Help

The Health Canada Web site provides you with different ways to find information. If you need assistance locating information or using features such as how to search our site, please try one of the links below.

New Look for the Health Canada Web Site

As of June 2008 our Web site has a new look and the menu on the left hand side of the page provides navigation throughout the site.

This tour of the new look site will take you through many of the improvements.

Finding Information

You can find information on the Health Canada Web site by using one of the following methods:

• Frequently Asked Questions
  We invite you to read our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ), which addresses many of the most common questions.
• Navigation
  The pages on the Health Canada Web site include common page elements. Descriptions of the common page elements are provided.
• RSS (Really Simple Syndication) Feeds
  Find out what RSS is and why you might find it useful to use Health Canada RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feeds.
• Search Engine
  The search engine offers quick access to information through bilingual (French or English) keyword or phrase searches.
• Site Map
  The site map is a visual model of the layout and content of the Health Canada Web site. It is organized hierarchically, breaking down the site's information into increasingly specific issue areas.

Accessibility and Web Site Specifications

The Web site specifications include content formats found on this site, scripting and accessibility.

Acronyms

Not sure what some of the acronyms on our site means? Check our list of Health Canada acronyms.

Contacts

Have a question and want to speak to someone? See our list of contacts to focus your question to the most appropriate area of the Department.

Alternative Formats and Plug-ins

Information throughout the Health Canada Web site is provided in HTML as the primary format. In some cases, other software formats are provided as alternatives. To open these alternate formats, you may need to download and install one or more of the following on your computer:

Word Processing Software

• PDF - They may also be available as Portable Document Format. To view these files you will need Adobe Acrobat Reader. If the Adobe download site is not accessible to you, you can download Acrobat Reader from an accessible page. You can also visit the Adobe site for online conversion tools for PDF documents.
• DOC - Some files are available in Microsoft Word or Rich Text formats. To view these files you will need Microsoft Word Reader.
• XLS - To read a spreadsheet in Microsoft Excel format, you will need the Microsoft Excel Viewer.
• PPT - Presentations are available in Microsoft PowerPoint format. To view these files you will need PowerPoint Presentation Viewer.

Media Players (for viewing interactive content)

• Flash
• Quicktime
• RealPlayer
• Windows Media Player

Zip files

Why Zip files? - Zip files compress data and therefore save time and space, and make downloading software faster.

How do I open a Zip file? - After you have installed Zip software, you can open a Zip file by double clicking it in your browser and choosing "Unzip or install from an existing Zip file" in the WinZip Wizard. If you do not have Zip software on your computer, you can download many free versions.