Healthcare Social Media Marketing for Medical Practices and Doctors
Healthcare social media marketing has two problems. The first is that half of what you could say is restricted. The second is that the other half is so useful nobody is saying it. A GP explaining what a referral actually means, in sixty seconds, would be the most watched thing in the suburb. (It would also be checked against the rules first, which is the boring part this guide covers.)
What to post
The posts that belong in this feed
Not a content calendar of invented themes. The work already produces these.
The explainer
What a referral is, what a care plan does, why the appointment is fifteen minutes. Education, not treatment.
The practice
Who works here and what they do. Patients choose a practice they can picture.
The reminder
Flu season, skin checks, the health-fund year end. Useful and safe.
The process
How to book, what to bring, what happens after the test. The posts that reduce phone calls.
Example post
Healthcare social media marketing, in one post
Not a template. Not a swipe file. Just one post, made the way it would be made from your week.
EXAMPLE · FACEBOOK POST
An Australian GP practice. Written for this guide the way Magic Marketer® drafts a post. Not a customer's post.
What does a GP referral actually do? It tells the specialist why you are coming and what has already been checked. It also lets Medicare pay its share of the specialist visit. A GP referral to a specialist usually lasts 12 months, unless your GP writes it for longer. If yours is close to running out, book a short appointment before your next specialist visit, not after. Not sure when yours expires? Reception can check the date for you. Call us or ask at the desk.
Why it works
No patient, no outcome, no testimonial. One question patients ask every day, answered for everyone. That is the shape that stays inside the rules.
What to post this week
- Monday: one explainer. The question reception answered most last week is the one.
- Tuesday: introduce one person. Name, role, and what patients can ask them about.
- Wednesday: one seasonal reminder for the weeks ahead. Skin checks, vaccinations or the health-fund year end.
- Thursday: one process post. What to bring to a first appointment, or how telehealth works at your practice.
- Friday: the practice manager approves next week's drafts. Nothing goes out without a sign-off.
Where it comes from
You already have the source
The explanation you give ten times a day
Record it once as a voice note. Stripped of any patient, it is the post.
The patient information sheet
You already wrote it to be clear. Paste the PDF and it becomes a carousel.
The practice newsletter
Every item is a post. Paste the link.
Platforms
Where this kind of work actually shows up
Where patients are. Practice news, hours, the new doctor, the flu-shot reminder. Plain, local, regular.
The practice as a place and the team as people. Explainers as carousels. Works if someone is willing to be on camera.
For specialists, allied health and anyone whose referrals come from other clinicians. The clinical note, the process, the change in guidelines.
Google Business Profile
The listing patients see before they book. Post there weekly. It is the most under-used channel in healthcare.
Cadence
How often is enough
Two posts a week, one of them a face or a place. Reminders on a seasonal rhythm. Consistency reads as a practice that is open and organised, which is the whole brand.
Usual mistakes
What this feed gets wrong
Testimonials and results
In Australia AHPRA restricts testimonials for regulated health services and how outcomes are shown. In the US, HIPAA and the FTC set the boundaries. Check before you post, every time.
Anything identifying a patient
Including the grateful one who asked you to share it. Consent is a form, not a comment.
Medical claims in marketing language
"Cures", "guaranteed", "best". If a regulator would ask for the evidence, do not say it.
From this world
“I never thought I would say this, but I actually enjoy doing social media now!”
Natalie Hewitt
Practical Clinical Governance
Tools that do this
Turn this week’s source into posts
Free to start. Same job as Magic Marketer®, without the brand kit.
Questions
Education, the team, reminders and process. What you cannot post is testimonials for regulated services (in Australia under AHPRA), anything identifying a patient, or claims about outcomes. Magic Marketer® has AHPRA, NSQHS, NSQPCH and RACGP presets that flag restricted claims on the draft.
Other guides
All guides →See what a week of your material becomes.
A recording, a photo, a link, or one sentence. Review the drafts. Publish when they are yours.
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