MEDICO LEGAL M A G A Z I N E
GMC PUBLISH DRAFT GUIDANCE FOR COSMETIC PROCEDURES By Charlotte Ellis, Senior Solicitor, Burton Copeland
In 2015 the General Medical Council (‘the GMC’), the regulator for all medical doctors working in the UK, announced the development of new ethical guidance for those doctors who carry out cosmetic procedures. Following the PIP scandal of 2012 when 40,000 female patients were told they had non-medical grade material breast implants, Sir Bruce Keogh prepared a review of the cosmetic industry in the UK entitled Review of the Regulation of Cosmetic Interventions. This report was dated April 2013 and identified concerns about regulation in this area and a lack of safeguards for patients, particularly for those patients who elect to undergo non-surgical cosmetic procedures such as dermal fillers. This report famously stated that “a person having a non-surgical cosmetic intervention has no more protection and redress than someone buying a ballpoint pen or a toothbrush”. As a result of this report, the GMC decided to launch a task and finish group followed by a public consultation on the draft new guidance in 2015. The GMC, anticipate that the new guidance will come into force in June 2016 but it has today published the
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draft guidance. They state that the new guidance builds on the principles already established in their core guidance for doctors, Good Medical Practice. The new GMC guidance includes the following: • A requirement that doctors advertise and market their services responsibly and that any advertising must be clear, factual, and not use promotional tactics, such as ‘two-for-one’ offers to encourage patients to make ill-considered decisions; •
Doctors will no longer be allowed to offer cosmetic procedures as prizes;
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Doctors must not allow others to misrepresent their services;
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Doctors must give patients time for reflection ensuring that they have the time and information about the risks of surgery in order that they can make a voluntary and informed decision about whether or not to go ahead with a procedure. Patients should not feel rushed or pressured into the decision;
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Doctors must also seek patient consent for the procedure themselves and will be responsible for discussing the procedure with the patient,
