NMC glossary · Patients, privacy and consent
Testimonial: What It Means Under The NMC Rules
Also searched as: Patient testimonial, Patient story, Patient review for promotion
The notice bars fake, paid or misleading testimonials, and says a doctor must not request or share patient testimonials, recommendations, endorsements or reviews for professional promotion on social media. Patient consent does not change that.
Updated 7 November 2026. Reviewed by Tamojit Lodh, Founder of Medmatis. Built around the NMC's Public Notice No. R-13014/01/2024-Ethics of 6 October 2026. Not legal advice.
Key facts, with sources
Hide the 4 key facts and their sourcesShow the 4 key facts and their sources
| Fact | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Term | Testimonial (also searched as Patient testimonial, Patient story, Patient review for promotion) | Medmatis |
| In the notice | Not defined by the notice; this entry explains how the notice uses it. | NMC notice of 6 Oct 2026, cl. 3.2, Explanation V, cl. 6.2, cl. 8.1 (ii), cl. 8.1 (xi) |
| Applies to | Doctors (RMPs) and hospitals/medical institutions | NMC notice of 6 Oct 2026 |
| In force | From 6 October 2026, with immediate effect. The NMC may issue clarifications and advisories (cl. 12). | NMC notice of 6 Oct 2026 |
In plain words
Explanation V to clause 3.2 does two things. It bars soliciting, purchasing, procuring, manipulating or causing to be published fake, paid or misleading reviews, ratings, testimonials, endorsements or recommendations. And it says an RMP shall not request or share patient testimonials, recommendations, endorsements or reviews for professional promotion on social media.
Clause 6.2 closes the “but the patient agreed” route, and clause 8.1 (xi) stops a doctor using a celebrity, influencer, patient, employee or other third party to promote through prohibited testimonials. The word “testimonial” is not defined in the notice.
What it does not mean
- It does not name review platforms such as Google. How the notice applies to them is not clearly answered, and is a question for a medical-law adviser.
- It does not say what a doctor should do about a review a patient posts on their own. The rule is written about what a doctor requests or shares.
A pinned post of a patient thanking the doctor, shared on the clinic’s social media for promotion.
Illustrative wording only. It shows the idea and is not a clearance of any page.
The notice’s own words
Quoted from the NMC notice of 6 October 2026. Check the clause number against the original.
cl. 3.2, Explanation VNo RMP or hospital/medical institution shall solicit, purchase, procure, manipulate or cause to be published fake, paid or misleading patient reviews, ratings, testimonials, endorsements or recommendations for the promotion of medical services. An RMP shall not request or share patient testimonials, recommendations, endorsements or reviews for professional promotion on social media.
cl. 6.2Patient consent shall not, by itself, make permissible any testimonial, endorsement, promotional patient story, before-and-after depiction, success claim or other advertising practice that is otherwise prohibited under these Guidelines or applicable law.
cl. 8.1 (ii)Shall not solicit patients directly or indirectly, promote his/her professional services through self-promotion, engage any third party for marketing medical services, permit the use of their name, image, voice, testimonial or endorsement for promotion of services or any products, participate in promotional campaigns giving an impression of commercialization of medical practice.
cl. 8.1 (xi)No RMP shall use or permit any celebrity, influencer, patient, employee or third party to promote professional services through prohibited testimonials, endorsements or recommendations. Any material commercial relationship in lawful public-health or informational communication shall be transparently disclosed in accordance with applicable law. No RMP or hospital/medical institution shall use a third party as an intermediary to do indirectly what the RMP or institution is prohibited from doing directly.
Our plain-language guide to the whole notice → Check your own text against these rules →
Frequently asked questions
Can a clinic share patient testimonials on social media?
The notice says an RMP shall not request or share patient testimonials, recommendations, endorsements or reviews for professional promotion on social media (cl. 3.2 Expl. V). Consent does not make a prohibited testimonial acceptable (cl. 6.2).
Are Google reviews covered?
The notice does not name Google reviews. Fake, paid or misleading reviews are barred for doctors and hospitals (cl. 3.2 Expl. V), but how the request-or-share rule applies to review platforms is unclear; seek advice for your situation.
This entry explains a public notice in plain language and quotes its clause numbers. It is not legal advice. Read the original NMC notice and take advice on your own situation.
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