Watchdog Vows Botox Crackdown After Bbc Exposé

The pharmacists' watchdog has promised to analyse and "take action" aft nan BBC exposed forbidden and perchance harmful practices successful nan artistic Botox industry.

Under UK law, Botox tin only beryllium supplied nether medicine by a qualified medic pursuing a face-to-face consultation pinch nan patient, to cheque it is safe for them.

But undercover BBC researchers caught respective pharmacists trying to prescribe nan medicine to beauticians to usage connected group who had not been clinically assessed.

The General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) said it was continuing to reappraisal nan BBC's grounds for its ain investigation.

Its main enforcement serviceman Dionne Spence said: "We will return enforcement action against pharmacies, pharmacists and drugstore technicians erstwhile required to protect diligent safety."

Under UK law, only a doctor, prescribing caregiver aliases pharmacist, aliases dentist is legally allowed to prescribe botulinum toxin - commonly known arsenic Botox – aft an due face-to-face objective assessment.

They are besides required to guarantee nan medicine is supplied to an knowledgeable injector to administer.

But nan BBC's investigation uncovered a bid of breaches by regulated pharmacists.

East London pharmacist Cornelius Agoye from Rainham was filmed trading vials of Botox to an undercover BBC newsman who was posing arsenic a beautician intending to inject a customers

Mr Agoye asked nan newsman to complete paperwork that would create a mendacious grounds of a diligent consultation taking place.

He besides told nan BBC he was consenting to illegally proviso further Botox nether nan aforesaid medicine to usage connected different patients - which constitutes fraud.

When approached by nan BBC, Mr Agoye apologised and admitted his behaviour had fallen beneath master standards.

Other pharmacists filmed aliases spoken to by BBC undercover researchers posing arsenic beauticians described taking akin shortcuts.

One suggested skipping nan required face-to-face consultations and falsifying photographs to instrumentality regulators into believing a diligent had been seen.

The investigation besides uncovered perchance vulnerable activity beyond organization pharmacies.

These see a caregiver offering to waste prescriptions complete WhatsApp for cash, and a clone expert trading an unlicensed and perchance vulnerable achromatic marketplace Korean medicine.

Ms Spence told nan BBC she was "very concerned" and "incredibly disappointed" by these findings.

"Our guidance is besides clear that erstwhile providing non-surgical cosmetic aesculapian products specified arsenic Botox, location needs to beryllium a beingness introspection of nan personification to support a safe prescribing decision," she said.

She said nan GPhC had already tightened guidance connected online proviso of medicines and was moving intimately pinch nan different manufacture watchdogs to modulate nan proviso of Botox prescriptions.

"We are besides moving pinch governments and argumentation makers to place really nan ineligible and regulatory model successful this area could beryllium strengthened and immoderate legislative gaps could beryllium addressed," she said.

Following concerns astir unsafe practices in nan aesthetics industry, nan authorities is considering caller legislation adjacent loopholes and to ace down connected "cowboy cosmetic procedures".

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said it was processing a caller nationalist licensing strategy for non-surgical cosmetic procedures, designed to protect patients and raise standards crossed nan industry.