Reviews and Reputation for Medical Practices
Patients read reviews before they call, often before they even look at your website. A steady flow of genuine, recent reviews, and calm, professional replies, does more for a practice than any ad. We help US practices build that reputation the right way: asking every patient, replying without risking patient privacy, and staying well within the FTC’s rules on reviews.
The Rules Got Stricter in 2024
The FTC’s rule on consumer reviews and testimonials took effect in October 2024. It bans fake reviews, rewards tied to positive reviews, undisclosed reviews from staff or family, and suppressing negative reviews. In December 2025 the FTC warned companies that violations can carry civil penalties of up to $53,088 each (Kelley Drye summary). For medical practices there’s a second line: HIPAA. Federal regulators have settled with dental practices that revealed patient details while replying to reviews, even when the patient had posted those details first (DLA Piper).
What We Set Up and Run
Six parts, run together and reviewed every month.
- A review request routine for every patient, by text or email after the visit, never only to patients you expect to be happy
- A Google Business Profile that’s complete and current, for each location and provider where Google allows
- Reply templates your team can use safely, which thank, acknowledge and move the conversation offline without confirming anyone is a patient
- Monitoring across Google, Healthgrades, Vitals, Yelp and other sites that matter for your specialty
- Flagging reviews that break platform rules, such as fake or off-topic reviews, through each platform’s own process
- Monthly reporting on review volume, ratings and response times, location by location
How the First 90 Days Run
- Days 1–30: audit and set up. Review your profiles and current reviews, fix profile gaps, write reply templates and set up the request routine.
- Days 31–60: steady requests. Your team asks every patient, and we monitor and draft replies for anything sensitive.
- Days 61–90: review and refine. Look at volume, ratings and response times by location, and adjust timing and wording.
What Your Monthly Report Shows
| In the report | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| New reviews by platform and location | Shows whether the routine is working |
| Average rating, now and over time | The number patients see first |
| Reply rate and average time to reply | Patients notice unanswered reviews |
| Reviews flagged to platforms, and outcomes | Shows what was removed and why |
| Themes in patient feedback | Useful for your front desk and clinical team |
Replying Without Risking Patient Privacy
The safest reply never confirms that the reviewer is your patient, never mentions treatment, timing, insurance or cost, and never argues. Thank them, say you take feedback seriously, and invite them to call the office. That’s true even when the patient has already shared those details themselves: patients don’t waive their privacy by posting their own information. Every reply template we write follows that rule, and we draft anything sensitive for your approval before it’s posted.
What We Won’t Do
We won’t write or buy reviews, ask your staff or their families to post reviews without disclosing who they are, offer rewards in exchange for positive reviews, or send review requests only to happy patients. We won’t post patient stories or testimonials on your website without written HIPAA authorization. And we won’t threaten or pressure anyone over a negative review.
Our team works from Kolkata, India. Day-to-day communication is by email, and calls are booked at a time that suits you. More about how we work with US practices.
Reviews and Reputation Questions
Incentives conditioned on a positive review are banned by the FTC rule, and Google’s policies don’t allow incentives for reviews at all. The safe approach is simply to ask every patient, with no reward attached.
Yes, but carefully. Don’t confirm the reviewer is a patient or mention anything about their care. Thank them and invite them to contact the office directly.
Only reviews that break a platform’s own rules, such as fake, abusive or off-topic reviews, can be flagged for removal through that platform’s process. Genuine negative reviews stay, and suppressing them is against the FTC rule.
Not as if they were patients. The FTC rule bans undisclosed reviews from employees and their relatives.
It depends on your patient volume and how consistently your team asks. Practices that ask every patient usually see review volume rise within the first few months.
See Where Your Reputation Stands
Book a 45-minute Discovery Session on Google Meet. We'll look at your reviews across the sites patients use and show you what we'd change first.