HPCSA advertising rules: what your practice can and can't say online

Ask practice owners why they don't do more marketing and “the HPCSA” comes up quickly. The worry is fair: nobody wants a complaint against their registration over a Facebook post. But the rules themselves are short, and once you know what they say, most of the fear goes away.

This guide covers the HPCSA's Ethical and Professional Rules (Booklet 2), which apply to doctors, dentists, physiotherapists, psychologists and every other profession registered with the HPCSA. (Chiropractors are registered with the Allied Health Professions Council, which has its own rules. The principles are similar, but check them directly.)

What the rules allow

Rule 3 is the one that matters, and it starts with permission, not prohibition. You may advertise your services, as long as the advertising is not “unprofessional, untruthful, deceptive or misleading” and doesn't cause people unwarranted anxiety that they may have a health condition.

In practice, you can comfortably publish:

• What you treat and the services you offer, described accurately.
• Your qualifications, registration and areas of interest, stated factually.
• Your location, hours, contact details and which medical aids you work with.
• Educational content: what a condition is, when to see someone about it, what a first appointment involves.
• Photos of your practice, your rooms and your team.

What “canvassing” and “touting” actually mean

Rule 3 also says you may not canvass or tout for patients, or allow anyone to do it on your behalf. Both words are defined, and the definitions are more useful than the words.

Canvassing is drawing attention to your “personal qualities, superior knowledge, quality of service, professional guarantees or best practice”. So:

• “The best physio in Sandton” is canvassing. It's a superiority claim.
• “Pain-free in three sessions, guaranteed” is canvassing. It's a professional guarantee.
• “Johannesburg's leading dental practice” is canvassing.
• “We treat sports injuries, back and neck pain, and post-surgical rehab” is fine. It's a fact.

Touting is drawing attention to offers, guarantees or material benefits that aren't professional services themselves but are linked to them, or designed to pull patients in. Think prize draws for new patients, gifts with a booking or rewards for referring friends.

Don't compare yourself with colleagues

Rule 12 says you may not “cast reflections on the probity, professional reputation or skill” of another registered practitioner. Marketing that implies other practices are worse (“unlike other practices, we actually listen”) sits uncomfortably close to that line. Talk about what you do, not what others don't.

Your practice name and your Google listing

Rule 5 governs practice names, including limits on words like “hospital”, “clinic” and “institute” that could suggest you're part of one. This matters online, because a common Google Business Profile trick is to stuff keywords into the listing name: “Smith Physiotherapy – Best Sports Injury Clinic Sandton”. That breaks Google's own guidelines, which ask for your real-world business name, and it can put you on the wrong side of Rule 5 as well. Use your actual practice name, and let your categories and services do the keyword work.

Reviews, testimonials and patient stories

The rules don't mention testimonials by name, but two of them make testimonials tricky:

• Confidentiality (Rule 13). You may only share information about a patient with their express consent, or where the law or the public interest requires it. That includes the fact that someone is your patient. Before you use a patient's name, photo, story or before-and-after images anywhere, get their consent. In writing is safest.
• Canvassing. A testimonial calling you “the best” is still a superiority claim, and the rule covers canvassing done on your behalf, not just by you.

Google reviews are different. Patients write them on Google, and asking every patient for an honest review is ordinary good practice. Here's how to ask without it feeling awkward. Be careful about copying glowing reviews onto your own website or adverts, because that turns them into your marketing. And never reply to a review with anything that confirms the person's treatment. More on that in how to respond to a negative Google review.

Social media

The HPCSA publishes separate ethical guidelines on social media (Booklet 16), and they're worth reading in full. The practical takeaway matches everything above: be accurate, avoid superiority claims and protect confidentiality. Educational posts about common conditions are fine. A public comment thread is no place to assess a stranger's symptoms.

What this means for getting found

None of this stops you from being found on Google. Good search marketing for a practice is almost entirely factual: a complete, accurate Google Business Profile, a website with a clear page for each service, honest reviews from real patients and helpful answers to the questions patients search for. It's the approach I take with every practice I work with, and it keeps the marketing accurate, useful and within the rules.

This is a plain-English summary, not legal advice. The HPCSA updates its booklets from time to time, so check the current versions on the HPCSA website, and speak to your professional association or indemnity provider if you're unsure about a specific campaign.