There are several unqualified, unlicensed and unauthorized cosmetic-surgery doctors in England whose well equipped clinics are known as ‘Botox clinics’. These practitioners – known as ‘camel doctors’ in India and ‘cowboy operators’ in England – carry out their business not in side streets but on the high street with large notice-boards. However several patients have been left scared after visiting these unqualified practitioners who offer Botox injections and wrinkle fillings.
A number of the high-profile cases following these treatments have featured some drastic serious side effects that have led to swollen lips, itching in the eyes, and some allergic skin reactions.
Those affected have registered serious complains with the Department of Health, but so far no such actions are taken against the ‘camel doctors’ responsible, some of whom lack an authorized license. Many are just experienced operators but not fully qualified doctors.
The complainants have asked that such practitioners be given heavy penalties and removed from practice for the benefit of other innocent patients.
The Department of Health seems to have turned a deaf ear towards this, indicating that in their opinion civil penalties would be very expensive to implement.
It is also ignoring the need to regularize those clinics which offer laser and light treatment that includes skin removal and skin resurfacing to treat acne.
The NHS is not serious about checking these clinics as they say they have no solid proofs or enough evidences of health risks arising from the treatment those clinics provide.
Professional Cosmetic surgeons for their part are not at all happy with the wayward attitude of the Department of Health towards these problems and fear that departmental inaction will tarnish the reputation of the whole cosmetic surgery industry.
Unlicensed clinics and unqualified doctors pose a real threat to qualified cosmetic surgeons. Patient safety and the status of qualified professionals are being compromised. The government’s hesitation over initiating comprehensive legal measures against unauthorised clinics is a set-back and poses a genuine threat to public health.
The government has also failed to restrict ‘camel doctors’ who offer patients treatment at home outside normal hours. This can include Botox treatment and even minor surgical procedures for acne and pimples.
It is very surprising that such an issue is being ignored by the authorities in the United Kingdom, where strict law and order is the norm. A car driver is more likely to be in awe of officialdom than are the cowboy surgeons plying their trade on the high streets of London.
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