Superdrug to introduce mental health checks for injectables

Superdrug is to introduce mental health checks for people wanting to undergo botox and filler treatments.

The health and beauty retailer has agreed to introduce additional patient safeguards following a letter from NHS England medical director Stephen Powis, who voiced concerns over the safety and ethics of Superdrug’s Skin Renew Service.

In the letter dated September 6, 2018, Powis wrote to Superdrug chief executive Peter Macnab outlining his concerns and asking for reassurance that staff providing the injectable treatments would be appropriately trained to identify and screen out people with body dysmorphic disorder.

It was announced on January 19 that Superdrug had agreed to introduce the checks in the form of additional questions during each patient’s initial one-hour consultation.

A spokesperson for Superdrug commented: “We remain fully committed to including recommended protections for mental health. We met with the NHS to ensure we have the highest safety standards and quality of patient care,” the multiple said.

“We’ve always assessed a patient’s mental health as part of our skin renew consultation process. This assessment is woven through the consultation by our trained and qualified aesthetic nurse practitioners, whose experience and qualifications far exceed current standards.”

Skin Renew consultations can only be booked via a phone call with a dedicated customer service team trained to answer common questions and help people decide if a consultation is right for them.

A qualified nurse then undertakes consultation, which involves the patient filling out a medical questionnaire. This is assessed by an aesthetics nurse who ultimately decides if the treatment is clinically and professionally appropriate.

In the absence of regulation around injectables training, independent certification body IQ has launched a range of injectables e-learning materials for practitioners of any professional background.