As of July 1st, there will be a new cohort of regulatory changes to the way that practitioners conduct and treat patients within the cosmetic space. Whilst many of these changes affect the plastics industry more than our own, there will be one change to the way that things will happen at your injectable appointments here at Skindepth Dermatology.
First of all, who is AHPRA?
The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra) is the national organisation responsible for implementing the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme (the National Scheme) across Australia.
Ahpra works in partnership with 15 National Boards to ensure the community has access to a safe health workforce across all professions registered under the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme. Public safety is always our number one priority. Every decision we make is guided by the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law (the National Law), as in force in each state and territory.
What are the new changes that will affect your appointment at Skindepth Dermatology?
Great question!
The reform coming into affect as of July 1st 2023 is a new measure that adds a layer of protection for patients, who will in future be able to discuss their motivation for cosmetic surgery with their GP who has the best knowledge of their medical history and can share this with the doctor being referred to.
One of the only changes that will affect your treatments with us here at Skindepth will be the implementation of the 'Cosmetic Readiness Questionnaire'.
- The reform seeks to improve patient assessment by practitioners before surgery, including more scrutiny for signs of body dysmorphic disorder.
The reforms that will affect any Skindepth Dermatology' treatment below, as listed by AHPRA
- non-surgical cosmetic procedures (which may pierce the skin but doesn’t cut beneath it, such as injectables, thread lifts and laser treatments).
What is the Cosmetic Readiness Questionnaire?
The Cosmetic Readiness Questionnaire (CRQ, Pikoos & Buchanan, 2022) is an assessment tool which helps cosmetic professionals determine a patient’s mindset and readiness to undergo a cosmetic procedure, including body dysmorphic disorder and other psychological concerns.
The CRQ has 45-items and assesses psychological risk factors relating to readiness to undergo a cosmetic procedure. It is composed of well-validated psychometric scales assessing important dimensions of the cosmetic patient experience and factors which have previously been identified as predictors of patient dissatisfaction or poor treatment outcomes .
The four core domains assessed in the Cosmetic Readiness Questionnaire include:
- Body Dysmorphia: Identifies the presence of body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) utilising items from the Body Dysmorphic Disorder Questionnaire – Aesthetic Surgery (BDDQ-AS; Lekakis et al., 2016) and Appearance Anxiety Inventory (AAI; Veale et al., 2014).
- Psychological Distress: Identifies the presence of anxiety and depression symptoms.
- Self-Criticism: Identifies self-esteem problems, propensity to be self-critical and experience shame about themselves or their appearance.
- Perfectionism: Identifies perfectionistic tendencies such as excessively high standards, intolerance of and rumination about mistakes.
How will the Cosmetic Readiness Questionnaire be conducted at Skindepth Dermatology?
It will now be compulsory for each patient seeking cosmetic treatment (including injectables and some forms of laser therapies) to complete one of these screening questionnaires before their treatment.
The series of questions on our particular questionnaire will be a set unique to us, but will query the four core domains of assessment mentioned above.
We will conduct the questionnaire at the time of your consultation, whether that has been arranged for the day of treatment or before.
Got any questions regarding this update to Skindepth Dermatology and how it will affect your treatments moving forward? Please get in touch!
Call us on 03 9100 3183, email through to cosmetic@skindepth.com.au or text +61 482 091 750.
