November 10, 2026
Quick answer: The ten most common NMC advertising mistakes doctors make are patient testimonials, before-and-after photos, a missing registration number, “best” or “No. 1” claims, success rates and guarantees, offers and giveaways, review requests, patients visible in reels, unlabelled AI content, and unsupervised agencies or influencers. Under the NMC notice of 6 October 2026, most of these appear to conflict with the guidelines and can be fixed in a day.
Published: 10 November 2026 · By Akhil Dave, Founder & Principal Consultant, HMS Consultants
When HMS reviews a doctor’s online presence, the same problems appear again and again. This guide lists the ten most common ones, shows what each looks like, cites the relevant clause of the notice and gives a simple fix. For more detail, see the complete NMC guide and the 100 questions answered.
| # | Mistake | HMS rating | Clause |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Keeping patient testimonials or review screenshots | Red | 8.1(xi), 3.2 Expl. V |
| 2 | Posting before-and-after photos or “results” | Red | 8.1(v) |
| 3 | Leaving out your name, qualifications and registration number | Red | 3.2 Expl. III |
| 4 | Using “best”, “No. 1” or “leading” anywhere | Red | 8.1(ix), 8.1(xii) |
| 5 | Quoting patient numbers, success rates or “painless” and “guaranteed” | Red | 8.1(iii), 8.1(vi) |
| 6 | Running offers, discounts, giveaways or referral gifts | Red | 8.1(x) |
| 7 | Asking patients for Google reviews with QR codes or WhatsApp messages | Amber to Red | 3.2 Expl. V |
| 8 | Showing patients in reels, photos and screenshots | Red | 6.1 to 6.4, 7.4, 8.1(v) |
| 9 | Publishing AI-made content without a label | Amber | 7.2 |
| 10 | Letting an agency, influencer or staff post without your approval | Amber to Red | 4.4, 8.1(vii), 8.1(viii), 8.1(xi) |
Rating scale used by HMS: Red appears to conflict with the guidelines, Amber is borderline or untested. HMS is a marketing consultancy and does not give legal verdicts.
Rating: Red · Clause: 8.1(xi), 3.2 Expl. V
A testimonials page, “patients say” block, video thank-you, WhatsApp chat screenshot or a row of five-star banners.
The notice bars testimonials, endorsements and recommendations from patients, celebrities, influencers, employees and other third parties in any form. Patient consent does not cure this, and doctors may not request or share patient reviews for promotion on social media.
Unpublish the page, remove the menu and footer links, and delete review widgets and screenshots. Replace them with educational content in your own name.
Rating: Red · Clause: 8.1(v)
A results gallery, a transformation reel, a “happy patient” post or a celebrity patient mention.
The notice bars before-and-after photos, surgical results and success stories. The only narrow exception is scientific or educational use with anonymised, documented consent, for example in a journal.
Remove the gallery and the posts. If a case is worth teaching, publish it in a journal or in an anonymised educational format.
Rating: Red · Clause: 3.2 Expl. III
A website footer, blog or Instagram bio with a logo and phone number but no register number.
Any doctor publishing an electronic media post must disclose name, qualifications, registration status and the SMR or NMR number. A hospital must list its doctors with the same details.
Add a disclosure line to the footer, every doctor profile, blog author boxes and your social bios: Dr [Name], [qualifications]. [State] Medical Council Reg. No. [number].
Rating: Red · Clause: 8.1(ix), 8.1(xii)
“Best orthopaedic surgeon in Vadodara” in a page title, meta description, image alt text, Google Business Profile name or Instagram bio.
Superiority claims are barred unless they are objectively verifiable, based on a transparent and independently checkable method, and lawful. Keyword-stuffed “best doctor in city” pages and names can also fall under the search-manipulation rule.
Search your own site and profiles for “best”, “top”, “No. 1”, “leading” and “most trusted”. Replace them with factual descriptions: your speciality, place of practice and qualifications.
Rating: Red · Clause: 8.1(iii), 8.1(vi)
“10,000+ surgeries”, “99% success”, “painless treatment”, “guaranteed results”.
The notice bars advertising personal achievements, success rates and the number of patients treated, and statements that create unrealistic expectations or conceal risks.
Remove the numbers and absolute words. Say what the procedure involves, its risks and that outcomes vary by patient.
Rating: Red · Clause: 8.1(x)
“20% off this month”, “free consultation camp”, a festival contest, a referral reward.
Discounts, limited-period offers, contests, coupons, gifts, cashbacks, referral benefits and free procedures are barred where they encourage unnecessary consultation or amount to solicitation. A plain, standing fee with no inducement is Amber at most.
Publish fees factually and permanently. Drop time-limited offers, prizes and referral rewards.
Rating: Amber to Red · Clause: 3.2 Expl. V
A “Rate us on Google” QR code at reception, a review link in your WhatsApp reply, a review card at discharge.
The notice bars soliciting or procuring reviews for promotion and requesting or sharing patient reviews on social media. A Google review request is a grey area, but its purpose is promotion.
HMS advises stopping review requests until the NMC clarifies, removing QR codes and cards, and never quoting or embedding reviews on your site or posts.
Rating: Red · Clause: 6.1 to 6.4, 7.4, 8.1(v)
A treatment-day reel, a patient face in the background, a report with a visible name, a tattoo or birthmark in a case photo.
Names, faces, birthmarks, tattoos and identifiers must be masked, and consent must be specific, informed, voluntary, documented and verifiable. Consent never legalises a prohibited practice such as a results post.
Keep patients out of promotional content entirely. For genuine education, anonymise fully and keep written consent.
Rating: Amber · Clause: 7.2
AI-written blogs or captions with no label, AI-made “patient” images, a cloned-voice video of the doctor.
AI-generated promotional campaigns for commercial interest are prohibited. Permitted AI promotional content must carry a source mark, and AI must not create or alter a patient image, testimonial, voice or outcome, or a synthetic endorsement.
Review every AI draft yourself, add a line such as “This content was generated with AI assistance” where relevant, and never use AI to create patient material.
Rating: Amber to Red · Clause: 4.4, 8.1(vii), 8.1(viii), 8.1(xi)
A freelancer posting patient stories, an influencer reel for your clinic, an agency paid per lead or per appointment.
You stay responsible for content you authorised, commissioned, sponsored, adopted or knowingly permitted. Payment linked to procuring or referring individual patients, including lead-generation fees, is barred.
Approve every post in writing, add the NMC rules to your agency contract, and avoid any per-lead or per-patient fee. Take legal advice on how the agency rule applies to your arrangement.
For the full list, use our NMC compliance audit checklist. For a step-by-step guide to Instagram, read can a doctor post on Instagram.
Prefer a professional review? The NMC Compliance Audit checks every channel and gives you a red, amber, green report. Book a free 30-minute call to start.
Patient testimonials and review screenshots, before-and-after photos, missing registration numbers, “best” and “No. 1” claims, success rates and patient counts, and offers or giveaways. These are the items HMS rates Red.
Open your website, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, Google Business Profile and directory listings. Search each for testimonials, reviews, before-and-after images, “best”, “No. 1”, “guaranteed”, patient counts, offers and patient identifiers, and confirm your registration number appears.
The notice of 6 October 2026 is silent on earlier content. HMS suggests reviewing your bio, pinned posts, highlights and the last three months of posts, and removing anything that conflicts.
The notice does not clearly address it. HMS rates it Amber. Do not quote, embed, reshare or showcase it, and reply neutrally with no patient detail.
The State Medical Council may contemplate graded action, starting with a warning and mandatory ethics training and rising to suspension for serious or repeated violations. A show-cause notice comes first and there is a right of appeal (cl. 10.1 to 10.3, 11.1).
Yes. The NMC Compliance Audit is a red, amber, green review of your website, social media, Google Business Profile and directory listings, with a report in 7 working days. It is a marketing compliance review and not legal advice.
A red, amber, green review of your website, social media and Google profile.
Explore the AuditBuild a professional presence that works within the guidelines.
Explore Doctor BrandingA wider review of how your hospital attracts and converts patients.
Explore Marketing AuditDisclaimer: HMS Consultants is a healthcare marketing consultancy. We are not a law firm and this guide is not legal advice. References to the NMC notice reflect our understanding of public information as of 10 November 2026. Ratings are HMS marketing-review judgements, not legal conclusions. Please consult a qualified healthcare lawyer before acting.
About the author: Akhil Dave is Founder & Principal Consultant of HMS Consultants, with 25+ years in healthcare marketing.
Work with HMS Consultants
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