A matter of ethics

The demand for aesthetic procedures has soared in recent years as our culture has become increasingly concerned about appearance and cosmetic perfection. As a result, there’s a growing trend for practitioners to ofer treatments that aren’t ethical – either from the patient’s point of view or the clinician’s.

The clinician should never act against the patient’s best interests, especially for their own personal gain

Here are my ive main principles by which aesthetic treatments should be carried out.

1. Respect for patient autonomy– every client is diferent, and their individual wishes should be respected. FaceBible doesn’t force anything on anyone – we simply allow the client to make the most informed decision possible, based on the risks, beneits and realistic achievable outcomes.

2. Beneicence– clinicians should act in the best interests of the client, whatever those may be. Careful consideration should be given to patients who sufer from low self-esteem, have unrealistic expectations, or have body dysmorphia – a psychological disorder where one becomes obsessed with a non-existent or very minimal defect.

3. Non-maleicence– the clinician should never act against the patient’s best interests, especially for their own personal gain (for example, when expectations are unrealistic or where the risks outweigh the beneits). Equally, the clinician should always ensure they have three things: a safe environment to operate in, emergency equipment, and advanced life-support training.

4. Justice– clinicians should provide a fair treatment accessible by all in the independent sector. Some procedures – dermatology or laser hair removal, for example – may be available through the NHS if deemed appropriate for an underlying condition.

5. Adolescent patients– extra care should be taken to ensure young patients have a cooling-of period (a period inbetween the initial consultation and the actual procedure) and full mental health assessment prior to treatments. It’s also important to consider that students are oten unable to aford top treatments/ practices, pushing them to choose cheaper choices that are more likely to result in a ‘botch job’. AM

Dr Raj Arora is a UK-based GP with more than 10 years’ medical experience. Having worked in a number of fields ranging from surgery to dermatology and general medicine, Dr Arora founded The FaceBible based near London’s Heathrow Airport and now focusses on aesthetics and skincare and the ethics behind them.