The National Medical Commission’s latest guidelines for ethical promotion by doctors and hospitals have come not a day too soon. At a time the number of ways to influence an individual’s health choices is exploding, the norms bar medical practitioners and healthcare providers from using AI-made promos, celebrity endorsements and unproven claims. Doctors have been asked not to request clients for testimonials or recommendations posted on social media, something thankful patients usually do not think twice before obliging. Also discouraged are claims like ‘best specialist’, ‘leading doctor’ or ‘guaranteed cure’. All of this is welcome, as we know how credulous we become especially when confronted with life-and-death questions. What’s needed is to cast these norms as enforceable rules and give more muscle to the implementing agencies.
