--- title: "August 2018 core update (Medic): dates, what changed, what to do" url: https://seomadman.com/updates/august-2018-core-update section: updates language: en published: 2026-09-26T00:00:00.000Z modified: 2026-09-26T00:00:00.000Z author: Adam Hafez topics: ["Core updates", "Content strategy"] --- # August 2018 core update (Medic): dates, what changed, what to do ## The short answer Google confirmed the August 2018 core update on Twitter on 1 August 2018 as a broad core algorithm update, and said on 8 August that it was done. Search Engine Roundtable's Barry Schwartz nicknamed it Medic because health sites seemed hit hardest, but Google said it involved all searches. Google's advice was that there was nothing to fix. ## Key takeaways - Google's Search Liaison account confirmed a broad core algorithm update on 1 August 2018. - Google's Danny Sullivan said on 8 August 2018 that the rollout was done. - Barry Schwartz of Search Engine Roundtable coined the Medic nickname; Google never used it. - Google said the update involved all searches, not only health and medical topics. - Google said there was no fix for pages that performed less well, other than building great content. ## What Google changed Google confirmed the update on Twitter, through its Search Liaison account, on 1 August 2018: "This week we released a broad core algorithm update, as we do several times per year." It pointed to the guidance it had given for a broad core update that March, which said "There's no 'fix' for pages that may perform less well other than to remain focused on building great content." Google gave no detail on what changed. Asked about the health and medical niche, Google's Danny Sullivan said: "It's a broad core update which means it is involving all searches." ## When it rolled out The Search Liaison tweet on 1 August 2018 said the update had been released that week. On 8 August 2018, asked by Search Engine Land whether the rollout was complete, Sullivan replied on Twitter "It's done," adding that Google always has other broad and specific changes happening. Google did not state a rollout length. ## What is known about its impact Google published no impact figures. The Medic nickname reflects an industry reading, not a Google statement. Barry Schwartz, who coined it on Search Engine Roundtable, said he chose it because the update seemed "highly slanted" towards health, medical and fitness niches. He also reported that entertainment, gaming and travel sites were affected. Google maintained it was a global update across all categories of search. ## What site owners should do Google now describes this kind of update in its core update documentation, and the advice has changed little since 2018. At the time, Sullivan told site owners to read the search quality rater guidelines to understand what Google considers great content, while stressing that raters have no direct input into rankings. Google's current guidance: - Self-assess content against Google's helpful content questions, and make it clear who created it and how. - Take extra care on health, finance and safety topics. Google says its systems give more weight to strong E-E-A-T on "Your Money or Your Life" topics. - Avoid quick fixes such as removing page elements because you heard they were bad for SEO. - Expect recovery to take time; Google says it can take several months, possibly until the next core update. ## How to check whether it affected you This is historical. Search Console keeps 16 months of performance data, so it cannot show August 2018. In archived analytics, compare organic Google traffic for the last full week of July 2018 with the week starting 15 August 2018, one week after Google said the rollout was done, as its core update guidance recommends. The [Google Algorithm Updates timeline](/updates) lists the updates around it. ## Related updates - The [May 2015 quality update](/updates/quality-update-2015) was an earlier confirmed change to how Google assesses quality. - The [March 2019 core update](/updates/march-2019-core-update) was the next core update covered here. - The [June 2019 core update](/updates/june-2019-core-update) was the core update after that. ## Frequently asked questions ### When did the August 2018 core update start and finish? Google's Search Liaison account confirmed on 1 August 2018 that a broad core update had been released that week. Danny Sullivan replied "It's done" on 8 August 2018 when asked whether the rollout was complete. Google stated no rollout length. ### Why is it called the Medic update? Barry Schwartz of Search Engine Roundtable named it Medic because the impact seemed slanted towards health, medical and fitness sites. It is an industry nickname; Google called it a broad core algorithm update. ### Did the Medic update only affect health sites? Google said no. Asked directly about health and medical sites, Danny Sullivan said it was a broad core update involving all searches. Industry analysis suggested health sites were hit hardest, but that is a third-party reading. ### What did Google advise sites hit by the August 2018 update? Google said there was no fix for pages that performed less well other than to remain focused on building great content, and Danny Sullivan pointed site owners to the search quality rater guidelines as a guide to what Google considers great content. ## Sources 1. [Google SearchLiaison on the August 2018 broad core algorithm update](https://twitter.com/searchliaison/status/1024691872025833472) - Google SearchLiaison on X (primary) 2. [Google confirms broad search algorithm update is rolling out](https://searchengineland.com/google-confirms-broad-search-algorithm-update-is-rolling-out-302982) - Search Engine Land 3. [What Google & SEOs Are Saying About The August 1st Algorithm Update](https://www.seroundtable.com/google-seos-algorithm-update-26149.html) - Search Engine Roundtable 4. [Google's August core search algorithm update is now fully rolled out](https://searchengineland.com/googles-august-core-search-algorithm-update-is-now-fully-rolled-out-303475) - Search Engine Land 5. [Google On The Medic Update: It Is Global; All Categories Of Search](https://www.seroundtable.com/google-medic-update-global-26210.html) - Search Engine Roundtable 6. [Google Search's core updates and your website](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/core-updates) - Google Search Central (primary) 7. [Creating helpful, reliable, people-first content](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/fundamentals/creating-helpful-content) - Google Search Central (primary)