17 beauty centres prosecuted over medical aesthetic procedures: MOH

At least 17 prosecutions have been made against beauty centres offering medical aesthetic procedures without proper qualifications, the Health Ministry said.

The ministry said the centres’ proprietors were charged under Section 5 of the Private Healthcare Facilities and Services Act 1998, it said in a statement.

The section deals with unlicensed and unregistered private healthcare facilities or services and carries a fine of not exceeding RM5,000 for every day or part of a day during which the offence continues after conviction.

The ministry was responding to a report that beauty centres were offering such procedures without medical qualifications.

This includes injections and “laser” treatments, which the ministry deems as medical procedures.

Beauty centres charge upwards of RM100 per session for such treatments.

Although illegal, such treatments are offered openly in beauty centres nationwide, with beauty “colleges” offering “accreditation” to conduct such treatments through short courses lasting a few days.

By law, to perform such procedures the practitioner must hold a Letter of Credentialing and Privileging (LCP) of Aesthetic Medical Practice.

Registered aesthetic doctors undertake an additional two to three years of training after mandatory government service upon graduating medical school, and pass further exams to obtain the LCP.

No recourse for victims

A senior source within the industry said the lack of enforcement has also caused victims of botched procedures to run from pillar to post for recourse.

“When the victim goes to the police, the police say that it is more relevant to the Medical Act, but when they go to the Health Ministry and the Malaysian Medical Council (MMC) to complain, they (the MMC) will say the individual is not a registered practitioner, so it’s out of their jurisdiction and then they reject (the complaint).

“So now, victims really don’t know where to go,” said a senior Health Ministry official who declined to be named as they are not authorised to speak to the media.

Sources within the industry said beauticians who administer medical procedures should be hauled up under Section 33 of the Medical Act 1971.

The section prohibits unqualified persons from practising medicine and has a penalty of up to RM2,000 for a first-time offence.

However, the Health Ministry has yet to utilise the law despite its knowledge of the rampancy of beauty centres offering medical treatments.

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