Portals and video appointments: Canada.

A take-home sheet for people at the session. Other countries: United States · United Kingdom · Australia.

Moraph for Good · Reach

Portals and video appointments: Canada

Handout · moraph.org/commons/sessions/reach/portals-and-video-appointments

Online health services can save a trip, as long as they are set up safely and before you need them. This sheet sums up the session, with details for where you live in the box below.

Setting up a portal

Get the sign-up link from your provider, not from a search or a message.
Use a strong password you use nowhere else and turn on two-step sign-in.
Ask about family or carer access instead of sharing your login.
Sign out fully on shared or public computers.

Using it

Results can appear before a clinician has discussed them; call the clinic if one worries you.
Portal messages are not for emergencies.
If you can’t find something, ask the clinic’s front desk or help line.

Video appointments

Test the link, camera and sound before the day.
Find a private place and charge your device.
Have your questions and medicines list ready.
Ask for an interpreter, captions or a phone call if you need one.

Avoiding scams

Be wary of urgency, threats, free offers and payment by gift card.
Never share passwords, sign-in codes or bank details.
Hang up and call back on a number you already have.

In Canada

Portals vary by province. Personal health information in Canada falls under different federal, provincial or territorial privacy laws depending on who holds it. If you have a concern about how a portal or provider handles your health information, start with that organization, then your provincial or territorial privacy authority.
Multi-factor authentication. The Government of Canada’s Get Cyber Safe advises turning on multi-factor authentication whenever a website, app or device allows it. It adds an extra step to signing in, so a stolen password alone isn’t enough.
Reporting fraud. If you are a victim of fraud or cybercrime, contact your local police as soon as possible. Victims and witnesses can also report to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre online, anonymously if they wish.

Official places to check:

Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada: www.priv.gc.ca/en/privacy-topics/health-information-genetics-biometrics/02_05_d_70_phi
Get Cyber Safe (Government of Canada): www.getcybersafe.gc.ca/en/secure-your-accounts/multi-factor-authentication
Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre: antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca/report-signalez-eng.htm

General information, not advice about your own situation. Checked 19 October 2026. If an official source says something different, it is right. Free to copy and adapt. moraph.org/commons/sessions/reach/portals-and-video-appointments