European regulations

In May 2011, a European project was implemented by Belgian and European aesthetic surgeons. This project was intended to define exactly the rules applicable to medicine and to plastic surgery. The text represented a great danger at that time because there was an obvious will to reserve the practice of medicine and plastic surgery—including hair transplant surgery—exclusively to aesthetic and plastic surgeons. Over the past few months, following the strong reactions from dermatologists, associations of aesthetic doctors, and of the ISHRS (through my representation), the list restricting the attribution of every type of surgery or medicine to a particular type of doctor was removed from the project.

As far as skills are concerned, the present text reads: “The practitioner shall be a medical doctor authorized by national competent authority to practice autonomously. Assistants shall be medical doctors (in training) or nurses who shall be working under the doctor’s supervision.”

The skills would thus be decided by each European state according to its own legislation.

The European Committee for Standardization(CEN) project is on its way. The other main chapters in this document are Management and Communication with Patients, the Facilities (safety and security, hygiene standards, documentation of medical records), and Procedures (anesthesia, specific requirements and recommendations for aesthetic surgery services).

If you wish to receive the last version of the CEN project, email me at officedevroye{at}aol.com.

On the other hand, in Belgium, the situation was strongly clarified over these past two years. A new law governing the aesthetic activities of surgery and medicine was introduced in March 2013.

Thanks to the Belgian Society of Aesthetic Medicine (SBME) and its president, Jean Hebrant, the creation of a new specialization was decided (specialist in non-surgical aesthetic medicine). The practitioner trained for 5 years after his basic medical degree will have the possibility of practicing all aspects of aesthetic medicine as well as hair transplantation. I personally worked a lot so that the follicular hair transplant is considered as a non-surgical act, and the law stipulates it expressly.¹

Also, the doctors who have practiced hair transplantation for at least 5 years can continue their practice.

As a conclusion, I think that the future promises us a hardening of the laws and the access for the practice of the hair transplantation in Europe. It is, however, interesting to fight to obtain the right for every doctor to exercise such specific practice. The results obtained with the CEN and with the Belgian government prove that our action of defense was effective.