Updated: October 2026
On 6 October 2026, the National Medical Commission (NMC) issued new Guidelines on Ethical Advertising and Public Communication for doctors, hospitals and medical institutions. They came into force immediately, and they cover almost everything doctors do online: Instagram reels, YouTube videos, websites, WhatsApp messages, Google listings, healthcare platforms, influencer posts and AI-generated content.
For many clinics, the usual growth playbook (patient testimonial videos, before-and-after photos, "best doctor in the city" posts, discount offers and paid influencer shout-outs) is now a direct risk to their registration.
This guide explains, in plain language, what doctors can and cannot post online under the new NMC rules, the penalties, a quick self-check for your clinic's social media, and 12 ethical ways to grow your practice that work within the guidelines.
Note: This is a practical summary based on published reports of the NMC notice, not legal advice. Always read the official NMC notice and check with your State Medical Council when in doubt.
Contents
- Quick answer
- What are the new NMC advertising guidelines?
- What doctors cannot do now
- What doctors can still do
- Can I post this? Quick reference table
- Penalties for violations
- 15-minute social media audit for your clinic
- 12 ethical ways to grow your clinic
- How Doxab.AI helps clinics grow the right way
- हिंदी में सार (Summary in Hindi)
- Frequently asked questions
Quick answer
Under NMC's guidelines of 6 October 2026, doctors and hospitals cannot use patient testimonials, before-and-after photos, celebrity or influencer endorsements, superiority claims like "best" or "No.1", guaranteed-cure claims, discounts or offers that push unnecessary treatment, fake or paid reviews, or AI-generated promotional campaigns. Paid ranking of doctors on platforms is banned. Doctors can still share factual information (name, qualifications, registration, address, timings, fees, facilities), publish health-awareness and educational content without self-promotion, and grow through better patient care, follow-ups and trust.
What are the new NMC advertising guidelines?
- Name: Guidelines on Ethical Advertising and Public Communication for Hospitals, Medical Institutions and Registered Medical Practitioners (RMPs)
- Issued by: Ethics and Medical Registration Board (EMRB), National Medical Commission
- Date: Public notice dated 6 October 2026, in force with immediate effect
- Applies to: registered doctors, hospitals and medical institutions, and healthcare platforms that list doctors
- Covers: TV, radio, print, hoardings, websites, social media, messaging apps, podcasts, influencer marketing, sponsored posts and AI-generated content
- Background: framed with reference to a Supreme Court writ petition, the NMC Act 2019 and the 2002 professional conduct regulations
One rule matters more than the rest: hiring an agency, influencer or platform does not protect you. If a doctor or hospital authorised, paid for or knowingly allowed the content, they are responsible for it.
What doctors cannot do now
- Patient testimonials and reviews for promotion: no patient videos, quotes, "success stories" or endorsements to promote your practice. Patient consent does not make a testimonial or before-and-after picture acceptable.
- Before-and-after photos and surgical-result advertising.
- Celebrity, influencer, employee or third-party endorsements, paid or unpaid.
- Superiority claims such as "best", "No.1", "leading", "top", "most trusted" or "unmatched", unless objectively verifiable.
- Guarantees and exaggeration: "guaranteed cure", "100% success", "miracle treatment", "exclusive cure".
- Advertising success rates, patient counts or personal achievements for promotion.
- Discounts, limited-period offers, coupons, cashback, contests, referral benefits or free procedures that encourage unnecessary consultations, tests or treatment.
- Fear-based marketing that creates demand for tests or procedures.
- Fake or manipulated engagement: buying followers, likes, views, ratings or reviews, or manipulating search rankings.
- Commissions and lead-generation fees tied to patient or sample referrals, including payments to agencies or influencers per patient.
- Doctor's photograph in advertising, including self-photos on letterheads and clinic signboards.
- Endorsing drugs, devices or health products with your name, photo, voice or professional status.
- AI-generated promotional campaigns for commercial interest, synthetic testimonials, or AI-altered patient images and voices.
- Sharing identifiable patient information such as names, faces or records without legally valid, documented consent.
What doctors can still do
- Share factual practice information: name, qualifications, registration number, specialty, address, timings, contact details and consultation fees.
- Make formal announcements: starting a practice, change of address or practice type, temporary absence, resuming practice.
- Publish health awareness and education (for example, "warning signs of dengue" or "how to manage blood sugar during festivals"), as long as it does not promote your practice, solicit patients or get monetised.
- Give public health talks on TV, radio or online under your own name.
- Hospitals can share facts about departments, facilities, equipment, emergency services, accreditation and charges, and list their doctors with qualifications and availability.
- Mention rankings or awards only if they are independently verifiable, with the awarding body, date and method disclosed where needed.
- Use AI-generated content only if it follows the rules and is clearly labelled as AI-generated.
- Publish anonymised cases for scientific or educational purposes, with consent, for example in medical journals.
Reports of the guidelines also say doctors should state their name, qualifications, registration status and medical register number in electronic media posts, and hospitals should disclose the doctors associated with their posts.
Can I post this? Quick reference table
| Post idea | OK? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| "Clinic open on Sunday 10 am – 1 pm this Diwali week" | ✅ Yes | Factual announcement |
| Reel: "5 signs your child needs an eye check-up" | ✅ Yes | Health education without self-promotion |
| Consultation fee clearly displayed | ✅ Yes | Transparent fee disclosure is allowed |
| Video of a happy patient thanking the doctor | ❌ No | Patient testimonial, even with consent |
| Before-and-after photos of a hair transplant or dental smile | ❌ No | Banned surgical-result advertising |
| "Best gynaecologist in Faridabad" | ❌ No | Unverifiable superiority claim |
| "Full body check-up at 50% off, this week only" | ❌ Risky | Limited-time offers that push unnecessary tests are banned |
| Paying an influencer to visit and post about your clinic | ❌ No | Third-party endorsement |
| Buying followers or Google reviews | ❌ No | Fake engagement and review manipulation |
| AI-generated ad with a "virtual patient" story | ❌ No | Synthetic testimonial and AI promotional campaign |
Penalties for violations
Penalties for doctors are imposed by the State Medical Council after a show-cause notice. As reported, the graded penalties are:
| Violation | Penalty |
|---|---|
| First violation | Warning and mandatory ethics training |
| Second violation | Censure and monetary penalty |
| Third violation | Suspension of registration for 3–6 months |
| Serious violation (for example misleading cure claims, inducements, digital mass solicitation) | Suspension for 6–12 months |
| Repeated violations | Removal from the medical register for 1–3 years |
Hospitals face action under the Clinical Establishments Act or applicable state law. Appeals go to the NMC's EMRB within 60 days.
15-minute social media audit for your clinic
Open your Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, website and Google listing, and check:
- ☐ Remove patient testimonial videos, quotes and "thank you" posts used for promotion
- ☐ Remove before-and-after photos and result showcases
- ☐ Replace words like "best", "No.1", "top", "guaranteed" and "100%"
- ☐ Remove discount, offer, coupon and "free check-up" posts that push tests or procedures
- ☐ Remove paid influencer collaborations and celebrity photos used for promotion
- ☐ Remove your photo from signboards, letterheads and ads
- ☐ Add name, qualifications and registration number to your profiles and posts
- ☐ Check that nothing shows a patient's face, name or report without valid consent
- ☐ Label any AI-generated content clearly
- ☐ Brief your marketing agency or staff in writing: you are responsible for what they post
12 ethical ways to grow your clinic
The guidelines do not stop growth. They move it from promotion to trust, convenience and continuity of care. That is what brings patients back and makes them tell their families.
- Make sure patients can find you: a complete, factual Google Business Profile with correct address, timings, phone and fees. Never buy or trade for reviews.
- Build a simple, factual clinic website with your qualifications, registration, services, timings, fees and location map. See our guide to website development cost in India.
- Publish health education in Hindi and English: seasonal illnesses, prevention and when to see a doctor, without self-promotion.
- Never miss a follow-up. Patients who are reminded to return get better outcomes, and the clinic keeps the relationship.
- Keep complete patient history so every visit feels personal: allergies, past medicines and family members in one place.
- Cut waiting time by finding patients and repeating prescriptions in seconds.
- Give clear, printed or digital prescriptions that patients can read and keep. Read our digital prescription software guide.
- Explain advice in the patient's language. Instructions in Hindi improve understanding and adherence.
- Display fees transparently at the clinic and online.
- Protect patient data with access control and secure storage, ahead of DPDP obligations from 13 May 2027. See our DPDP compliance checklist.
- Take part in community health camps and awareness programmes without collecting patients or promoting your practice.
- Make it easy for families to stay with you: link family members on one number so the whole family's records are with one trusted doctor.
How Doxab.AI helps clinics grow the right way
Doxab.AI (Doctor Sahab) is clinic and digital prescription software built for Indian doctors and neighbourhood clinics by Vegavaan Info Solutions Pvt. Ltd., Faridabad. It does not advertise your clinic. It helps you do the things that make patients come back: better records, quicker visits and follow-ups that are never missed.
- Follow-ups in one tap: see today's, upcoming and missed follow-ups.
- Find any patient fast: search by mobile number, name or patient ID, or by speaking.
- Full visit history: symptoms, vitals, diagnosis, medicines and advice on a timeline, with allergies and family members on one number.
- Prescriptions: A4 layout with your clinic name, PDF and print, and repeat a prescription in one tap.
- WhatsApp sharing: send the prescription to the patient's own number; the patient opens it with the last 4 digits of their mobile number.
- Hindi and English, with voice typing in both.
- AI suggestions with you in control (AI Power plan): medicine suggestions, tests, red flags, and allergy and interaction cautions. The AI does not receive the patient's name, mobile number, address or patient ID, and nothing is added without the doctor's confirmation.
- Privacy: each clinic sees only its own patients, patients see only their own records, and access is logged.
| Plan | Monthly | Yearly | Includes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | ₹100 | ₹1,050 | Unlimited patients and visits, PDF and WhatsApp prescriptions, follow-ups, Hindi and English, voice typing, 5 free AI tries a month |
| AI Power | ₹500 | ₹5,000 | Everything in Standard, plus AI suggestions on every visit, allergy and interaction checks and priority support |
Prices include 18% GST, as listed on doxab.ai at the time of writing. A 14-day free trial is available with AI included, and no card is needed.
Need a factual, NMC-friendly clinic website or help cleaning up your social media? Talk to Vegavaan.
हिंदी में सार (Summary in Hindi)
NMC ने 6 अक्टूबर 2026 को डॉक्टरों और अस्पतालों के विज्ञापन के लिए नए दिशानिर्देश जारी किए हैं, जो तुरंत लागू हैं। अब मरीजों के टेस्टिमोनियल वीडियो, before-after फोटो, "best" या "No.1" जैसे दावे, "100% इलाज की गारंटी", डिस्काउंट ऑफर, influencer प्रमोशन, खरीदे गए reviews या followers, और AI से बने प्रमोशनल विज्ञापन नहीं चलेंगे। डॉक्टर अपना नाम, डिग्री, रजिस्ट्रेशन नंबर, पता, समय और फीस बता सकते हैं, और बिना प्रचार के स्वास्थ्य जागरूकता की जानकारी दे सकते हैं। नियम तोड़ने पर चेतावनी से लेकर रजिस्ट्रेशन निलंबन तक की कार्रवाई हो सकती है।
क्लिनिक बढ़ाने का सही तरीका है: अच्छा इलाज, पूरा मरीज रिकॉर्ड, समय पर फॉलो-अप और साफ प्रिस्क्रिप्शन। Doxab.AI (डॉक्टर साहब) यही काम आसान बनाता है: हिंदी और अंग्रेज़ी में, WhatsApp पर प्रिस्क्रिप्शन, एक टैप में फॉलो-अप, और 14 दिन का फ्री ट्रायल।
Frequently asked questions
When did the NMC advertising guidelines come into force?
The NMC public notice is dated 6 October 2026, and the guidelines came into force with immediate effect.
Can doctors post patient testimonials on Instagram or YouTube?
No. Patient testimonials, endorsements and promotional patient stories are prohibited, and the guidelines say patient consent does not by itself make them acceptable.
Can doctors run ads or social media pages at all?
Doctors can share factual information such as qualifications, registration, address, timings and fees, and publish health-education content that does not promote their practice or solicit patients. Promotional, comparative and exaggerated content is not allowed.
Are before-and-after photos allowed?
No. Before-and-after depictions and surgical-result advertising are prohibited for promotional purposes.
Can doctors use AI to create content?
AI-generated content must follow the same rules and be clearly labelled as AI-generated. AI promotional campaigns for commercial interest, synthetic testimonials and AI-altered patient images or voices are prohibited.
What is the penalty for violating the NMC guidelines?
As reported, penalties range from a warning and ethics training for a first violation to censure and fines, suspension of registration for 3–12 months, and removal from the register for 1–3 years for repeated violations.
How can a clinic grow without advertising?
By making it easy for patients to find factual information, giving excellent care, keeping complete records, never missing follow-ups, explaining advice in the patient's language and protecting patient data. Clinic software such as Doxab.AI helps with records, prescriptions and follow-ups.
Conclusion
The new NMC guidelines end the era of testimonial reels, "best doctor" claims and discount-driven marketing for doctors. Clinics that keep posting that content risk their registration. The clinics that will grow are the ones patients trust and return to, because their records are complete, their advice is clear and their follow-ups never slip.
Audit your social media this week, keep your public information factual, and invest in the patient experience. Try Doxab.AI free for 14 days.
Sources: Medical Dialogues: NMC issues ethical advertising guidelines; The South First: Doctors on Instagram; Medical Dialogues: photographs and paid rankings; Doxab.AI.
