Whether you're buying a new car, booking a nice trip or paying for an aesthetic treatment, there’s nothing nice about being ripped off – in fact it feels just downright ugly - and the effects of being treated by a less than decent aesthetic practitioner can be mentally and physically damaging. Here’s our handy guide to finding the fabulous and swerving the swindlers in the beauty industry.
Research, research, research
If we’ve said it once, we’ve said it a thousand times - do your research when looking for an aesthetic practitioner. The results of your treatment will only be as good as the person administering it and the level of training they have undertaken. Before you commit to any treatment, or part with any cash, you should firstly check the qualifications of your practitioner. Legally anyone can administer Botox, but in reality, being a potent neurotoxin, only a doctor, nurse, dentist or prescribing pharmacist should administer Botox and because they are well trained in anatomy, they will ensure you get the best results from your chosen treatment. You can check your practitioner’s credentials – they honestly won’t mind – on the following sites:
- Nurses - NMC (Nursery and Midwifery Council)
- Doctors - GMC (General Medical Council)
- Dentists - GDC (General Dental Council)
- Pharmacists - GPhC (General Pharmaceutical Council)
- Register for Cosmetic Practitioners - JCCP (Joint Council for Cosmetic Practitioners)
And all of the aesthetic practitioners you'll find on Glowday are verified against their medical pin, so you know you're in the safest hands.
Cheap doesn’t necessarily mean cheerful
Cheap deals advertised on voucher sites may look appealing and it might be significantly cheaper to let your mate’s mate inject you but you have no guarantees over the quality of products being used or how long they will last for. With the best will in the world, the environments these cheaper treatments are carried out in are less likely to meet the standards of sanitation you’d expect from a medical environment and, as your practitioner is unlikely to be medially qualified, they won't be well versed in infection control. Additionally, they may not know what to do in an emergency. Finally, the transient nature of pop-up clinics means that if something does go wrong it might be harder to get post-treatment help, a refund or compensation.
Reviews
Genuine, verified reviews. From real people. That's what you want to read. This will give you real insight into what a practitioner is like. You will get an idea about their bedside manner and their ethos.
But beware, not all reviews are created equally. Be mindful that often reviews can be bought, written by friends and family or even written by competitors.
At Glowday, we only publish reviews where we know the client, treatment, practitioner and clinic. Genuine, verified reviews.
Great care - before, during and after
Another way to ensure you get quality treatment is to ensure that your practitioner offers a thorough consultation beforehand. This is when you will discuss your treatments and your expectations. A good practitioner will manage these expectations and will be honest about what treatments will work for you. They also won’t mind you asking about their credentials and experience. The amount of procedures they’ve carried out, and they should have a look-book of candid before and after pictures of patients so you can see the results of their work first-hand. They will also be able to source high quality, thoroughly tested and safe products.
Don’t be afraid to ask what to expect during your treatment. A good practitioner will be realistic about the level of pain or discomfort you might experience, and a medically qualified practitioner will be honest about what they will do should something go awry with your treatment.
Finally, you should expect a follow up appointment with the same practitioner where you can review and discuss the results of your treatments.
Ready to glow? Check out the amazing medically qualified practitioners who have joined us on Glowday.