Health education england has been mandated by the department of health to work with regulators and royal colleges to review the qualifications required for people who administer non-surgical cosmetic procedures for example Botulinum toxin injections and Dermal Fillers.
Skin rejuvenation treatments like Micro Needling, Mesotherapy, chemical peels, laser and Hair Restoration are also on the list.
The turnaround in possible qualifications that will be required if these new regulations are put into force will possibly leave many practitioners to either stop performing these treatments or to go back to school and train to masters level!
The review of the regulation of cosmetic interventions (keogh Review) was commissioned following the PIP breast implant scandal which exposed poor practise in an industry which is experiencing huge growth but which is almost entirely unregulated,in 2010 the industry was worth £2.3b and is expected to rise to £3.6b by 2015.
Professor Sir Bruce Keogh highlighted in his report on the regulation of cosmetic interventions, decisions by people choosing to undergo cosmetic procedures can have a significant impact on their health and wellbeing, it is therefore particularly important that practitioners have the appropriate skills and training so that members of the public are able to identify and choose practitioners with the appropriate qualifications.
It is not surprising then that many untrained or poorly trained individuals have jumped on the bandwagon and are performing procedures that have serious risks such as blindness and paralysis and customers are influenced by cheap prices.
As a beauty expert I am completely pro treatments which can help with confidence and depression issues and I see no harm whatsoever with people spending their hard earned cash on changing something they don't like about themselves or trying the latest anti ageing treatment to hold back the years.
Trust me when we read that celebrities look like they do because they drink a lot of water and eat well is total rubbish , most celebs over the age of 40 are getting a little help with the needle or the laser .
These procedures are mostly unavailable on the NHS so people desperate for help in the looks or anti ageing department may choose a practitioner who offers cheap treatments, this really is a no no and I welcome this report and hope that regulations will become tighter, i'm not saying that certain nurses or beauty therapists are not good at their jobs but it will really sort the cowboys from the experts and that can only be a good thing.
with a huge amount of practitioners unable to provide these services it is probably likely that those with the required qualifications will put up their prices and waiting lists may become the norm, just in case I think Ill get my done next week .