Julie Scott breaks down BCAM's Vet It Before You Get It campaign, advising practitioners on how to harness the features to reflect on how you practice, prioritising safety and confidence.
In an increasingly competitive aesthetics landscape, clinics are not merely defined by the treatments they offer, but by the confidence they inspire.
Patients today want more than results; they want reassurance, credibility and professionalism. Safety has therefore become a commercial asset as much as a clinical one.
Clinics that can clearly evidence governance, transparency and patient-first decision-making consistently outperform those that cannot.
BCAM’s Vet It Before You Get It campaign offers practitioners a ready-made structure to strengthen consultation processes, improve team consistency, reduce cancellations and complaints, enhance patient loyalty and reinforce a clinic’s commercial identity. Viewed through a business lens, safety is not an administrative formality; it is a strategic driver of trust, retention and reputation.
The best outcomes start with a conversation
Conversations about safety, trust, motivation and standards.
Conversations that show our patients that their well-being, both physical and emotional, matters as much to us as their aesthetic goals.
That’s why I’m proud to support the British College of Aesthetic Medicine’s public safety campaign, Vet It Before You Get It. It’s a clear, practical initiative that encourages patients to pause before booking a treatment and to ask key safety questions about qualifications, insurance, products and clinic governance.
But while the campaign was created for patients, I believe it holds an equally powerful message for practitioners. It invites us to reflect on how transparent we are in our own practice, how confidently we can answer those questions and how we might use this as a framework for strengthening the integrity of our consultations.
Going beyond a patient checklist
BCAM’s Vet It Before You Get It campaign centres around a downloadable Pre-Consultation Safety Questionnaire; a simple but comprehensive guide covering six key areas: professional credentials, clinical supervision, insurance and membership, product safety, emergency protocols and clinic governance.
For the public, it’s an empowering checklist. For us, it’s an invaluable mirror.
Each question, from “Is your clinic registered with a regulatory body?” to “Can I see the packaging for the product being used?” is also a prompt for practitioners to audit their own standards. Could you confidently provide the documentation, explain your emergency procedures, or evidence your product sourcing if asked?
Those of us who’ve been practising for many years might assume the answers are obvious. Yet in a landscape where regulation remains fragmented and misinformation spreads fast, being visibly accountable is now as important as being clinically competent.
From a business perspective, this level of clarity also reduces uncertainty for patients. When patients feel well-informed, rates of cancellations, hesitancy and no-shows decrease significantly, which has a measurable positive impact on clinic operations and financial stability.
Turning vetting into a partnership
I understand that, for some practitioners, being “vetted” by patients can feel uncomfortable, almost as if our expertise is being questioned. But in truth, these conversations are not about doubt; they’re about reassurance.
When a patient asks about your qualifications, insurance or the brand of toxin you use, they’re doing what every patient should do: taking ownership of their safety. Far from undermining our credibility, it enhances it.
The most confident clinicians don’t shy away from those questions; they invite them. They proudly display professional registration numbers, maintain visible insurance certificates, explain their choice of licensed products and discuss emergency procedures without defensiveness.
That openness immediately sets a tone of trust. It transforms the patient–practitioner relationship from transactional to collaborative, and it reminds patients that they’re in the hands of a healthcare professional, not a salesperson.
This shift from transactional to relational also has a meaningful impact on the way a clinic performs. Patients who feel informed and respected are more likely to return, recommend the clinic to others and remain loyal long-term. Trust stabilises revenue and strengthens a clinic’s reputation.
Building a culture of safety and trust
The Vet It Before You Get It campaign allows our profession to speak in a unified voice about safety. If each of us embraced it, not just privately but publicly, the cumulative effect could be profound.
Here are a few practical ways practitioners can raise awareness and champion the message:
• Display the campaign in-clinic: Print and frame the BCAM posters or QR code to the Pre-Consultation Questionnaire in your waiting area. It signals transparency before a word is spoken.
• Incorporate it into consultations: Reference the six safety pillars as part of your patient journey. “We follow BCAM’s safety framework, so I’ll walk you through how we meet each of these standards.”
• Share it on social media: Repost campaign assets with your own caption; perhaps an example of how you uphold those principles in practice.
• Train your team: Ensure every staff member understands the campaign and can confidently explain how your clinic meets BCAM’s standards.
• Engage locally: If you mentor or lecture, highlight the campaign to students and emerging practitioners. The earlier these standards become second nature, the safer the industry becomes.
From a commercial perspective, well-trained teams also deliver more consistent messaging, which improves the patient experience and reduces the likelihood of misunderstandings or misaligned expectations; both common causes of patient dissatisfaction and complaints.
By amplifying BCAM’s message in these small, consistent ways, we normalise safety conversations and build collective trust in medical aesthetics.
Tranparency at the core of your practice
In today’s aesthetics landscape, transparency has become one of our most valuable professional assets. Patients no longer choose a clinic solely on reputation or price; they choose practitioners they trust to be accountable.
Displaying certificates, outlining emergency protocols or explaining why you use licensed brands like Botox, Azzalure or Bocouture isn’t just about compliance; it’s about differentiation. It says: “You can trust me because I take your safety seriously.”
In my own clinic, I’ve found that these discussions don’t slow consultations down; they enhance them for both me and the patient. Patients leave feeling informed and secure, which means they’re more likely to commit to treatment, return for reviews and recommend you to others.
Transparency doesn’t erode authority; it reinforces it. It reminds patients that aesthetic medicine is still medicine and It supports premium pricing. Patients increasingly value reassurance and are willing to invest in clinics that can evidence their safety and governance processes clearly.
Beyond Safety: Emotional Readiness Matters Too
While Vet It Before You Get It focuses on verifying clinical standards, I believe safety extends beyond governance. True patient safety also includes psychological readiness.
I often build on BCAM’s framework to include emotional reflection, encouraging patients to think about why they’re seeking treatment and what outcome they’re hoping to achieve. Are they motivated by self-care or by comparison? Are expectations realistic?
These reflective questions protect not only the patient but also the practitioner. They help us avoid treatments that may do more emotional harm than good and they reaffirm our role as healthcare professionals responsible for both the physical and mental well-being of those we treat.
Incorporating this emotional layer complements BCAM’s campaign beautifully, creating a holistic safety conversation that addresses both regulation and reflection. When clinics support psychological readiness, they not only safeguard the patient, but they also minimise the risk of dissatisfaction or complaints, which has clear benefits for the clinic’s stability, reputation and long-term success.
From compliance to confidence
Many practitioners associate safety checks with external pressure, something done for regulators rather than for patients. But when safety becomes an integral part of your clinic culture, it shifts from obligation to confidence.
A practitioner who knows they meet BCAM’s six pillars can consult with ease, market with integrity and lead with authenticity. A clinic that adopts those standards visibly, in patient materials, online communication and everyday operations, naturally attracts discerning, loyal patients.
Ultimately, Vet It Before You Get It isn’t about ticking boxes; it’s about setting a tone. A tone of professionalism, transparency and care that separates medical aesthetics from the noise of unregulated practice. Safety-led messaging also strengthens a clinic’s brand identity. It signals maturity and stability, qualities increasingly important to patients seeking long-term relationships with their practitioners.
A shared responsibility
Public safety in aesthetics cannot rely on legislation alone. It depends on each of us — clinicians, educators and mentors — modelling the standards we want the industry to uphold.
As ethical practitioners, we have the power to make Vet It Before You Get It more than a campaign; we can make it a movement. A visible, ongoing reminder that good medicine is good marketing and that patient trust is the most valuable outcome any of us can achieve.
So let’s lead by example. Display the posters. Share the message. Invite the questions. Educate your patients and your peers.
Because every time a patient pauses to “vet it,” every time a practitioner proudly provides the answers, our industry takes a step closer to where it belongs: safe, accountable and respected as part of mainstream healthcare.
Final reflection
When patients question you, they’re not doubting you; they’re entrusting you. They’re giving you the opportunity to show your integrity before they ever experience your skill.
So, rather than fearing the vetting process, let’s welcome it. Let’s make transparency not the exception, but the expectation.
Because patient safety doesn’t begin in the treatment room; it begins in the conversation. And that conversation is one we should all be proud to have.
Julie Scott
Julie Scott is an award-winning aesthetic nurse with over 30 years’ experience in plastics and aesthetics. She is twice winner of Aesthetic Nurse Practitioner of the Year at the Aesthetics Awards (2022 and 2024) and also named Aesthetic Nurse of the Year 2024 at the Aesthetic Medicine Awards. Julie’s recognised as one of the UK’s leading voices on patient safety, psychological wellbeing, and holistic skin health. She’s Co-Chair of Wigmore Presents and Interface Expo, Board Member of DANAI, and Strategic & Clinical Lead in Aesthetics and Dermatology at The Skin Diary. She is an Ambassador for the Joint Council for Cosmetic Practitioners (JCCP) and Ambassador for Safer Aesthetic Practice with the Body Dysmorphic Disorder Foundation (BDDF), as well as a faculty member of the Allergan Medical Institute. Alongside her clinical work, Julie is a trainer, mentor, and international speaker, shaping safe, ethical practice and elevating standards across the international aesthetics community.
