Nothing in this article should be read as a suggestion that social media can substitute for the referral relationships a practice has built over years with GPs and other specialists. That scepticism, that marketing adds little over word-of-mouth referral, is well founded for most cosmetic and reconstructive practices. Where social media genuinely helps is in the gap between the referral and the first consultation: a prospective patient who has been referred will often look the surgeon up online before booking, and what they find either reinforces the referring GP’s confidence in that referral or quietly undermines it. A practice’s own digital presence, in other words, is increasingly part of how well a referral converts, not a separate acquisition channel competing with referral.
The Medical Board’s Cosmetic Surgery guidelines, layered on top of standard AHPRA and TGA advertising rules, are the strictest advertising regime any of Luna Digital’s client groups operate under, and for good reason given the scrutiny this area has attracted. Before-and-after images must be carefuly presented (deidentifying the patient with tattoos, ensuring the images are almost identical in angles, lighting etc) or descriptions are not permitted in any form, including implied comparisons. Patient testimonials are prohibited regardless of how genuine or how the patient wishes to share their experience. Content cannot claim, imply, or guarantee a therapeutic or aesthetic outcome, and nothing can be framed in a way that could reasonably be read as trivialising the risks of surgery or encouraging an unreasonable expectation of benefit. Schedule 4 medicines cannot be named in a promotional context. These are firm boundaries, not areas of professional judgement, and every piece of content should be checked against all of them before it is published, including replies to comments on a post.
Despite how narrow this sounds, there is a genuine content lane available. Explaining a sub-specialty in plain, factual language (what a procedure category involves at a general level, what the consultation and decision-making process looks like, recovery timeframes described generally rather than tied to any specific patient) builds authority without touching outcome claims. Content about the practice’s approach to patient safety, informed consent, and multidisciplinary care signals rigour to referring GPs and patients. Practice and team updates, accreditation news, and involvement in professional bodies round out a content mix that reads as credible rather than promotional.
Given how significant an AHPRA compliance breach is as a fear for this audience, arguably the biggest single risk factor, the most useful thing a practice can do is formalise how content gets checked before it is published, rather than relying on a single person’s judgement under time pressure. A short, written checklist against the guidelines above, applied to every post before it goes live, catches the errors that happen when content is drafted quickly between patients. For practices without the internal time to manage this consistently, given how real time scarcity is for a working surgeon, working with an organic social media management partner who understands the Plastic Surgery guidelines specifically, not just general AHPRA rules, removes a meaningful amount of that risk.
For surgeons thinking about eventual succession or sale, a practice’s digital presence is also part of what gets valued. A referral pipeline and online reputation that are tied to the practice rather than solely to one surgeon’s personal name are a more transferable, more valuable asset at the point of sale or partnership. Building this kind of structural digital presence, through a properly maintained social media marketing approach and a professional, informative website, is worth starting well before retirement becomes an active conversation. This social media marketing case study gives a sense of what that groundwork looks like in a comparable regulated setting.
Can we ever post before-and-after images on social media?
Yes. The Medical Board’s Cosmetic Surgery guidelines have strict rules behind before-and-after imagery or descriptions, including implied comparisons. Patients must be deidentified and images must present as identical as possible.
Are patient testimonials allowed if the patient consents?
No. Patient consent does not change the position; testimonials about cosmetic procedures are prohibited under the current guidelines regardless of how the content came about or who wishes to share it.
What can we safely post about our procedures?
General, factual information about what a procedure category involves, the consultation and consent process, and recovery timeframes described in general terms, without reference to any specific patient’s outcome.
Who should review our content before it goes live?
Ideally a nominated person within the practice using a written compliance checklist, ideally supported by a marketing partner who understands the Plastic Surgery guidelines specifically rather than general advertising rules.
If you would like a second opinion on what a compliant, referral-supporting social media approach could look like for your practice, we are happy to have that conversation.