Last weekend was Future Beauty
If you are regular follower of this page, you will know that industry experts, many ethical and qualified doctors, and a growing number of injured patients have been demanding regulation in the cosmetic surgery industry in Ireland.
Routinely now in Ireland, doctors in Emergency Departments, specialist clinics, and GP surgeries across the country are seeing complications and infections from cosmetic procedures done abroad or here at home by completely unqualified practitioners. Future Beauty promised to bring in top medical professionals who would provide trustworthy information. So, on the whole, reports from my colleagues who did attend was that the information provided was fairly good — with one main concern.
The event allowed non-specialists to promote themselves as specialist. Even more disappointing, the The Irish Times supplement published for that weekend did not check credentials of all of the doctors they featured!
The Irish Medical Council guidelines are quite clear that you may not mislead patients (or in this case, consumers) by saying you are a specialist unless you are on a specialist registry in a recognised speciality. Recognised specialties in this field are Plastic Surgery and Dermatology. Doctors who advertise themselves as “cosmetic surgeons” or “breast augmentation specialists” do not have recognised training. An “interest” is not recognised training. https://www.medicalcouncil.ie/Public…/Check-the-Register/
Many of the nurse-led clinics who presented at Future Beauty are excellent, and safely offer laser, microneedling, and dermabrasion. Likewise, though, non-nurses may also misrepresent their credentials or training. Titles such as “aesthetic therapist” “Assistant nurse” are not medical professionals registered with Bord Altranais: https://www.nmbi.ie/Check-the-Register
Some experts felt that not enough effort was not made to separate out the issue of fillers. Why are fillers different, and should always be done in a clinical setting with a specialist doctor (and not in a nail bar)?
1. The most commonly used filler is hyaluronic acid. In the wrong hands, these fillers have risks of skin damage or tissue necrosis. Other risks of fillers include allergic reactions, disfigurement, nodules, and eye problems, including blindness, all requiring urgent expert medical treatment.
2. Where did the practitioner get the filler? The most trusted and regulated fillers are only available to registered medical practitioners. Where is your nail bar or tattoo artist getting their filler and what are they using? Many buy cheap fillers online that aren’t necessarily hyaluronic acid. A very cheap price should be a red flag!
3. If there are problems with the filler, it can only be broken down by an enzyme hyaluronidase or Hyalase®, which can only be injected by specialist doctors to manage tissue damage, lumps, asymmetry, and any imperfections caused by filler. It needs to be in specialist hands because Hyalase® itself can also cause redness, swelling, pain, itching, bruising and tenderness at the injection site.
4. Hyalase may not be an option if you get dodgy filler. If you have a problem with filler after attending an unqualified practitioner, an expert may not be able to use hyalase if they aren’t certain what you were injected with.
What do properly qualified and ethical doctors suggest as guidelines when choosing an invasive cosmetic procedure? They suggest patient ask these questions:
Check if the doctor is a Specialist in Plastic Surgery or Dermatology with the Medical Council. On this Register, beside their name, the Registration Type will say Specialist Registration, or General Registration. (Specialist Registration for General Practice is not a specialist qualification for plastic surgery or dermatology practice.) You will note there is no option for “cosmetic surgeon” or “aesthetic doctor” (or similar misleading title) because it is not recognised; there is no recognised training. A doctor on the “General Register” has not completed training, even if they describe themselves as “fully registered”. Go to https://www.medicalcouncil.ie/Public…/Check-the-Register/
Is your initial appointment with a named surgeon? You should not be having your first consultation with a clinic member or assistant.
What products are you being offered? The products used in treatments such as fillers, injections, and laser treatment should all have passed CE regulation, but the gold standard is FDA approval.
Are you being offered free consultations or asked for non-refundable deposit at your first consultation? Are you being offered reduction or discount for introducing a friend? Ethical guidelines for qualified doctors/nurses do not endorse these practices.
Are you being offered a “cooling off” period after your consultation of 2 weeks or so? This is standard. If you are pressured or given a hard-sell, this should be a red flag.
Is the “Clinic” accredited? Many cosmetic practitioners are branding their business as a “clinic” but despite wearing lovely scrub tops, fail to have any reputable third-party accreditation. An accredited hospital or clinic, has properly trained staff and facilities to deal with an emergency. Accreditation is carried out by an independent body, such as JCI.
Is it just surgery and fillers you should worry about? Mostly, but here’s another comforting thought:
Remember, that unfortunately, anyone can buy a laser in Ireland. Which, frankly, should terrify us. Just because you are being offered laser treatment doesn’t mean that the person operating it has been properly trained!
As usual, thank you to the excellent Ms. Éilís Fitzgerald – Plastic Reconstructive & Aesthetic Surgeon for her expert insight and credit to the Irish Association of Plastic Surgeons resources/references for industry standards recommendations.
Want to read more? These main stream media reports do an excellent job of exploring the terrifying lack of patient/consumer protection in Ireland:
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