Digital Business Cards for Private Clinics in the UK

Digital Business Cards UK Editorial Team — UK professions

Digital Business Cards UK Editorial Team · Published 31 October 2026 · Updated 31 October 2026

Patients choose a private clinic carefully. They want to know who will treat them, whether that person is registered and how to book again. A digital business card can answer all three in one place.

This guide is for physiotherapists, dentists, osteopaths and aesthetics practitioners running private clinics in the UK. It covers registration, CQC reports, rebooking at reception, patient privacy and NHS branding.

For the general buying checks, start with our UK buyer's guide to digital business cards.

What a digital business card does for a clinic

A digital business card is a web profile with its own link and QR code. A patient scans the code with their phone camera, or you text them the link. One press of Save to Contacts puts the clinic's name, address and number into their phone. No app is needed on either side.

For a clinic, that means:

• Fewer lost appointment cards. The clinic's details live in the patient's phone, not in a coat pocket.
• Accurate details. Nobody copies the number down wrong at the front desk.
• One place to check. Registration, opening hours, directions and how to rebook sit together.
• Easy updates. Change your hours or add a practitioner, and every shared link shows the change.

Show each practitioner's registration

Patients increasingly check that the person treating them is registered. Make it easy by showing the registration and linking to the official register, so patients can confirm it themselves.

On each practitioner's profile:

• Show the registration number exactly as it appears on the register.
• Name the regulator and link to its register.
• Use protected titles correctly. Only describe yourself with a title your registration allows.
• Keep it current. If a registration changes, update the profile the same day.

In aesthetics, some practitioners are registered healthcare professionals and some are not. Only show a registration you hold, and never word a profile so it suggests a registration you do not have.

This is general information, not legal advice. Your regulator's own guidance explains how you may describe your registration.

Link your CQC report where one exists

Many clinics providing regulated health care in England are registered with the Care Quality Commission. If your clinic is registered and has been inspected, the report is public on the CQC website.

• Link to your clinic's page on the CQC website from the profile, rather than copying the rating into your own words.
• Keep it accurate. If a new report is published, the link still points to the current page.
• If you have no report yet, leave the link off rather than saying anything about a rating.

Clinics in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are overseen by different bodies. Link to whichever applies to you.

A reception QR code for rebooking

Reception is where most rebooking happens, and where the queue builds up. A QR code at the desk lets patients do it themselves.

• Display the QR code on a counter sign or a screen with a short line: "Scan to save our details and book your next appointment."
• Use Bookings (Business Add-ons) so patients can choose their next slot from the profile.
• Text the link after the first appointment, so new patients have the clinic's details before they leave the car park.
• Add directions and parking information to the profile, so patients arrive on time.

With Business Add-ons, Get Reviews can send patients to your review pages after a visit. Ask only in ways your regulator and professional body allow.

Never collect health information through the card

This is the most important point in this guide. Information about someone's health is special category data under UK GDPR. It needs extra protection, and the ICO explains the rules in its guidance on special category data.

A digital business card is designed for contact details. It is not a clinical system.

• Do not use Forms or Enquiries to ask about symptoms, conditions, medication or treatment history.
• Keep booking questions minimal: a name, a contact number or email, and a preferred time.
• Add a clear line near any form: "Please do not include any health information. We will discuss your treatment in clinic."
• Keep clinical records in your clinic's own systems, which are set up for health data.
• Do not store patient documents in your profile. Password Protection can lock a section, but it is not a patient portal.

Contact details you do collect are still personal data. Tell patients what you will use them for, and delete them when you no longer need them. Our guide to digital business cards and UK GDPR covers the basics.

This is general information, not legal advice.

What to put on a clinic profile

Keep the profile practical. Patients use it to find you, check you and book again.

• Details. Clinic name, address, phone, email and opening hours.
• Directions. In Details, parking, public transport and step-free access, if you have it.
• Practitioners. In Details, each person's name, profession, registration and a short, factual bio.
• Services. Use Products to list treatments in plain terms, with prices if you publish them.
• Documents. Your cancellation policy, price list or a "what to expect" guide as a PDF.
• One next step. "Book your next appointment" or "Call reception".

Use Contact Display to choose which numbers are public, and Visibility & Order to keep booking and directions near the top.

Clinics with several practitioners

If your clinic has a team, give each practitioner their own profile and keep a clinic profile for reception.

• One template and one set of colours across the clinic.
• The same clinic details on every profile, so patients always reach reception.
• Each practitioner's own registration on their profile, not on the clinic's.
• One person responsible for updating profiles when someone joins or leaves.

Advertising care for aesthetics clinics

Advertising rules apply to clinics too. For example, the Advertising Standards Authority's guidance on botulinum toxin products explains that prescription-only medicines must not be advertised to the public.

On your profile:

• Describe consultations, not prescription-only medicines. "Book a consultation" is safer than naming a product.
• Avoid promises. Do not guarantee results.
• Use real, consented photos only, and follow your professional body's rules on before-and-after images.

NHS staff with private work

Many practitioners work for the NHS and run private sessions too. Keep the two separate on your card.

• Keep NHS branding off a personal or private-practice card. The NHS logo and identity have rules about who may use them and when. NHS England sets these out in its NHS Identity Guidelines.
• Do not imply your private service is an NHS service.
• Use your private clinic's name and contact details, not your NHS email or phone number.
• Check your employer's policy on private work and on mentioning your NHS role.

Setting up a clinic

1. Choose one template and the clinic's colours for every practitioner.
2. Add the clinic's details: name, address, phone, email, opening hours and parking.
3. Add each practitioner's registration and a link to the register.
4. Link your CQC report if you have one.
5. With Business Add-ons, set up Bookings with minimal questions.
6. Add the "no health information" line to any form.
7. Print the QR code for the reception desk and test it.

Start on the digital business card page, which is set up for sharing in person.

Which plan suits a clinic?

Both plans are a single payment in pounds with UK VAT included.

• Brand Presence (£45) suits a practitioner who wants patients to save their details and check their registration.
• Business Add-ons (£90) adds Bookings, Enquiries, Forms, Get Reviews, CRM and Export for rebooking and follow-up.

Learning from other professions

Clinics share some challenges with other regulated professions. Our guide for UK solicitors covers confidentiality in a similar way, and our guide for UK tradespeople shows how to display registration numbers clearly.

Frequently asked questions

Can I show my GDC, HCPC, GMC or NMC registration?

Yes. Show the number exactly as it appears on the register, name the regulator and link to its register so patients can check it themselves.

Should I link our CQC report?

If your clinic is registered and has a published report, link to its page on the CQC website rather than paraphrasing the rating.

Can patients rebook from the QR code?

Yes, with Business Add-ons, which includes Bookings. Display the QR code at reception and keep booking questions minimal.

Can patients tell us about their symptoms through the profile?

No. Health information is special category data under UK GDPR. Ask patients not to include health information and discuss treatment in clinic. This is general information, not legal advice.

I work for the NHS too. Can I put that on my card?

Keep NHS branding off a personal or private-practice card and do not imply your private service is an NHS service. Check your employer's policy.

Do patients need an app?

No. They scan the QR code with their phone camera or open your link, and save your details in one step.