In British Columbia, a health clinic's advertising is governed mainly by the regulatory college of the professionals who provide the service, with federal rules added when an ad mentions a drug or medical device. Across the colleges, the common ground is consistent: claims must be accurate and verifiable, ads must not imply superiority over other providers or promise results, and testimonials, before-and-after images and discounts each come with conditions that differ by profession.
This guide is for owners and managers of physiotherapy, dental, massage therapy and med spa clinics in Metro Vancouver who want to know what an ad may say before paying to run it, whether it appears on social media, a website or Brandboards inside local venues. It reflects standards published as of October 2026.
This article is general guidance, not legal advice. Your college's current standards are the authority on your obligations, and a lawyer familiar with health professional regulation can advise on a specific ad.
Why clinic advertising is regulated in BC
A clinic ad is held to a different standard than a café ad because the person reading it is a prospective patient. The College of Physicians and Surgeons of BC's advertising standard states the reasoning directly: it assumes a significant power and knowledge imbalance between a physician and a prospective patient, and it limits public communication to truthful information that helps a patient make an informed decision about their care.
Other colleges use similar language. The College of Health and Care Professionals of BC's marketing standard, in effect since April 1, 2026, says the public can expect marketing that is accurate, honest and supports informed decision making.
The practical consequence is that ordinary marketing techniques, such as urgency, a "best in town" line or a glowing patient quote, can become a professional conduct issue rather than a matter of style. Colleges generally do not pre-approve ads. CPSBC, for example, responds to concerns brought forward by the public rather than monitoring ads in advance, so a problem usually surfaces only after a campaign has run.
The framework also changed this year. The Health Professions and Occupations Act came into force on April 1, 2026, replacing the Health Professions Act, and several colleges revised their advertising standards around that date. Guidance written before 2026 may no longer be current.
Who sets the rules
Two layers apply to most clinic ads: the provincial college that licenses the professionals involved, and federal law when the ad promotes a specific health product.
The professional colleges
BC now has six health regulatory colleges following a series of amalgamations. The rules for an ad follow the profession of the people providing the service, not the type of business. The colleges most relevant to clinic advertisers are:
- College of Physicians and Surgeons of BC (CPSBC). Physicians, including those who order or oversee treatments at medical aesthetic clinics.
- College of Health and Care Professionals of BC (CHCPBC). Physical therapists and several other professions, under one marketing standard effective April 1, 2026.
- College of Complementary Health Professionals of BC (CCHPBC). Registered massage therapists, naturopathic physicians and other complementary professions, under its Professional Standard: Advertising and Marketing.
- BC College of Oral Health Professionals (BCCOHP). Dentists, dental hygienists, denturists and other oral health professionals.
- BC College of Nurses and Midwives (BCCNM). Nurses, including those who perform medical aesthetic procedures.
A multidisciplinary clinic answers to more than one college. An ad that promotes both physiotherapy and massage therapy has to satisfy each college whose licensees it promotes.
Dental advertising is now less prescriptive than it used to be. BCCOHP's new bylaws under the HPOA do not include specific marketing and advertising requirements. Instead, its Standards for the Oral Health Team require marketing to be accurate and not misleading, and to comply with applicable advertising, competition and privacy laws. Questions about where a dental practice should advertise are a separate matter, covered in our piece on dental marketing in Vancouver; this article deals only with what the ad may say.
Health Canada for drugs and devices
Federal drug law does not regulate the advertising of services. According to Health Canada's guidance for health care providers, the Food and Drugs Act applies once an ad promotes a specific health product, and that includes ads placed by clinics and practitioners.
Two federal limits matter most. An ad directed at the public that names a prescription drug may not go beyond its name, price and quantity, under section C.01.044 of the Food and Drug Regulations. Advertising any prescription drug to the public as a treatment, prevention or cure for certain serious diseases is prohibited outright.
Several college standards fold these rules in. CHCPBC requires licensees to meet Health Canada's advertising requirements where applicable, and CPSBC requires physician ads to conform to them. The same federal limits shape what appears on pharmacy digital signage, where OTC and general wellness content is the norm for that reason.
Common restrictions
The wording differs from college to college, but four topics come up in almost every clinic ad.
Testimonials and reviews
CCHPBC tells its licensees to avoid soliciting testimonials, and its definition of a testimonial includes before-and-after photos illustrating a patient's results. CHCPBC's standard explicitly covers testimonials and also requires licensees to monitor third-party content that references their services, such as online reviews, and to request corrections where it is inaccurate.
Testimonials are also a federal consumer-law issue. The Competition Bureau's guidance on deceptive marketing lists the untrue, misleading or unauthorized use of tests and testimonials among the practices the Competition Act addresses.
On a Brandboard, a star rating, a review count or a short patient quote functions the same way as a testimonial on a website. If your college's standard does not clearly permit it, leave it out.
Superiority claims and guarantees
Every standard reviewed for this article restricts claims of superiority. CHCPBC prohibits false, misleading or unsubstantiated claims of superiority over other providers and unreasonable expectations or guarantees about results. CCHPBC prohibits comparative language implying superiority and bars the terms "expert" and "specialist" or any similar designation.
CPSBC goes further on titles. A physician may call themselves a specialist only with specific certifications, and may not use "surgeon" in ads for cosmetic procedures without certification in a relevant surgical discipline. CPSBC also prohibits ads that create unreasonable expectations or offer guarantees or warranties about results.
Words that commonly cause problems include "best," "leading," "expert," "guaranteed" and any claim of being the only provider in an area. Trades have a parallel set of rules around verifiable credentials in ads, covered in our guide to contractor marketing in Vancouver.
Before-and-after images
Before-and-after images are where the rules diverge most. CPSBC permits them only when the patient has given written consent to the use of their photographs in advertisements, and that consent must be available for the college to verify. If an ad uses models who did not receive the service, CPSBC requires a disclaimer.
CCHPBC treats before-and-after photos as a form of testimonial, so the same caution applies. Where a prescription drug is involved, Health Canada names before-and-after treatment pictures as one of the issues it commonly encounters in clinic marketing of Botox.
A Brandboard is a public medium. Anyone in the venue can see the image, so the consent you hold should clearly cover advertising use in public places, not only use in patient records or on a website.
Prices, discounts and offers
CPSBC prohibits inducements for medical services, including prizes, gift certificates, discounts and time-limited benefits. It also requires ads to state clearly which advertised services are not publicly funded through the Medical Services Plan.
CHCPBC prohibits advertising free health services or other inducements for unnecessary or inappropriate services. CCHPBC prohibits incentives that are reasonably likely to encourage inappropriate or unnecessary services.
Dental is more permissive. BCCOHP has said that oral health professionals may advertise free or discounted services to specific groups and offer rewards programs, as long as the advertising is not misleading and does not promote a particular treatment ahead of an individual assessment.
None of the standards reviewed here prohibits stating a regular fee. What they restrict is the inducement, so a fee schedule and a "this week only" discount are treated very differently.
Med spas and cosmetic treatments
A med spa is a business model, not a regulated profession, so the rules attach to whoever performs or orders each treatment. BCCNM requires nurses providing medical aesthetic services to meet its standards, and the ordering health professional must be present and immediately available during the procedure. Where a physician orders or oversees treatments, the CPSBC standard applies to the ad, including its limits on discounts and before-and-after images.
Federal drug rules are the second constraint. Health Canada uses Botox as its example of a prescription drug that clinics sometimes market to consumers, and states that no direct or indirect reference can be made to its therapeutic use or benefits. It lists procedure videos, before-and-after pictures, images alluding to the drug's indications and testimonials about its benefits as common problems.
In practice, a med spa ad is safest when it describes the clinic and its services in general terms and keeps prescription product names away from claims about results. Services outside any college's scope, such as many non-medical skin treatments, still fall under the Competition Act's prohibition on false or misleading claims.
Venue choice matters for these ads as well. Cosmetic clinic campaigns often fit salons and personal-care venues, and digital signage for salons and spas explains how those hosts approach the content that runs in their space.
A simple pre-publish checklist
Run through these questions before any clinic ad goes live, on any channel:
- Which colleges apply? List every profession the ad promotes and read each college's current advertising standard, checking that it is dated April 2026 or later.
- Can every claim be verified? Keep the evidence. CCHPBC, for example, can ask for evidence supporting any statement in an ad.
- Is there any superiority language or guarantee? Remove "best," "leading," "expert," "specialist" (unless certified and permitted), "guaranteed" and similar wording.
- Does the ad include a patient quote, rating or review? Remove it unless your college clearly permits it.
- Are before-and-after images used? Confirm written consent for advertising use, add a disclaimer if models are shown, and leave them out entirely for prescription drug treatments.
- Is a prescription drug named? Limit the reference to name, price and quantity, with no benefit or indication.
- Is there an offer? Check it against your college's rules on free services, discounts and time-limited benefits. Physicians must also flag services not covered by MSP.
- Is the responsible licensee identified? CPSBC requires physician ads to name at least one responsible licensee and to use the licensee's legal name.
- Does every language version say the same thing? A translation should not add claims the English version does not make.
- Will you keep a record? CCHPBC requires licensees to keep copies of advertising for three years, with a written record of when and where it ran.
How Totemian handles clinic creative
On the Totemian network, Totemian's team designs the Brandboard creative, and every draft goes back to the clinic for approval. A clinic ad usually goes back and forth at least three times before it is final. Those rounds matter because the colleges place responsibility on the licensee. CPSBC states that physicians are solely responsible for advertising prepared by a third party and must ensure by contract that they are fully informed of it, and CHCPBC and CCHPBC have similar requirements. Each approval round is the point to check the draft against your own standard.
Totemian does not treat prices, promotions, photos or credentials as off-limits categories for clinic creative. The limits on those elements come from your college. Separately, Totemian's content review checks that creative fits each host venue, hosts can block sensitive categories, and some venue types, restaurants in particular, are more sensitive to certain content than a salon or pharmacy. A clinic campaign's venue list is therefore shaped by fit as well as by neighbourhood.
The network's main language is English, and other language versions can be produced when the campaign calls for them. The same rules apply to every version.
Campaign reporting includes campaign dates, delivered plays and venue-level delivery, which gives a clinic a dated record of when and where its ad was hosted. That record is useful for record-keeping requirements like CCHPBC's, but it is not regulatory clearance. Totemian's review is a fit and quality check, and only your college can say whether an ad meets its standard. Clinics that want to advertise your business in Vancouver on Brandboards can see the full process, including creative review and dispute handling, on our how we work page. For layout and readability on venue screens, see our guide to designing ads for real-world screens.
Clinic advertising in BC comes down to a short list of decisions made before the ad runs: identify the colleges that apply, remove superiority language and guarantees, treat testimonials and before-and-after images with caution, check every offer, and keep federal drug limits in mind for anything cosmetic. With the HPOA now in force and several standards rewritten in 2026, the current version of your college's standard is the one to check, not the one you remember.
