Call to ban ‘Botox parties’
At-home cosmetic procedure parties should be banned, leading doctors have said.
So called “Botox parties” or “filler parties” – where groups of friends gather to receive the treatments at home – are “wholly incompatible” with professional standards, the Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) said.
Treatments should only be carried out on licensed premises with resuscitation equipment readily available in the event of an emergency, according to new RCS guidance.
Many companies offer “at home” cosmetic treatments, with special discounts for the event host. But the RCS said such parties are “entirely at odds” with the standards set out in its new Professional Standards for Cosmetic Practice.
The standards also state popular cosmetic treatments can be delivered by people with no medical qualifications. Procedures including laser treatment and injectable anti-wrinkle treatments can be administered by people who have no healthcare training whatsoever.
The RCS recommends that only doctors, dentists or nurses who have undergone the appropriate training should be allowed to perform the treatments. And only qualified medical doctors should be allowed to carry out invasive procedures such as breast surgery or liposuction. They also suggest that time-limited discounts on cosmetic surgery should be banned to prevent people from impulsively buying procedures.
There should be a “cooling off period” of at least two weeks between the initial consultation and the procedure, the guidance adds.
Cosmetic surgeons and other people who administer treatments should consider whether patients need to be referred to a clinical psychologist before going ahead with the procedure, the guidance also recommends.
RCS president Professor Norman Williams said: “While the Colleges and professional organisations involved in cosmetic practice are neither regulators nor legislators, the profession has a responsibility to provide standards to which we would expect our members to work.
“We have serious concerns that not all those who offer cosmetic procedures are adequately qualified, or that patients are getting accurate information prior to treatment. We hope these standards will feed into the ongoing review of the industry led by the NHS Medical Director, Sir Bruce Keogh, and improve quality of care for patients going forward.”
Have you considered or had any Botox treatment … what are your views?
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