UK Clinic Owners Are Ready For AI, They Just Don't Know Where To Click First

HMDG's 2026 barometer of UK private MSK clinics found most owners are keen enough on AI, they're just stuck on where to actually begin, which is a very different problem to solve. This includes practices like yours, if yours happens to be a clinic.

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Clinic owners are not the AI holdouts everyone assumed, they are mostly just waiting for someone to point at the right button.

Original ResearchA large benchmarking survey of UK private MSK clinics found willingness to try AI far outweighs outright resistance, with confusion the real sticking point.
Sourcehttps://hmdg.co.uk/private-practice-barometer/
OverviewThe barometer covers pay, pricing, retention and marketing across UK MSK clinics, and HMDG, a specialist benchmarking outfit for the sector, publishes it annually.
Year2026
PublisherIndustry body, HMDG
Relevance to WellbeingDirectly relevant to Clinical Practices, since the sample is entirely private clinic owners, and only loosely relevant to coaching, therapy, training, healing or retreat settings that weren't surveyed.
Our VerdictToo early to tell a big, sector-specific sample makes this one worth actually using in your marketing, not just nodding at.
Our Summary
  • 715 clinic owners is a proper sample, not a hunch dressed up as data.
  • Only 14% are actively resistant, so "clinics hate AI" was never really true.
  • The barrier is confusion, not cost, which means a discount won't fix anything.
  • It's clinic-specific, so coaches and healers shouldn't assume it speaks for them.
Our Geo ViewSurvey specific to UK private clinics; attitudes and regulatory context for AI tools may differ elsewhere.
Abstract of wellbeing niches and revenue flow
Recognise how this might impact your practice

Why this might matter to you

  • Coaching: this matters because if clinics are past the "does AI even work" question, coaching clients will start expecting the same from you soon enough.
  • Therapy: this matters because confusion about tools, not principle, is what's holding people back, and that's a solvable problem for you too.
  • Training: this matters because trainers dealing with bookings and admin face the exact same "where do I even start" wall as clinic owners.
  • Alternative Healing: this matters because scepticism about AI in healing circles is often assumed rather than measured, and here it turns out not to be the main obstacle either.
  • Clinical: this matters because it's your survey, your sample, your 60%, so there's no excuse left for sitting this one out.
  • Retreat/Centre: this matters because centres juggling multiple staff and services have more moving parts to confuse, not fewer.

Where this came from

HMDG asked 715 UK private MSK clinic owners about pay, pricing, retention and, tucked in among it, their actual feelings on AI.

HMDG, "UK Private Practice Barometer 2026", published 2026, full primary source.

Credibility flags: self-reported survey, sample size disclosed at 715, publisher is an industry benchmarking body rather than an academic or government one.

How we scored this

A relevance score out of 100, built from three things: how well it fits the six practice types, how recent it is, and how solid the methodology behind it is.

93%
Practice fit, 100How new, 100How solid, 75

Marked up for a strong practice fit given the sample is clinics only, full marks on recency, and marked down slightly on how solid the method is, since it's an industry survey rather than an independently audited one.

Faces of satisfied clients
It's worth considering changes to your marketing practices

What this means for your marketing

  • Put "60% of UK clinic owners are already open to AI" on your about page, not as a boast, just as context.
  • Say plainly that the hold-up for most clinics is knowing where to start, before a client assumes it's cost.
  • Brief your front-of-house team on one AI tool you actually use, so it sounds like practice, not theory.
  • Skip the hard sell on AI benefits and offer a starting point instead, a checklist, a call, a single tool.
  • Don't lump yourself in with "AI-resistant wellness" messaging if you're a clinic, the data says that's not your crowd.

Who this is most useful for

Practice typeRelevanceRecommended action
CoachingLowNote the trend, don't quote the stat as your own.
TherapyMediumBorrow the "confusion not cost" framing for your own AI messaging.
TrainingLowUse it as background context only.
Alternative HealingLowSkip quoting figures, keep the general point about openness.
ClinicalHighUse the 60% and 14% figures directly in marketing copy.
Retreat/CentreLowReference the theme, not the numbers.

Best before

Best before: this is an annual barometer, so check HMDG's next edition in 2027 before quoting these figures again.

What next?

If you've been putting off AI in your clinic because you weren't sure it worked, this survey suggests most of your peers weren't sure where to click first either.

Talk to us about Whole-practice Marketing

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