Review guide · Doctors and medical practices

Reviews for Doctors and Medical Practices

How medical practices can collect more patient reviews responsibly: which patients to ask, when to send it, templates, and what to avoid in replies.

By Plaudit Team · Updated October 1, 2026

New patients choose a doctor almost the way they choose a restaurant: by reading what other people said. A practice with no recent reviews looks unknown, and one with a few angry ones and no replies looks careless.

But medicine is not like other businesses. Patients are sharing something very personal, and the way you ask and reply has to respect that. This guide covers the practical side without crossing it.

When to ask for a review in a medical practice

Medical practices have a different problem from most businesses. The patients most worth hearing from are often the ones for whom a public review is least appropriate, so the question is as much who to ask as when.

Routine consultation

Later the same day

Straightforward appointments, such as a check-up, a repeat prescription or a minor complaint, leave patients with a clear memory of the visit and no strong feelings about the outcome.

Follow-up that went well

After the follow-up, not the first appointment

Patients treated for a problem can only judge the result once they know it has worked. Asking at the follow-up means the review reflects the outcome as well as the waiting room.

New registrations

After their first appointment, not on sign-up

Registration is paperwork. The first real appointment is the first moment they can say anything about you.

Sensitive or serious appointments

Do not send

Patients seen for mental health, sexual health, serious diagnoses or end-of-life care did not come to you to be asked for publicity. Exclude these appointment types by default.

Which review sites matter for medical practices

Google Business Profile

Where most new patients first see your rating, and where most of your requests should point.
Healthcare directories

Sites such as Healthgrades carry patient reviews, and each has its own rules for soliciting them. Read those before you ask patients to go there. If a site is not in Plaudit's list, you can add its link in the spare slot.
Facebook

A secondary option for practices with an active local following. Pick one primary link per request.

Review request templates for medical practices

Swap the bracketed parts. In Plaudit these merge in automatically from your contact list.

Subject: How was your visit, [First name]?

Hi [First name], Thank you for visiting [Practice name]. If you were happy with your care, a short Google review helps other people in [Town] find a practice they can trust: [Review link] Please don't include any personal health details in your review. If you'd rather give feedback privately, just reply to this email. Kind regards, [Practice manager]

Text message · 192 characters

Hi [First name], thanks for visiting [Practice]. If you were happy with your care, a Google review would help others find us: [link]. Please keep health details private. Reply STOP to opt out.

Only text customers who agreed to receive texts from you. See SMS review request rules.

Patient privacy and review replies

The same rule that applies to dentists applies to every healthcare provider that is covered by HIPAA: a public reply must not reveal anything about a person's care, and in the US, regulators have fined practices for it. Our dental guide summarises two settlements with the US Department of Health and Human Services' Office for Civil Rights in detail.

Do not confirm that the reviewer is or was a patient, even to say you cannot discuss them.
Never discuss diagnoses, treatment, medication, insurance or billing, whether or not the reviewer mentioned them first.
Move the conversation to a phone number or email address in the first reply.
Do not respond to clinical claims such as 'misdiagnosed' in public at all. Raise them privately, and involve your indemnity or insurance provider if they look serious.

Sources: Our dental guide, with the HHS settlements.

General information, not legal advice. Have your privacy officer or compliance adviser approve your policy for asking for and replying to reviews.

Replying to patient reviews

A reply cannot be warm and specific the way a restaurant's can. The skill is in being human without saying anything about the person's care.

Positive review

“Dr Patel was patient and took the time to explain everything. Reception were lovely too.”

Thank you for taking the time to write this. We're glad you had a good experience and we'll share your kind words with the team.

Negative, access

“Took three weeks to get an appointment and the phone line is always engaged.”

We're sorry you found it so hard to book. We know that's frustrating and we're working on appointment access. If you'd like to talk it through, please contact the practice manager on [phone].

Negative, a clinical complaint

“The doctor missed what was wrong with me. Dangerous.”

We take every concern seriously. We can't discuss anyone's care in a public forum, so please contact our practice manager on [phone] so we can hear from you directly.

Negative, front desk

“Receptionist was rude and wouldn't let me see a doctor.”

We're sorry you felt that way. That's not how we want patients to be treated. Please call [phone] and ask for the practice manager, who will look into it.

Want a draft for a real review? Use the free AI review response generator, and edit before you post.

Setting this up in Plaudit

Email-only is a sensible place to start for a medical practice, which means the Starter plan. Growth adds text requests and automatic follow-ups. Whichever you use, be deliberate about which appointment types are sent a request.

Export only the appointment types you want to ask about (for example routine consultations) from your practice system as a CSV.
Add patients who should never be asked to the do-not-contact list first.
Use your Google review link as the platform and keep the message short and neutral.
Decide in advance who in the practice replies to reviews and what they may and may not say.

Plans: Starter $19 (email, 1 platform), Growth $39 (adds SMS, integrations, follow-ups), Pro $79 (multiple locations). See pricing.

Frequently asked questions

Is it allowed for a medical practice to ask patients for reviews? +

Google says businesses may ask customers to visit a link or scan a QR code, so the platform allows it. Whether your own regulator or professional body places limits on patient communications varies by country and specialty, so check with your compliance adviser.

Should the doctor reply to reviews personally? +

Usually it is better if the practice manager or a designated person does, using agreed wording. That keeps replies consistent and keeps clinicians out of public disputes, which tend to go badly.

What should we do about a review that is clearly wrong? +

Do not argue the facts in public. If it breaks the platform's content policies, report it using the platform's tool, and keep the public reply short and neutral. If it makes a serious clinical allegation, speak to your indemnity provider.

Can we show patient reviews on our website? +

That depends on the advertising and testimonial rules that apply to your profession in your country, and they differ. Check with your regulator before embedding reviews.

Review guides for other industries

Also useful: Review guide for dentists, with the HHS settlements, How to reply to a negative review

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