Healthcare SEO & YMYL: Building Trust with Google in 2026

Google's Quality Rater Guidelines explicitly identify health-related content as YMYL. This means your content is evaluated against the highest standards:

• Accuracy — Medical claims must be factually correct and current
• Authority — Content should be created or reviewed by qualified professionals
• Transparency — Clear disclosure of who's behind the content
• Trustworthiness — Site must demonstrate legitimacy and expertise

What This Means in Practice

A blog post about "home remedies for headaches" written by an anonymous author on a low-authority site will struggle to rank—even with perfect on-page SEO. The same content from a verified neurologist on a hospital website can rank immediately.

The playing field isn't level. Healthcare SEO requires additional investment in credibility signals that other industries don't need.

E-E-A-T stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness. For healthcare, each component requires specific implementation:

Experience

• Practitioner profiles — Detailed bios with qualifications, specialisms, years of practice
• Case studies — Anonymised patient outcomes (with appropriate consent)
• Testimonials — Verified patient reviews with specificity
• First-hand content — "In my 15 years treating..." not "Studies suggest..."

Expertise

• Credentials — GMC registration, specialist certifications, hospital affiliations
• Publications — Link to peer-reviewed papers, conference presentations
• Media appearances — TV, radio, newspaper quotes on health topics
• Author bylines — Every article attributed to a qualified professional

Authoritativeness

• External links — References from NHS, medical journals, professional bodies
• Industry recognition — Awards, accreditations, professional memberships
• Partnerships — Affiliations with hospitals, research institutions

Trustworthiness

• Contact transparency — Physical address, phone number, registration details
• Privacy policy — GDPR compliance, clear data handling
• Security — HTTPS, secure patient portals
• Reviews — Google, Doctify, Treatwell presence with responses

Healthcare content must balance search intent with medical accuracy and compliance. The structure that works:

Content Pillars

• Condition pages — Comprehensive guides to symptoms, causes, treatments
• Treatment pages — Detailed service descriptions with expected outcomes
• Practitioner expertise — Thought leadership demonstrating authority
• Patient resources — Guides, FAQs, preparation instructions

Content Requirements

• Medical review — Every piece reviewed and approved by qualified clinician
• Citation of sources — Link to NHS, NICE guidelines, peer-reviewed research
• Date stamps — "Medically reviewed by Dr X on [date]"
• Disclaimers — Clear "not a substitute for professional advice" notices

Keyword Strategy

Healthcare keywords fall into categories requiring different approaches:

• Symptom queries — Informational intent, educational content
• Treatment queries — Mixed intent, balance information with service pages
• Provider queries — Commercial intent, location-specific optimisation
• Appointment queries — Transactional intent, clear CTAs

Beyond standard technical SEO, healthcare sites have additional requirements. See how we applied these principles for The Chiropractors—a 25-year practice we helped dominate local search:

Schema Markup

• MedicalOrganization — For practices and clinics
• Physician — For individual practitioner profiles
• MedicalCondition — For condition pages (use with care)
• FAQPage — For patient questions sections
• LocalBusiness — For multi-location practices

Page Experience

• Core Web Vitals — Especially important for mobile patient searches
• Accessibility — WCAG compliance for patient diversity
• Mobile optimisation — 70%+ of health searches are mobile

Security

• HTTPS everywhere — Non-negotiable for patient trust
• Secure forms — Encrypted contact and booking forms
• Privacy compliance — GDPR, NHS data protection requirements

Most healthcare searches have local intent. "Dentist near me", "GP [location]", "private hospital [city]". Local SEO is essential—it's how we helped The Chiropractors achieve Top 3 local pack rankings.

Google Business Profile

• Accurate categories — "Medical clinic", "Dental clinic", specific specialties
• Complete information — Services, insurance accepted, accessibility
• Regular updates — New practitioners, services, health tips
• Photos — Facility, team, reception (builds familiarity)

Review Strategy

Healthcare reviews require sensitivity:

• Never solicit reviews that mention specific conditions
• Respond professionally to all reviews (positive and negative)
• Report reviews that violate patient confidentiality
• Focus on service quality, not medical outcomes

Multi-Location Considerations

For healthcare groups with multiple locations:

• Unique GBP for each location
• Location-specific website pages
• Consistent NAP across all citations
• Location-specific content and practitioner profiles

Healthcare marketing is heavily regulated. SEO strategies must work within these constraints:

UK Advertising Standards

• ASA/CAP codes — No misleading claims about treatments
• Evidence requirements — Claims must be substantiated
• Testimonials — Cannot claim atypical results as typical

Professional Body Requirements

• GMC guidance — For medical practitioners' online presence
• CQC — Registration visibility for regulated services
• Specialist societies — Membership disclosure requirements

Working with Compliance

Build compliance review into your content workflow:

• Medical review before publication
• Regular content audits for outdated claims
• Documentation of sources and approvals
• Clear escalation for uncertain content

Our SEO services are built around this exact framework, designed for businesses that need predictable growth.

See how we applied this approach in our client case studies.