CDA Essentials 2018 • Volume 5 • Issue 3

21 Issue 3 | 2018 | What are physician-rating websites? GV: These rating websites, like RateMDs, Yelp or Opencare, are online platforms that allow patients to review or rank health professionals, including dentists, by providing a performance score (usually on a five-point scale) along with a narrative comment. This crowd-sourced data is usually open to the public and can influence a dentist’s reputation—in a good or bad way. Users rate their dentist or other health professional on a variety of factors, such as communication skills, staff friendliness, punctuality, technology, or clinical performance. Typically, each dentist (or practice) that appears in the directory of a rating website has a profile, an average score and one popular comment displayed. Some rating websites or apps may even be affiliated with health insurance companies. What do advertising regulations in dentistry say about these sites? Does each province have its own advertising regulations? Advertising regulations in dentistry exist to protect the public from misleading Today, online reviews are a part of the customer experience: people often check ratings before going to a new restaurant, a show, or a hotel, and it is no different for the health care sector. Q Q Patients increasingly seek information on rating websites before consulting a health professional for the first time. In addition to the many physician-rating platforms available online, one major insurance company recently launched a new functionality on its app that allows plan members and beneficiaries to rate their dentist after they submit a claim. CDA has heard from dentists who were curious if this app would put them at risk of violating any rules of their provincial regulatory body. We asked Geoff Valentine, associate director of practice support at CDA, to tell us more about online rating systems and dentists’ responsibilities regarding advertising regulations. Geoff Valentine is CDA’s associate director of practice support. ONLINE RATING SYSTEMS Are you compliant with advertising regulations?