By Poppy Gallagher / Special to Healthcare Facilities Today

Did you know that the cosmetic surgery industry will be celebrating its 100th year this year, in 2017? Every year plastic surgeons from around the world seek to improve the lives of millions people through helping them surgically alter their appearance after suffering with malformations and injuries to those that require help for chronic conditions and purely for vanity purposed too.

Incredibly, more than 20 million cosmetic procedures were performed last year according to the publication of latest figures. The Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery goes into detail in their latest report and discus how our beauty ideals have altered dramatically in the last century. With specialists estimating that the cosmetic surgery industry is set to continue to grow by 8.9% by 2020 and currently being valued at upwards of $27 billion, we are looking towards the role that facilities professionals and associated factors play in creating a stable future in this area.

Professional standards

Facility professionals play a key and active role when it comes to contributing to the success of the cosmetic surgery industry. The key areas that continuously need to be addressed are that of how to best minimise risk. This can range from anywhere from structuring communication means between patients and doctors, consent, looking after professional behaviours to ensuring that a vulnerable patients is dealt with appropriately.

Standards are put in place in order to ensure that the needs of the patient are always at the core of the cosmetic surgery industry and this is precisely why constant discussion and amendment to existing standards is so important. The responsibility of being able to help ensure that a patient makes a well informed decision with regards to their care (for example  being able to understand the risks etc.) is not one to be taken lightly and has helped in terms of guidance. This guidance and the way that it will be reshaped to accommodate future developments in the field will help to underpin the way that people work in the future and will play a part in interventions further down the line.

Medical tourism

One of the largest contributors to the growth in the number of people who are having cosmetic procedures performed is due to the availability of travel and the fact that we are so easily able to head to another country to receive specialist care at a more affordable price. South Korea is seeing the largest ration of cosmetic surgeons per citizen count in the world, whereas Brazil as the largest counts of surgical procedures per capita. This encourages not only the possibility for professionals to relocate and practice their skill in other parts of the world but also encourages the public to make the most of the exceptional standard of care in other parts of the world.

For those who worry about travelling to receive care in another country, there are high quality and innovative companies such as Longevita who facilitate people from the UK having their consultation at home and then going ahead to complete the procedure in Turkey. This allows there to be an improved standard of care all-round and allows people to be confident in the level of care they are receiving.

Through the work of professionals looking ahead at the way that we can best utilise new technology and the power of developments in technology, we are likely to witness a great deal more interest around the industry. Those looking to modify their body and appearance through surgery are often enticed by the fact that there is such a wealth of opportunity from the latest techniques and the ability to travel to receive specialist and more affordable care.