
Our Privacy Policy only addresses the use and disclosure of information we collect from you. To the extent that your information is disclosed by you to third parties, different rules may apply to their use or disclosure of your information. These third parties adhere to their own privacy customs and policies. Because we do not control the privacy policies of third parties, you are subject to the privacy customs and policies of that third party. We do not make any representations or warranties as to how such third parties may use your information.

Notification of Material Changes to this Policy
This Section identifies material changes to this Policy since the Effective Date.
(None at present.)

Contacting the Site
If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, or if you would like to review, change or remove your personal information, you can e-mail us at pao@pamedsoc.org.