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Advertisement Code of Conduct for Private Hospitals and Private Health Clinics



Advertisement Code of Conduct for Private Hospitals and Private Health Clinics

1.                  Introduction
1.1              Operators of the independent private healthcare facilities are required to comply with the Advertisement Codes. The Codes allow advertisement by operators of Private Health Facilities so that the public can have a better understanding of services and options available, and hence, make informed choices in healthcare. However, such information provided by owners of independent private health facilities should not induce unnecessary consumption of healthcare services or create unrealistic expectation of the services provided.

1.2              These codes aim to elucidate the broad principles set out in the Advertisement Law and should be read in conjunction with the Codes. The examples highlighted in these Guidelines are not exhaustive and thus shall not be regarded as so. The codes may be updated periodically and all independent private hospitals and clinics are expected to be familiar with these codes and laws.

1.3              Operators of Independent Private Hospitals and Health Clinics are responsible and will be held accountable for all advertisements associated with their facilities, and hence they are advised to adhere to these Guidelines. Whether the operator abides by these Guidelines may be taken into account in determining his compliance with the Health Advertisement Codes.

2.                  Explanatory notes relating to Content and Manner of Advertisement

2.1 “Advertisement” as defined in Code 2 means any form of publicity and includes any advertisement —

(a) Printed in any medium for the communication of information;

(b) Appearing in, communicated through or retrievable from, any mass medium, whether electronic or otherwise; or

(c) Contained in any medium for communication produced or for use by a healthcare institution.

The definition of advertisement is broad and includes any form of publicity in any medium.

2.2 Subject to these Codes and to any other written law, the operator of a healthcare facility may publicize or cause to be publicized the services of the healthcare facility.” This simply means that healthcare facilities may publicize their services and such publicity would be subject to the Healthcare Advertising Codes and any other written law where applicable.

“Services” of the Health Facility, in the context of Code 3, would mean any healthcare service such as medical clinic service, hospital service, nursing home service, laboratory service, as well as more detailed activities that define each service such as consultation, treatment, provision/application of any procedure, product, device or practice.

Advertisement of services would mean any advertisement that reflects any of the services offered/ provided by the Health facility. This includes the mentioning of the name, logo and/or motto of the healthcare institution that includes words denoting the functional service e.g. ‘XYZ Medical Clinic’ denotes a medical clinic service, ‘ABC Hospital’ denotes a hospital service, etc.


2.3               

“The information contained in the advertisement must be factually accurate and capable of being substantiated, and must not be exaggerated, false, misleading or deceptive.”

2.3.1        “Capable of being substantiated” in relation to claims published in a Health facility’s advertisement is defined as having explicit evidence that substantiates the publicized claims. Any claim that cannot be independently substantiated at the point of publicity, that is, does not have substantiating evidence or its relevant references published alongside the claims, shall not be publicized.

2.3.2        “Evidence” in the above context of “capable of being substantiated” refers to substantiating information of a credible source. The level of credibility accepted by Ministry of Health (MOH) shall be information reported in articles published in peer-reviewed journals listed in PubMed (for medical/ dental fields) or recognized by the local medical/ dental community as credible.

2.3.3        “capable of being substantiated” in relation to claims/ information about a registered healthcare professional is defined as having fulfilled the following conditions:

(a)               The consent of the professional has been obtained;
                                  
(b)               The content has been vetted and verified by the professional; and

(c)               The credentials/ qualifications of the professional to be published are recognized by a bona fide, local professional registration body.

2.3.4        The operator of the Health Facility shall not publicize the following claims/ information as they are deemed as not “capable of being substantiated” at the point of publicity:

(a)              Any claim on output/ volume or speed of service;

(b)              Any claim on uniqueness of service/ Health Facilty;





(c)             Any claim on services that have low or no evidence of effectiveness, or not generally accepted by peer healthcare professionals; and
                                        
(d)             Any claim on an award/ achievement, unless such award/ achievement is recognized by MOH (e.g. awards granted by Government or Statutory Body in Uganda, JCI accreditation, ISO). Featuring unrecognized award/ achievement in Health Facility’s publicity is also deemed as “misleading” the public.


“The publicity must not be offensive, ostentatious or in bad taste such as to undermine the honor and dignity of the medical, dental or nursing profession.”

2.4.1          Advertisement that is considered “ostentatious” would include, but not limited to, the following:

(a)               Any photo showing a person performing a procedure or administering a treatment;

(b)               Any photo of a doctor, dentist or nurse exceeding ‘passport’ size

(i.e. 35mm wide by 45mm high);

(c)               Any photo of a celebrity/ media figure (with/ without explicitly identifying the celebrity/ media figure);

(d)              Healthy Facilities creating/ maintaining websites in a manner that attracts undue public’s attention (e.g. A Health Facility having multiple websites with similar contents).

2.4.2          Advertisement that is considered “in bad taste” would include, but not limited to, the following:

(a)               Any content featuring obscene or repulsive pictures or words, or having sexual/ indecent connotations;

(b)               Any content featuring/ implying association between the medical service/ profession and any non-medical/ non-dental service (except for other mainstream healthcare services such as allied health services, pharmacy and optometry) or any traditional, complementary or alternative health care service/ practice;

(c)               Any content featuring/ implying endorsement by the Health Institution of an entity/ person that is not a licensed Health Institution or any service provided by such other person;

(d)              Any content featuring a service that is not provided in local mainstream medicine;




(e)               Any content that raises/ causes unreasonable fear or undue worry of a disease or condition.

2.4.3          Any information pertaining to registered doctors, dentists or nurses that does not comply with the respective code of conduct and ethical guidelines (e.g. Medical and Dental Practitioners Ethical Code and Ethical Guidelines, Code of Ethics & Professional Conduct for nurses and midwives, etc) would be deemed as “undermining the honor and dignity of the medical, dental or nursing profession”.

2.4.4          For avoidance of doubt about publicizing information that could be deemed as “undermining the honor and dignity of the medical, dental or nursing profession”, Health Facilities are strongly advised to restrict publicity information of a registered doctor, dentist or nurse to the following:

(a)               His name;

(b)               His registered professional qualification;

(c)               His displayable qualifications, i.e. qualifications accepted and recognized for display by the relevant professional bodies (if any);

(d)              His title reflecting the register(s) in which he is registered;

(e)               His title or designation at the Health Facilities;

(f)                Where necessary, his photograph not exceeding ‘passport’ size (i.e. 35mm wide by 45mm high).
2.5               

“The publicity must not contain any information that (i) implies that the healthcare institution can obtain results from treatment not achievable by other healthcare institutions or create an unjustified expectation from the treatment provided; or (ii) compares and contrasts the quality of the services of the healthcare institution with those provided by other healthcare institutions or deprecate the services of other healthcare institutions.”

2.5.1        A Health Facility shall not feature “before and after” treatment pictures/videos/ information or only “after” treatment pictures/videos/information in their publicity. Such pictures/videos/information “create an unjustified expectation from the treatment provided” as they pertain only to anecdotal cases, and not all patients will see the same results after treatment.

A Health Facility shall not advertise/ publicize that its services can bring about results within a certain time period or within a specified number of sessions (e.g. “instant/ immediate teeth whitening”, “botox in 5 minutes”, “straight teeth in 2 weeks”, “see results after 1 treatment session”, “accurate diagnosis for the first time”). Such information may “create an unjustified expectation from the treatment provided” as not all patients undergoing the services provided can achieve the same results after the stated time period.

2.5.3        Any pictures/videos/information implying (with/ without descriptions) that a person is/ will be healthier or less ill, aesthetically better or in a better state of general well-being after receiving the Health Facility’s services.

2.5.4        The operator of the Health Facility shall not feature any celebrity/ media figure (with/ without identifying the celebrity/ media figure) in their publicity materials as this would amount to creating an unjustified expectation for the services provided by the Health Facility, which is a contravention of the Codes.

2.6               

“The publicity must not contain any laudatory statements (including statements of prominence or uniqueness) or superlatives to describe the services of the Healthcare Institution.”

2.6.1        Words/ statements that are considered “laudatory” would include, but not limited to, the following:

(a)                 “best”

(b)                “first”
(c)                 “only”

2.6.2        For avoidance of doubt about publicizing information that are contravening Codes, Health Facilities are strongly advised to limit their publicity to information.


2.7               

“The information contained in the publicity must not contain any testimonial or endorsement of the services, including the services of any employee of the healthcare institution.”

2.7.1        “Testimonial or endorsement” in this context would include, but is not limited to, any compliment, accolade or positive assessment given by any person regarding the Health Facility’s services.

2.7.2        The operator of the Health Facility shall not publicize any person’s testimonial or endorsement about the Health Facility, its staff or services in any form of media unless its availability is restricted to within the premises of the Health Facility and not accessible to the general public outside of the Health Facility’s premises in the normal course of events.

The operator of the Health Facility that advertises/ publicize its information on social media (e.g. Facebook, Twitter) shall ensure that the advertising media does not contain any person’s “testimonial or endorsement” about the Health Facility’s services.
  


2.7.4        The operator of the Health Facility shall not, in its publicity materials, feature links to third party websites/ advertising platforms containing any person’s testimonial or endorsement about the Health Facility’s services (e.g. newspapers, forum, blogs). Any linkage found between a Health Facility’s publicity and any media featuring such testimonial or endorsement would be deemed as equivalent to the Health Facility publicizing testimonials or endorsement directly in its publicity, which is a contravention of Code.

2.7.5        The operator of the Health Facility shall not feature any celebrity/ media figure (with/ without identifying the celebrity/ media figure) in their publicity materials as this would amount to endorsement of the Health Facility, its staff or services, which is a contravention of the Code.

2.7.6        Ratings/  rankings  of  Health Facilities  in  third  party  websites  are  deemed  as

“endorsement” of the Health Facilities’ services and publishing of “user experiences” would be considered as testimonials.

2.8               

“The advertisement must not provide information to the public in such a manner as to amount to soliciting or encouraging the use of the services provided by or at any healthcare institution.”

2.8.1 Examples of content or manner of publicity that amount to “soliciting or encouraging the use of the Health Facility’s services” would include, but not limited to, the following:

(a)               “Before and after” or only “after” treatment photos. Such photos shall not be featured even with the presence of disclaimers as it is not possible to guarantee that the disclaimer would fully neutralize the inducement effect of the photos on every prospective patient.

(b)               “Usual” and “now” prices, or “usual” and “package” prices, or solely “usual” prices or “Package prices” for the same/group of services in the same publicity. A Health Facility shall only list the exact price for its packages/ services without indicating any prefix/ description to the price, and without a comparative listing of the prices.

(c)               Phrases such as “as low as” or “lowest prices”, or similar words when advertising prices for the Health Facility’s services, or stating an installment amount for the Health Facility’s services without stating the total cost.


(d)              Period for which the fee/ charge is applicable (i.e. validity period) or the number of patients entitled to that fee/ charge or indicating that the services in a package has to be availed/completed within a specified period.

(e)               Any service or item provided at/ by the Health Facility free of charge or at lower cost than usual, in connection with any service of the Health Facility being publicized.

(f)                Phrases such as "discounts", "interest free", "preferential rates",

“promotions”, “offer”, “complimentary”, "free".

(g)               Information that promises or suggests that the services can bring about results within a certain time period (e.g. “Instant/ immediate teeth whitening”, “botox in 5 minutes”, “straight teeth in 2 weeks”).

(h)               Any publicity in group buying websites or websites that offer lower pricing than usual through collective group buying.

(i)                 Any publicity that relates to promotions/ events which involves the giving away of souvenirs, promotional coupons, vouchers, lucky draws and sales campaigns.



2.9              For avoidance of doubt about committing an offence under Code 4(1), Health Facilities are strongly advised to limit their publicity to the following information:

(a)               The name, logo, address, website address and contact details of the healthcare institution;

(b)               The operating hours of the healthcare institution;

(c)               A listing of the services provided by the healthcare institution;

(d)              The following details in respect of any registered healthcare professional providing such services at the healthcare institution:

(i)                 His name;
(ii)               His registered professional qualification;

(iii)             His title(s) reflecting the register(s) in which he is registered;

(iv)             His displayable qualification i.e. qualifications accepted and recognized for display by the relevant professional bodies (if any);

(v)               His title or designation at the healthcare institution;

(vi)             His photograph, not exceeding ‘passport’ size (35mm wide by 45mm high);






(e)               The actual fees and charges, and the accepted mode of payment, for the services provided by the healthcare institution.


3.                  Explanatory notes relating to Advertising Media

3.1               

“The operator of a healthcare institution shall ensure that any publicity of the services of the healthcare institution appears only in newspapers, directories, medical journals, magazines, brochures, leaflets, pamphlets and the Internet.”

3.1.1        The operator of the Health Facility shall not publicize information on their services through SMS, billboard, light box, digital media box, LCD/ LED panels, banner, poster or any other media that is not listed in the Code 5(1).

3.1.2        New media such as YouTube, Facebook and Blogs are considered as Internet. As such, publicity of Health Facility’s service on such media is allowed, but it will be subject to the requirements in the Advertising Codes.

3.1.3        The operators of the Health Facilities shall ensure that their publicity in brochures, leaflets or pamphlets contain the date of publication.

3.2              The following are not subject to the list of advertising media in Code
5(1):

(a)               Directional signboard, which shall contain only the name/ logo of the Health Facility with/without the telephone number and with/without the operating hours, and directional sign.

(b)               Directory, which shall contain only the name/ logo of the Health Facility with/ without unit number, with/without the telephone number and with/without the operating hours of the Health Facility, and featured together with information on all other services in a building.

(c)               Information of the Health Facility’s services communicated to individual patients within its licensed premises during the individual’s medical/ dental consultation with the doctor/dentist.

(d)              Listing of the practitioners’ information, the Health Facility’s opening hours, the Health Facility’s contact information and/ or the Health Facility’s services on the Health Facility’s fixture (i.e. entrance or exit doors, walls, windows).

(e)               Signboard of the Health Facility, which contains only the name/ logo of the Health Facility with/ without unit number of the Health Facility and sited at the entrance or exit of the Health Facility’s fixture.



(f)                Signboard of the Health Facility, which contains only the name/ logo of the Health Facility with/ without unit number of the Health Facility, placed at the exterior of a building to inform the public of the Health Facility’s existence in the building or the function of the building (e.g. a hospital building)

(g)               Information provided in an interview by the operator or employee of the Health Facility. Further clarifications on providing interviews are set out at paragraph 6.

(h)               Information reported by any mainstream media agency as part of an independent news report that is not initiated or sponsored by the Health Facility.

3.3              Should any of the above contain information other than what is stipulated, it would be subject to the Health Advertising Codes. If the media used is not listed in Code 5(1), it would be considered as a breach of Code 5(1).

4. Explanatory guidelines relating to advertisement of Health Facilities in conjunction with advertisement of public workshops, etc.

4.1 The operator of a Health Facility may publicize educational events such as workshops, seminars or talks. This section is intended to guide Health Facilities on what would be considered as publicity of the Health Facility while they conduct publicity of public workshop, seminar, symposium or similar events (hereby referred to as “educational events”) organized by them.

4.2              If the publicity of an educational event or the actual educational event includes the publicity of any Health Facility and/or its services in whatever form, it would be considered as publicity of the Health Facility and subject to both Code 4(1) and Code 5.

4.3              Educational events are not considered patient care services and should not be co-located in medical clinics and patient care areas in the hospitals.

4.4              The guideline provided in this section would not apply to publicity of workshop, seminar, symposium or similar events that are wholly intended to educate registered healthcare professionals and not for attendance by ordinary members of the public.

4.5              For avoidance of doubt about committing an offence under the Codes for the publicity of the Health Facility during such events, the operators of the Health Facilities are strongly advised to limit their publicity of public workshop, etc. to the following information:

(a)               The title and synopsis;
                                  
(b)               Specified information of the speakers:

(i)                 Their names;
(ii)               Their registered professional qualifications;

(iii)             Their title(s) reflecting the register(s) in which they are registered;

(iv)             Their displayable qualifications, i.e. qualifications accepted and recognized for display by the relevant professional bodies (if any);

(v)               The names of the places at which they work

(vi)             Photographs not exceeding ‘passport’ size (35mm wide by 45mm high);

(c)               The programme and timing;

(d)              The venue and contact information for the workshop;

(e)               The actual fees and charges, the period for which the fees and charges are applicable, and the accepted mode of payment;

(f)                The names of the organizers and sponsors.


5.                  General guidelines on advertisement in conjunction with any person

5.1              The operator of the Health Facility may have contractual agreements with any club/ society/ company so as to provide preferred rates or special treatment packages to members of the club/ society/ company. However, the advertisement for such arrangements to the members of the club/ society/ company must adhere to the Health Advertisement Codes, and in particular, in compliance with the provisions set out in Code 4(1) and Code 5(1).

5.2              The operator of the Health Facility may engage the services of an advertising company or a third party to publish information on their services. However, the operator is required to ensure that the advertisement complies with the provisions of the Health Advertisements Codes.


6.                  General guidelines on providing information through interviews

6.1              The operator or employee of a Health Facility may, at the request of any print or broadcast media organization, consent to be interviewed. The operator shall ensure that any information provided in an interview by him or an employee of the Health Facility which relates to any publicity of the Health Facility’s services complies with Code 4(1).

6.2              The operator of the Health Facility shall be responsible for the contents of the interviews published and must ensure that the published contents are not in breach of any provisions under Code 4(1).


7.                  Advertisement conducted outside Uganda

7.1              The operator of the Health Facility may advertise or promote their services outside Uganda but it should comply with the relevant laws including advertising rules of that country. Such publicity will not be subject to the provisions of the Health Advertisement Codes.

7.2              If advertisements conducted outside Uganda are accessible, in the normal course of events, to the general public in Uganda (e.g. Internet), it will be subject to the provisions of the Health Advertisement Codes.


8.                  Responsibilities of the Health Facility Operator

8.1              It is the operator’s responsibility to ensure that the style and content of the Health Facility publicity, and the manner in which the Health Facility’s publicity is conducted, comply with the provisions of these Codes.

8.2              The operator of the Health Facility shall take all reasonable steps to procure the rectification or withdrawal of any publicity relating to the services of the Health Facility which contravenes any provision of these Codes, and prevent its recurrence.

8.3              If the operator of an Health Facility has published any advertisement or caused any advertisement to be published in contravention of any provision of these Codes, the Director may, after making due inquiry into the matter, order the licensee of the healthcare institution to alter, withdraw, remove or discontinue the publicity or cause the same to be altered withdrawn, removed or discontinued. The term “alter” in this context would include amendment of the offending publicity by the Health Facility responsible so as to enable the public to see the corrected publicity. 

                                    Email: unaph22@yahoo.com , unaphserv@gmail.com 

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