Guide 04 of 05Field: Advertising
How doctors may advertise under the National Law
Section 133 of the National Law bars advertising a regulated health service, or a business providing one, in any of five ways, the first being advertising that is false, misleading or deceptive; the others are an inducement without its terms, testimonials, an unreasonable expectation of beneficial treatment, and encouraging indiscriminate or unnecessary use. Ahpra adds that the way a title is used can itself make an advertisement false, misleading or deceptive.
General information, not legal advice. Ahpra says anyone who uses a title when advertising a regulated health service must comply with the National Law, and its guidance on titles in health advertising is the official place to read more.
Section 133
The subsection, word for word
“A person must not advertise a regulated health service, or a business that provides a regulated health service, in a way that
Health Practitioner Regulation National Law, s 133(1). The subsection also sets maximum penalties; read them in the Law itself.
- (a)is false, misleading or deceptive or is likely to be misleading or deceptive; or
- (b)offers a gift, discount or other inducement to attract a person to use the service or the business, unless the advertisement also states the terms and conditions of the offer; or
- (c)uses testimonials or purported testimonials about the service or business; or
- (d)creates an unreasonable expectation of beneficial treatment; or
- (e)directly or indirectly encourages the indiscriminate or unnecessary use of regulated health services.”
Scope
Who the section reaches
The section defines a regulated health service as “a service provided by, or usually provided by, a health practitioner”.
Subsection (2) covers the publisher: “A person does not commit an offence against subsection (1) merely because the person, as part of the person’s business, prints or publishes an advertisement for another person.”
Subsection (3) says that in proceedings for an offence, a court “may have regard to a guideline approved by a National Board about the advertising of regulated health services”.
Ahpra notes that the title rules in sections 113 to 119 apply in every context, advertising included. Specialist titles in fertility care quotes them.
Titles
Titles in advertising
Ahpra begins its guidance from the reader’s side: people in Australia are entitled to accurate, honest information about health care services. From there it sets out how a title can mislead:
- Ahpra says it is important that a title does not lead a consumer to believe the practitioner has specialist registration, or an endorsement, that they lack, or suggest they are more skilled or qualified than they are.
- Words such as ‘specialist’, ‘specialises in’, ‘specialty’ and ‘specialised’ imply specialist registration, and are likely to mislead the public when the practitioner does not hold it.
- A practitioner who does hold specialist registration should keep those words to the specialty they are registered in, without misrepresenting that registration.
The two sets of rules overlap without being the same. Ahpra warns that a title which does not breach the title protections in sections 113 to 119 may still be false, misleading or deceptive under section 133.
Title checks
Checking a title against the register
Whether a doctor holds specialist registration, and in which specialty and field, is recorded on the Specialists Register. What the Specialists Register shows explains how to read it, and Checking a doctor’s registration covers searching by name or number. The register also publishes any conditions that limit what a registered practitioner can do.
A concern about a service or a fee is a different matter. Ahpra says a complaint like that, or a dispute with a provider, belongs with the healthcare complaints organisation in your state or territory.