A patient considering an aesthetic medicine procedure checks the clinic online before calling: who performs the procedures, what they involve, what they cost and whether the place can be trusted. The website is the first conversation with the clinic. But this industry runs on different rules than a shop or a beauty salon: in Poland a medical provider may inform about its services but may not advertise them. Many clinic websites copy e-commerce marketing - before-and-after galleries, patient testimonials, promotions - and expose themselves to legal risk. The good news is that honest information persuades patients better than you might think.
Short answer: an aesthetic clinic website can and should inform: which procedures you perform and what they involve, who performs them and with what qualifications, what they cost, their contraindications and how to book. What it cannot do in Poland is carry the features of advertising - so instead of before-and-after photos, patient testimonials and promotions, it builds trust with honest treatment descriptions, information about the doctors and simple consultation booking.
Kluczowe wnioski
- In Poland a medical provider may inform about its services, but the content and form of the site must not have the features of advertising.
- Before-and-after photos, patient testimonials and promotions on procedures are the elements most often treated as risky.
- The strongest content is honest treatment pages and qualified doctors in plain view.
- The form and the AI assistant handle appointments, not health - the medical interview belongs to the doctor.
Information, not advertising: the limits you need to know
A Polish medical provider may make public information about the scope and types of its services, but under art. 14 of the Act on Medical Activity the content and form of that information must not have the features of advertising. Publishing information in the form of advertising can be a petty offence (art. 147a of the Code of Petty Offences). On top of that come medical ethics rules, the rules on advertising medical devices such as fillers, and the ban on advertising prescription medicines to the public, which covers botulinum toxin among others.
The law gives no closed list of what counts as advertising and what counts as information. The line runs where content stops describing and starts encouraging someone to have a procedure. In practice, medical law specialists treat the items in the right-hand column below as the riskiest.
Usually counts as information
- The range of procedures and what they involve
- Doctors with their name and licence number
- A price list and what the price depends on
- Contraindications, possible side effects and preparation
- Opening hours, directions and how to book
Risky: may be treated as advertising
- Before-and-after photos
- Patient reviews and recommendations on the site
- Promotions, discounts and bargain packages
- Promised results and superlatives
- Trade names of medicines and medical devices used as an incentive
Interpretations vary and rules and official positions change - so it is worth showing a clinic's website content to a medical law specialist before publishing. Rules also differ outside Poland.
Who performs procedures, and how to show it
In January 2026 the Polish Ministry of Health published a notice confirming its position: aesthetic-corrective procedures, such as treatments with botulinum toxin or hyaluronic acid, are health services and require the qualifications of a doctor or dentist. The notice does not have the force of law, but it shows clearly how the ministry views these procedures.
For the website the conclusion is simple: a patient should see exactly who will perform the procedure. The doctor's name, professional title, licence number, specialisation and areas of work - described factually, without superlatives. If the clinic also employs cosmetologists, clearly separate cosmetic treatments from medical ones, so as not to suggest qualifications someone does not have.
Treatment pages: the strongest content you can have
Patients rarely search for "a clinic in general". They search for a specific procedure and answers to the questions that worry them: is it safe, will it hurt, will the result look natural, how long until normal life resumes. A separate, honest page for each procedure answers those questions better than any slogan - and it is information, not advertising.
- What the procedure involves and how long it takes.
- Who it is for and who it is not for - indications and contraindications.
- How to prepare and what to expect afterwards.
- Possible side effects and recovery time.
- Who performs it: a doctor with their name and licence number.
- The price or price range and what it depends on.
A page like that has one more advantage. Google judges health content more cautiously than average, because bad information in this field can harm someone. A factual text prepared with a doctor and honest about risks has a better chance of being seen as trustworthy by the search engine.
Prices
Publishing procedure prices is information, not advertising, and it saves calls from people who would drop out anyway. What becomes risky is anything that encourages: promotions, discounts, "special price packages" or prices framed as a bargain. The safest option is a plain price list explaining what the final amount depends on - for example the amount of product decided at the consultation.
Booking a visit: simple and honest
Some patients want to book when reception is already closed. Online booking solves that if it is short: choice of procedure or consultation, a time slot, contact details and a confirmation. A text reminder the day before helps reduce no-shows.
Three things that are easy to forget:
- The form collects only what is needed to book. A description of symptoms or past illnesses is health data, which GDPR protects specially. The medical interview belongs to the doctor, not to a form.
- An advance payment is not a deposit. Under Polish law an advance payment (zaliczka) generally has to be returned if the visit does not take place. If the clinic wants to keep the payment when a patient does not show up, it needs a deposit (zadatek, art. 394 of the Civil Code) and clear terms stated before payment.
- A procedure is usually preceded by a consultation. The doctor decides whether a procedure is appropriate and which one, so online booking is about the time slot, not about qualifying for a procedure.
An AI assistant on the site: organisational matters only
An AI assistant can answer organisational questions after hours: opening times, directions, prices from the price list, free slots. It should not advise which procedure to choose or answer questions about contraindications - that is the doctor's decision, and a conversation about health means processing specially protected data. Since 2 August 2026 the EU AI Act also requires that the patient is clearly told they are talking to an AI. More on how such an assistant works in an AI agent on your website.
Online reviews
Patients read reviews on Google and doctor-rating sites anyway - the clinic does not need to control that. What is risky is something else: moving patient reviews and recommendations onto the clinic's own site as an incentive, and asking for reviews in exchange for a discount. When replying to reviews, give no information about treatment and do not confirm that the person was a patient - doctors and clinics are bound by medical confidentiality. A factual, polite reply without details is always the safer choice.
Visibility on Google
Patients search specifically: "[procedure] [city]". That is why treatment pages are both the best information and the best way for the clinic to be found. A completed Google Business Profile with the address, opening hours and a link to the price list does the rest. The site must also work smoothly on a phone, because that is where many people look for information in the evening.
What not to do
- Do not publish before-and-after photos as an incentive to use your services.
- Do not move patient reviews onto your site, and do not offer a discount for a review.
- Do not announce promotions on procedures or "bargain packages".
- Do not promise results or use superlatives like "the best results in town".
- Do not collect health data in the contact form.
- Do not let an AI assistant advise on procedures.
FAQ
Can a clinic show before-and-after photos?
It is one of the riskiest elements. Such photos usually do not describe a service but encourage it, so they can easily be treated as advertising, and with procedures using medical devices they can also create a misleading impression of the results. Instead of a gallery, describe what the procedure involves and what results can realistically be expected, and consult a lawyer before deciding on any photos.
Can I publish patient reviews on the website?
Patient reviews and recommendations placed on a clinic's site work as an incentive, and the rules on advertising medical devices additionally restrict recommendations from people who used them. Patients will find reviews on Google anyway - the clinic does not need to move them onto its own site.
Can procedure prices be published?
Yes. A price list is information about services. Avoid promotions, discounts and presenting prices as a bargain.
Can an AI assistant answer questions about procedures?
Organisational questions - yes: opening hours, directions, prices, slots. Questions about indications and contraindications - no, that is the doctor's role. The assistant must also clearly say it is an AI.
An advance payment or a deposit when booking?
Under Polish law an advance payment generally has to be returned if the visit does not take place. A deposit (art. 394 of the Civil Code) can be kept by the clinic if the patient fails to attend for reasons on their side - provided this was made clear before payment.
Summary
An aesthetic clinic website does not need advertising to fill the calendar. Honest treatment pages, qualified doctors in plain view, a clear price list and simple consultation booking answer the questions a patient arrives with - and stay within the limits the law sets.
If you are planning a new clinic website, you can check the scope and an indicative price in the calculator. Have the content reviewed by a medical law specialist before publishing.