The American Dental Association has added to its code of ethics and conduct to address concerns with social media and influencers.
Updates to the ADA Principles of Ethics and Code of Professional Conduct for 2025 tackle the ethical concerns with the use of social media influencers by dental practitioners and dental professionals acting as influencers themselves, according to a Feb. 24 news release from the ADA.
Here is the new advisory opinion and update to a second advisory opinion regarding social media:
- New Advisory Opinion 5.F.7. Social Media: Restates the ethical obligation for dental practitioners to present factual information to the public on social media platforms and extends the criterion of "false or misleading in a material respect" to include statements made by influencers.
- Addition to Advisory Opinion 4.E.1. Split Fees in Advertising and Marketing Services: Now includes influencers and categorizes the hiring of influencers as "fee splitting" if the influencer is paid a portion of the professional fees collected from patients.