Clinics continue to ignore guidelines of Keogh review say BAAPS and BAPRAS
The British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS) and the British Association of Plastic Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons (BAPRAS) have once again highlighted their concerns over unethical advertising of cosmetic surgery.
Speaking at their annual press conference last month, held at CCR Expo, the organisations revealed further statistics which show the sector is “viewed with distaste by the public and even the medical community” and that government recommendations from the Keogh review continue to be “shamelessly flouted” by the industry.
Research by medical students Sohaib Rufa and Chris Davis, presented at the conference, revealed that while there have been some improvements in cosmetic surgery marketing in the last two years, the guidelines determined by the Keogh review continue to be ignored “mostly by the larger commercial chains”.
Their study, which examined the top 50 providers of cosmetic surgery (as listed by Google), showed that:
• 1/7 (14%) consultations still don’t take place with the operating surgeon but a salesperson or intermediary (this is worse than in 2013, where 90% did take place with the surgeon)
• 2/5 (40%) offered free consultations
• 1/6 (16%) offered promotional deals (such as “bridal packages”, incentives to have more surgery or “refer-a-friend”), half of which were time-linked (e.g. “book by Friday”)
• Only 3/5 stipulated the recommended two-week cooling-off period Their research found that non-compliant providers were typically chain companies rather than independent individuals or small group practices.
