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The annual International Skin Laser Directory is sponsored, prepared and distributed by the long-established Disfigurement Guidance Centre charity and has no advertising or commercial input. Entry is free.

This unbiased referral guide is provided on request free of charge to GPs and laser nurse specialists throughout the UK. It is available, also, on our annually revised and updated website.

If your clinic is not listed – and you would like to be considered for future editions of the Directory – download SLD No. 17 form from here, complete & send to:

 The Editor, PO Box 7, Cupar, Fife KY15 4PF, Scotland, UK.
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DGC - turning stumbling blocks into stepping stones

REGULATION TO ENSURE THE SAFETY
AND WELL BEING OF SERVICE USERS

DAWN HARWOOD MSc, CertEd, RGN, MSRP, Cert LPA

The Care Standards Act (CSA) 2000 came into force on April 1st 2002 and it lays down regulations and National Minimum Standards (NMS) with regard to the provision of services in the Private and Voluntary Healthcare Sector.

The Commission for Healthcare Audit and Inspection (Healthcare Commission) came into being on 1st April 2004, taking over the remit of the National Care Standards Commission for the regulation of these services under the CSA 2000 as amended by the Health and Social Care Act 2001.

The Healthcare Commission is a National organisation and among its aims is to ensure that, wherever in England a regulated service is provided, the NMS are applied in the same manner. One of the specific service areas under regulation and which are required, by law, to be registered with the Healthcare Commission are:

 Class 4 lasers,
 Class 3B lasers (except where operated by a registered healthcare professional)
 Intense Pulsed Light Sources (IPL).

Lasers and IPL are used within the beauty industry for many treatments including hair reduction.

All intense pulsed light sources, Class 4 lasers and Class 3B services in the Independent Sector in England require registration with the Healthcare Commission. The only exception being, when a class 3B is operated by a registered health care professional. A ‘registered healthcare professional’ means a person who is registered as a member of any profession to which section 60(2) of the Health Act 1999(d) applies. Anyone using these specific techniques and technologies which require registration, and who are not registered with the Healthcare Commission, are operating outside of the law.

The Healthcare Commission recognise the issues and concerns of people seeking to use and benefit from this technology and aims to ensure the safety and well being of users, patients and clients by the application of the Regulations and NMS.

Whether the laser and IPL use is offered in a hospital environment, a clinic, surgery, beauty salon or leisure centre the same NMS apply. There are ‘core’ standards as well as ‘service specific standards’ for this service area. Providers of these services should be giving quality information to potential clients and patients regarding the treatments offered and managing the expectations of the public.

The Healthcare Commission also is responsible for the quality assurance of laser services provided by the NHS under the standards set out by the Department of Health in its framework - Standards for Better Health. These standards are designed to ensure that the care and treatment patients receive is both safe and effective.

Access to assessment reports, the appropriate Regulations and NMS and information on Healthcare Commission registration and regulation process can be found on the Healthcare Commission

Website:  www.healthcarecommission.org.uk
 

Dawn Harwood MSc, CertEd, RGN, MSRP, Cert. LPA

International Skinlaser Directory © Established 1992

Directory designed, compiled and edited by Doreen and Peter Trust.

Website designed, compiled and edited by Stephen Bodman, Millennium Software.

All rights reserved. No part of this Directory may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, without prior written permission from:

Pod Publications, PO Box 7, Cupar, Fife KY15 4PF, Scotland, UK.

Please note: the editor, designer, compilers, authors and publishers cannot be held responsible for any loss or claim arising out of the use, or misuse of any of the information contained in this book/web site.

The authors do not endorse, approve or guarantee any of the items in these web pages or the effectiveness, quality or safety or any such items or services. They are not responsible for any error or omission or fact. Consult your doctor (medical practitioner/GP) before embarking on any course of treatment.