A helping hand in aesthetic challenges: professional practice and overcoming hurdles

Eleven years ago, a handful of nurses gathered to create an association whose aim was to build a professional body. This group was to become the British Association of Cosmetic Nurses (BACN), which is now the biggest platform for nurses involved in non-surgical cosmetic treatments in the UK.

Before coming into the industry and becoming a member of the BACN, I was a surgical care practitioner/advanced nurse specialist in the cardiac-surgical field. My role involved tissue viability, tissue handling and conduit harvesting for coronary artery bypass graft surgery. It also entailed being a first or second assistant to a cardiac surgeon. Although the number of surgical assistants is growing and the role is expanding, we were not represented by a body equivalent to the BACN, and did not have all the support that such an organisation provides. However, this was offset by the fact that we all exercised our profession within a hospital environment and under the rules and regulation that came with it. In those circumstances, the need to belong to a professional organisation or association was less paramount. Yet, to this day, even with the NHS safety umbrella, professional concerns are raised regarding the needs for more regulation (BBC, 2012). When I joined the non-surgical cosmetic industry as a private nurse leading my own business, I immediately realised the need to be part of the BACN. In fact, I contacted the BACN and became a member before beginning to treat patients. As my colleague, Lisa Niemier, mentioned in her editorial in the previous issue of the Journal of Aesthetic Nursing, running a private aesthetic clinic can be a lonely business. Indeed, that was my initial personal experience—at times, I felt very isolated. However, before officially joining, the BACN provided me with guidance regarding all the necessary steps to be taken before starting my business.