SGGP 06/29/2023 06:13

Recently, in Ho Chi Minh City, there have been many accidents, even deaths, due to cosmetic surgery at illegal cosmetic facilities. However, according to the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health, management is facing many difficulties because the law does not have specific regulations on signs, which can easily cause misunderstandings; meanwhile, the penalties are not strong enough to deter.

A case of complications due to breast augmentation filler injection at an unlicensed facility

Too many penalties

On June 28, the Inspector of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health said that he had just received information about a death due to filler injection in the city. The patient was Ms. TTL (27 years old, living in Ca Mau) who came to Ho Chi Minh City and stayed at a hotel in District 10. On the morning of June 27, Ms. L. was injected with filler to enhance her breasts by someone who came to the hotel. After the injection, Ms. L. suffered complications and was taken to the emergency room at Van Hanh General Hospital in a state of cyanosis, dilated pupils and later died. The initial cause was determined to be anesthetic poisoning. Currently, the Inspector of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health has stepped in, sealed the medical records, and coordinated with relevant authorities to clarify the cause.

Previously, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health also received a case of a TTLP patient (50 years old) who suffered a complication due to eyelid surgery at a cosmetic clinic in District 10.

In 2022, the Department of Health inspected 138 establishments and issued 144 decisions on administrative sanctions with a total fine of more than VND 7.5 billion; temporarily revoked the operating licenses of 12 establishments. In the first 5 months of the year, the Department inspected 67 establishments, issued 77 decisions on sanctions with a total fine of nearly VND 4.5 billion, temporarily revoked the operating licenses of 2 establishments, temporarily revoked the practice certificates of 5 individuals; suspended the operation of 33 establishments, forced the removal, dismantling, and deletion of advertising content of 17 establishments.

However, an inspector of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health admitted that the inspection and examination of cosmetic establishments is currently facing difficulties, due to: subjects providing cosmetic services secretly at skin care establishments (spas), hair salons, hotels and accommodation establishments (apartments, condominiums, etc.). In addition, unlicensed medical examination and treatment establishments operate secretly and have the nature of dealing with state management agencies such as changing signs, dissolving old establishments to establish new establishments, changing the name of the establishment's owner, etc.

All kinds of violations

According to the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health, the main violations include examining and treating patients without a practice certificate; providing medical examination and treatment services without a license to operate; providing medical examination and treatment services beyond the scope of expertise; using drugs, substances, and equipment to intervene in the human body (surgery, procedures, interventions involving injection, injection, pumping, radiation, waves, burning or other invasive interventions) to change skin color, shape, weight, defects of body parts (skin, nose, eyes, lips, face, chest, abdomen, buttocks and other parts of the human body), tattooing, spraying, embroidering on the skin using injectable anesthetics at facilities that are not hospitals with cosmetic specialties or cosmetic clinics or other medical examination and treatment facilities with specialized scope of activities in cosmetic specialties.

Dr. Ho Van Han, Chief Inspector of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health, said that many facilities still advertise medical examination and treatment services without a license to operate; advertise special products, goods and services without the content being confirmed by a competent state agency before advertising according to regulations; conduct medical examination and treatment beyond the scope of professional activities stated in the practice certificate; provide cosmetic services at cosmetic service facilities without a written notice of meeting the conditions for providing cosmetic services sent to the competent state agency according to law; provide medical examination and treatment services during the period of suspension of operation.

“Currently, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health has proposed that the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Information and Communications and relevant ministries and branches have strict regulations and control over advertising on social networks because this is a channel that unlicensed, hidden, underground facilities that take advantage of patients often use to easily reach people, along with increasing the penalties to be strong enough to deter acts of intentionally violating the law,” said Dr. Ho Van Han.