"It is the policy of the Commonwealth of Virginia that personal information about citizens will be collected only to the extent necessary to provide the service of benefit desired; that only appropriate information will be collected; that citizens shall understand the reason the information is collected and be able to examine their personal record which is maintained by a public body"
For each visitor, the Virginia Department of Health Professions (DHP) collects information about your online visit. This information does not identify you personally and is limited to: the Internet Protocol (IP) address, type of browser used, the date and time of the visit, the IP addresses of the locations to which the visitor linked during a visit to the website and the pages visited. This information is strictly used for statistical reporting purposes and allows DHP to track the number of customers who visit the site and identify the most popular pages to optimize site performance and accessibility.
Though personal information may be required either by law or in order for DHP to provide a requested service, in doing so the agency is subject to the requirements for administering information systems as established in the Government Data Collection and Dissemination Practices Act of Virginia (Code of Virginia, §§ 2.2-3800 through 2.2-3809). A third-party link whose practices are not under the control of DHP, may regulate pages that appear after clicking on such a link.
When you log on to one of the agency's current online services, such as Online Licensing, the personal information captured is for the purpose of conducting business with DHP. In addition, the agency collects the following information about a visit: Internet Protocol address, browser type, the name of the domain from which the Internet is accessed, and the visit date and time. The personal information provided is required to complete various purchase or subscription transactions with the agency online and for DHP to deliver the requested services. DHP will only collect, retain, and use personal information when it believes it is essential, and allowed by law, to conduct business and provide products and services. DHP will not be able to provide online services unless users provide the requested personal information.
Personal information provided to the agency is safeguarded according to the laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Information from the online surveys is used to improve online services that the agency offers, and determine a user's satisfaction level with the DHP site and services.
To promote Web access for people with disabilities the Virginia Department of Health Professions strives to meet all guidelines of the World Wide Web Consortium's (W3C) Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI).
Cookies are small files either stored on a server or sent back to a visiting computer. In certain applications, user information is stored as cookies that are then sent back and stored on the user's computer. No user information is gathered through cookies except for that needed to run the specific application. For certain applications, temporary cookies are created to identify an individual and maintain a secure and proper connection during an online transaction.
The DHP website links to third-party sites. These include links to websites operated by other government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and private businesses. When linking to another site, DHP website privacy policy will not apply and are now subject to the privacy policy of that new site.
Links to other sites are included to provide useful and valuable information to visitors. Hypertext links to external websites and pages may be removed or replaced at the sole discretion of DHP, at any time without notice. An organization sponsoring the content from a hypertext provided, is not intended as DHP's endorsement of any product, service, or viewpoint offered, referenced, or expressed.
DHP's FOIA policy Guidance document 76-35 is available for review.
The Department of Health Professions will review this document periodically in an effort to assure that this information is complete and accurate.
Neither DHP, nor any employee of the Department guarantees the accuracy, reliability or timeliness of any information published through its website system, nor endorses any content, viewpoints, products or services linked from the system, and shall not be held liable for any losses caused by reliance on the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of such information. Portions of such information may be incorrect or outdated. Any person or entity that relies on any information obtained from the system does so at the user's risk.
Translation of the website into languages other than English is intended to assist the non-English-reading public. Automated translation software (specifically, Smartling) has been used. Some pages or content may not be accurately translated due to both the limitations of the translation software and the nuances in translating to a foreign language. The Commonwealth of Virginia does not make any promises, assurances, or guarantees as to the accuracy of the translations provided, and such translations shall not be legally binding on the Commonwealth. This site may also contain links to information created and maintained by other public and private organizations. The Commonwealth of Virginia does not control or guarantee the accuracy, relevance, timeliness, completeness, or translation of outside information. The Commonwealth of Virginia and its agencies, officers, and employees shall not be liable for damages or losses of any kind arising out of, or in connection with, the use or performance of such information, including damages or losses caused by reliance upon the accuracy of such information and/or incurred from the viewing, distributing, or copying of such information.
If any of these policies change it will be noted on this page.