NEW DELHI: The National Medical Commission (NMC) has issued guidelines on the eligibility of the professionals allowed to perform hair transplant and other aesthetic surgery. The guidelines also state the kind of medical infrastructure needed for these aesthetic surgeries. It states that watching procedures done on workshops or on YouTube or similar platforms is not adequate training to start aesthetic procedures, including hair transplant. “Such procedures must be performed by a properly trained and licensed Registered Medical Practitioner (RMP) i.e. practitioner of modern medicine,” the guideline states.
The NMC guideline says preferably, the procedure should be undertaken only by those who have surgical grooming like formal surgical training such as MCh/DNB in plastic surgery or MD/DNB in dermatology. “Ghost surgery – substitution of surgeons without the patient’s knowledge and permission – would constitute malpractice,” warned the NMC. The NMC has also laid out a detailed guideline on manpower and infrastructure requirements for conducting cosmetic procedures, including a hair transplant. According to the guideline, hair transplant should be conducted in a hospital with facilities for treating indoor patients. “If it is a clinic doing day care surgeries only, it should be well connected with any nearby hospital with proper ICU and critical care facilities,” it states. The NMC order has said unethical practices, such as advertising with false/exaggerated claims, should not be indulged in.