Removing a Google review as a plastic surgeon

A surgical practice that bills insurance electronically for any procedure, or uses a billing service that does, is a covered entity under HIPAA. HHS treats a name linked to treatment at a named clinic as protected health information. In cosmetic work that reaches further than people expect: a reply that mentions a consult, a revision, a photo session or a balance owed tells the public the writer is your patient.

HHS settled with a dental practice in California whose replies to online reviews gave patients’ full names where the patients had used only screen names. The lesson carries over. Never name the writer, never post a before and after image to make your point, and never describe the result you see in the chart. A reply that says you hold every patient to the same standard and invites a call to the office is enough.

• A patient unhappy with a result, a revision fee or swelling that lasted longer than hoped.
• Someone who saw your posts on social media and reviews your work without ever booking.
• Injectors, aestheticians and surgeons at other practices posting under personal accounts.
• A former patient coordinator or nurse who left during a dispute.
• A review that includes a photo of another person’s face, or names a patient it claims to know.
• A financing complaint about a lender the patient chose, not the practice.

The first item is a real experience. However unfair it feels, Google allows it, and the audit marks it No rule broken. The rest map to clauses. A writer reviewing photos they saw online meets fake engagement, because the review is not based on a real experience at your location. A rival meets conflict of interest, which Google says includes industry competitors. A former coordinator meets the same clause through former employment.

Photos need their own attention. Google’s personal information policy lists a person’s face in a photograph posted without consent. A review that shows another patient’s face, or names someone as having had a procedure, can meet that clause. A complaint about a third party lender meets off topic when the practice does not run the lending.

• The exact words in the review that show the writer’s position, quoted, not paraphrased.
• For a rival: the writer’s public profile, practice website bio or other reviews naming the same employer.
• For a never seen writer: a search of your consult and surgery calendars with no match, stated as a result.
• For a former employee: hire and leave dates and the role.
• For a photo: a screenshot showing the image attached to the review and the date it appeared.

A case that rests on the review’s own words, like the injector example above, sits in the Plain class. A case that needs a record from you to prove who the writer is sits higher, and the case sheet says which before you accept.

1. 01

   Do not answer in anger

   A heated reply is permanent and can expose a patient. Wait until the case is read.

2. 02

   Collect the profile

   Open the reviewer’s Google profile and screenshot their other reviews and public details.

3. 03

   Report the review

   From your Business Profile, open Read reviews, select the Report icon, choose the reason and send the report.

4. 04

   Get the audit

   The free audit reads every low review on your listing and gives each a clause and a fee class, or No rule broken.

5. 05

   Approve case by case

   Read each case sheet. Only the ones you accept are filed, and a declined case is filed a second time at the same fee.