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Degree in plastic surgery being offered at English university

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Lucy Miller
WVoN co-editor 

A university in Essex (England) has announced that it is launching a masters degree in cosmetic surgery in a big to improve safety after the recent furore caused by faulty PIP implants (see WVoN coverage).

The course, entitled MSc in Plastic and Aesthetic Surgery Practice will start in September this year and is open to all registered plastic surgeons in the UK.

It will be run by leading cosmetic surgeons.

The plans have been criticised already, however, on the basis that cosmetic doctors already have to pass training that is certified by the Royal College of Surgeons.

But Professor James Frame, who will help run the course, was quoted by the BBC as saying that the extra training is needed and that surgeons are sometimes not qualified for cosmetic enhancement, as they are trained by the NHS to perform only reconstructive work – for example on burns patients.

Professor Frame said: “Aesthetic plastic surgery is a rapidly enlarging super-speciality that requires recognition in its own right.

“At present a newly qualified, fully-accredited plastic surgeon is released, totally lacking any experience in aesthetic plastic surgery, and is able to operate in the private sector.

“Many surgeons complete their training and, unable to find work in the NHS, have no option but to turn to private groups without that experience.

“There are many competent surgeons but at present there are too many under-qualified surgeons, particularly from elsewhere in the EU, coming over here and operating.”

He also said that the new training would stop people going abroad for surgery, risking poor quality aftercare.

However, Fazel Fatah, the president of the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS), disagreed, saying that NHS surgeons are already well-trained  and that ‘the addition of an MSc may be desirable for some but is certainly not necessary for fully qualified plastic surgeons.”

The course will be offered at Anglia Ruskin’s Postgraduate Medical Institute in Chelmsford, and a full doctorate in Aesthetic Plastic Surgery is available to those who complete it.

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