The review threshold.
A referral does not end the search. In the MDLaunch July read, 83 percent of patients read reviews after receiving a referral, and the great majority declined to book below four stars.
Published . Last reviewed .
A gate, not a slope
Booking behavior does not rise smoothly with rating. It steps. Below four stars, booking intent falls off; above it, additional tenths move very little. The rating is being used to clear a physician, not to rank one against another.
Review count works the same way. A small number of recent reviews reads as an unfinished record rather than a modest one.
What follows
Because it is a gate, the work is maintenance rather than campaign. A steady flow of recent reviews on the profiles patients actually open keeps the gate open. Nothing about this requires soliciting a rating, and MDLaunch does not write or place reviews.
Sources
MDLaunch read, July 2026
Post-referral patient survey on review consultation and booking intent. Underlying question set is available on request.