REGULATION

As with the cosmetic surgery and non-surgery fields, there is little regulation and oversight of the hair restoration surgery field in the UK. In England, Hair Restoration Surgery (Hair Transplant Surgery and Prosthetic Hair Fibre Implantation eg Biofibre) is in the Scope of the Care Quality Commission. The BAHRS is recognised as the leading authority on Hair Restoration Surgery by Health Education England (HEE), the Joint Council for Cosmetic Practitioners (JCCP), the Cosmetic Practice Standards Authority (CPSA), the Care Quality Commission (CQC), The British Association of Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS), The British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons (BAPRAS), The British Association of Dermatologists (BAD), the Royal College of Surgeons (RCS), The British Standards Institute (BSI), the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), the Private Healthcare Information Network (PHIN) and many, many more organisations. However, the BAHRS itself is not a regulatory body.

CARE QUALITY COMMISSION (CQC)

In England, it is a requirement by law that all Providers of Hair Restoration Surgery (Hair Transplant Surgery and Prosthetic Hair Fibre Implantation eg Biofibre) must be registered with the CQC.

In addition, in England, Hair Transplant Surgery and Prosthetic Hair Fibre Implantation must be performed in a CQC registered facility. Being registered means that ‘stops and checks’ are in place to enhance patient safety.

The BAHRS is aware that many Hair Restoration Surgery clinics in England are not registered with CQC and claim that they do not need to be if they are renting space from a CQC registered organisation. The BAHRS understands that this is not legal. Patients should beware of Hair Restoration Surgery clinics in England that are not CQC registered themselves.

In the devolved nations, Hair Restoration Surgery clinics should be registered with the corresponding regulatory bodies – Healthcare Improvement Scotland, Healthcare Inspectorate Wales, and the Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority in Northern Ireland. Patients in the devolved nations should beware of Hair Restoration Surgery clinics that are not registered with the national regulatory body.

THE JOINT COUNCIL FOR COSMETIC PRACTITIONERS  (JCCP)

The JCCP has been established as a vehicle to promote patient safety in the world of non-surgical aesthetics and hair restoration surgery. It achieves this by the provision of information/advice to the public and its ‘Practitioner Register’. Practitioners must meet stringent entry requirements, sign up to a strict Code of Practice and operate within a new set of standards and competences.

The BAHRS contributed to the development of the JCCP Hair Restoration Surgery modality.

For more information about the JCCP please visit the their website.

Joining the Practitioner Register :

A practitioner will be able to register either fully or provisionally:

  • Provisional Hair Restoration Surgery Registration
    – Completion of Level 7 Hair Restoration Surgery Theory course
    AND
    – Certification of Royal College of Surgeons Basic Surgical Skills Course or equivalent
  • Full Hair Restoration Surgery Registration
    – Certification by International Board of Hair Restoration Surgery (IBHRS) / American Board of Hair Restoration Surgery (ABHRS)
    OR
    Equivalent
    AND
    – Certification of Royal College of Surgeons Basic Surgical Skills Course or equivalent

For more information on the JCCP Register, go to: JCCP/Join Now

The JCCP work with the Cosmetic Practice Standards Authority (CPSA) who have developed a set of clinical and practice standards that can be used for registration and the development of a set of accredited and recognised educational / training qualifications, programmes and bodies. BAHRS members Nilofer Farjo, Reza Nessab and Greg Williams were part of the Hair Restoration Surgery working group that developed the CPSA standards for Hair Transplant Surgery and also for Prosthetic Hair Fibre Implantation.

To find out more about the CPSA, visit the CPSA website.