There are still gray areas regarding the authority of general practitioners and specialists to offer beauty treatments. There need to be guidelines on who can perform these procedures for the sake of consumer protection.
By
Kompas Team
·5 minutes read
DOKUMENTASI PRIBADI
Documentation of RA (35) eyelid surgery carried out by a general practitioner in the Ancol area, North Jakarta in December 2020..
JAKARTA, KOMPAS — In medical circles, aesthetic medical procedures still occupy a gray area between general practitioners and specialist doctors. But doctors are united in their condemnation of aesthetic surgery offered by people without medical backgrounds.
The Indonesian Doctors Association (IDI) has yet to set guidelines on the limits of authority between general practitioners and specialist doctors in the field of aesthetic medicine. The guidelines are being compiled by the IDI Professional Service Development Council, the Honorary Council of IDI Medical Ethics, as well as the Indonesian Aesthetic Medical Council. The process seeks to accommodate associations of doctors related to aesthetic practices, such as plastic surgeons, skin and genital specialists and aesthetic general practitioners.
The Indonesian Aesthetic Medical Council has also been formed to reinforce the authority of all doctors and medical workers in the field of beauty medicine so that consumers can be better protected.
"I lead [the Aesthetic Medical Council] because the gray area is believed to be present more in the area of skin specialists and general practitioners, so plastic surgery is expected to be able to mediate various problems that might arise," said Indonesian Aesthetic Medical Council chairman Prof. David S Perdanakusuma, on 29 March.
Even though the guidelines related to aesthetic practices have not been completed, David said invasive procedures had been confirmed to be outside the realm of general practitioners. He cited eyelid surgery (bleharoplasty) as a procedure that would be reserved for plastic surgeons and skin and genital specialists because it was classified as invasive surgery.
However, general practitioners with additional qualifications in the field of beauty may offer a number of minimally invasive services, such as filler injections and botox, which can also be done by dermatologists and plastic surgeons. This kind of "gray area" may cause confusion for the community, doctors and regulators believe.
"The aesthetic world develops very rapidly. So, the rules in Indonesia have not been able to accommodate everything," said dermatologist and gynecologist Listya Paramita, who goes by Mita.
FAJAR RAMADHAN
Social psychologist from the Center for the Study of Indonesian Social Representation, Risa Permanadeli when visited by Kompas at her residence on Monday (29/3/2022)..
Mita emphasized that as long as guidelines on authority for aesthetic procedures were not yet available, she and colleagues would act with reference to competency standards. Mita noted that dermatologists and general practitioners could both handle acne, but general practitioners could only treat moderate acne levels. Severe levels of acne were the realm of dermatologists.
The absence of clarity on beauty procedure authority, said social psychologist Risa Permanadeli, was a manifestation of the state’s weak community protections. "Even in the alley here, there was once a salon where a banner was installed say it offered plastic surgery. How could that be?" Risa said in Lebak Bulus, South Jakarta, on 29 March.
According to Risa, the government does not set standards on what services beauticians can offer and what level of education is required. In medical circles, the limits of the authority of specialist doctors and general practitioners with regard to beauty procedures are still confusing. The health office, which has the authority to oversee beauty clinics, could not say, when contacted, which procedures were designated for which group.
The acting head of Jakarta Health Office, Dwi Oktavia Handayani, said professional organizations, in this case the IDI, were the authorized to provide information on the limitation of authorities and specializations.
Beauty salon
The supervision of beauty practices has not been optimal because of limitations to government resources. The government has asked the public to file complaints against salons and clinics that offer illegal beauty services.
Through the collaboration of various parties, supervision of illegal actions and other methods, responsible actions can be done optimally and sustainably.
Therefore, the government and local administrations must encourage residents to be alert to the beauty services in their surroundings. The Jakarta administration provides 14 complaint channels, including Jakarta Kini (JAKI), QLUE and Twitter account @dkijakarta, for people to report activities they suspect to be illegal.
"Through the collaboration of various parties, supervision of illegal actions and other methods, responsible actions can be done optimally and sustainably," Dwi said.
KOMPAS/RIZA FATHONI (RZF)
Facial treatment at Bening's Clinic skin beauty clinic in Kelapa Gading, North Jakarta, Thursday (20/1/2022).
Dwi said the Jakarta Health Office actively oversaw the beauty clinics manned by doctors in the capital city. Supervision through coaching, oversight and control activities by city and regency health offices was periodically conducted, he said.
Regulators check, among other things, a clinic’s Health Ministry permit number, its drug expiration dates and its storage procedures.
Dwi said beauty salons were not considered healthcare facilities so they did not have doctors with practice permits. Salons that performed medical procedures appeared, he said, because there were people who wanted these procedures for low prices and ignored the risks.
Prison threat
Dwi noted that people who deliberately created the false impression that were doctors or dentists to provide medical services could be sentenced to a maximum of five years in prison or made to pay of fine of up to Rp 150 million. To prevent these kinds of illegal activities, Dwi asked for public involvement in supervision.
Unfortunately, simply providing complaint channels will not have an effect if the community does not understand if a violation has taken place.
The head of complaints and law section of the Indonesian Consumers’ Foundation (YLKI), Sularsi, recommended that the government establish a standard classification of beauty practices according to the facilities and workforce available, similar to the classification of one- to five-star hotels.
The classification of places of practice should be made widely known to the public through a notice in the front of the building. In this way, the community can report to the authorities if the managers of the practices provide services that are not in accordance with their classification. (J O G/ D I V/ F R D/ S K A / I L O )
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