Why are testimonials considered unethical in healthcare?

A great source of frustration for many clinics around the world is that their registration body considers testimonials to be unethical and particularly in Australia, are regularly fining clinics who have testimonials on their webpage and social media pages. Often clinics are left hastily removing well meaning testimonials from valued clients simply to comply with regulations.

This can leave clinics confused. After all, what is the difference between a word of mouth referral and a testimonial, other than one is written down and online?

Part of the problem is that testimonials are just so effective. Humans have been telling stories for millennia and masters of memory will say the best way to remember something is to wind it into a story. There is something about the human brain that is designed to process and store information in story form. Also to trust the reccommendations of the people over the dry numbers of a clinical trial. Testimonials are so powerful that can almost I guarantee every one of us has paid money for a treatment we were sure couldn't work, however, someone we know said it worked for them and cured their incurable ailment.

The other issue is that testimonials are also completely meaningless when it comes to healthcare. First and foremost they can be easily faked. Which is difficult to prove or differentiate when you are looking at a website or social media page.

Furthermore, even if the testimonial is real and the patient is delighted with you, from a medical viewpoint, this is not evidence that you are a good physiotherapist. The patient may have been seeing three other practitioners and simply attributed their success to physiotherapy. They may have been getting better anyway and physiotherapy was just a coincidence that happened to get some credit. An even more bizarre situation is that they may even have improved quicker if they hadn't had treatment. Without a rigorous and disciplined study it can be difficult to tell how effective our treatments are.

These are clearly unlikely scenarios and most of us know that we are providing our patients with a tremendously valuable service. While it can be frustrating, the antithesis to the testimonial is education. Blogs, newsletters, flyers and infographics are the most ethical way of getting your message out to the people who need it.

Thoughts? What do you think about the regulation of testimonials in physiotherapy?

Comment to let us know.