AMY BIRD

REGULATION ISN’T BUILT ON NOISE

While England debates aesthetic regulation, Scotland has spent more than a decade quietly building it through collaboration, persistence and a shared commitment to patient safety.

While the rest of the UK debates regulation, Scotland has been building it quietly, consistently, and without the noise. There’s a narrative building right now that aesthetic regulation is finally “happening.” But here’s the truth: in Scotland, it’s been happening for over a decade. Not loudly. Not performatively. And certainly not through social media soundbites. Quietly, consistently and with a level of collaboration the rest of the UK would do well to pay attention to... All of us, together for no other reason than safety of patients we serve.

HOW SCOTLAND DID THE WORK

The Scottish bill didn’t appear overnight. It is the result of years, over a decade of sustained effort from individuals who stayed in the room long before regulation became a trending topic. Through The Scottish Cosmetic Interventions Expert Group [SCIEG], a wide range of voices came together clinical, non-clinical, government and public health. It wasn’t about one profession leading the charge but about building something that reflected the complexity of the sector itself. And that’s where the difference lies. Because while much of the current conversation across the UK is reactive, Scotland’s approach has been structured, deliberate, and grounded in reality.

There’s a misconception that this was simply a “stakeholder exercise” a group of representatives sitting around a table, offering opinions. It was not. This was a 360-degree approach. Clinical expertise, political engagement, patient voice and on-the-ground experience all shaping the direction of travel. And nurses were not sitting quietly in the background. They were central. Consistently advocating not for professional recognition but for patient safety as after all, that is who we are, our blueprint, what is ingrained in our DNA, the patient advocates, the experts in care.

Through years of involvement, early voices, like Jackie Partridge, Fraces Turner Traill and Nestor Demosthenous in SCIEG helped ensure that the perspective of those delivering care every day remained part of the conversation. This wasn’t a moment of visibility it was sustained contribution over time. As with any long journey, there were many contributors along the way. Organisations such as Save Face, Joint Council for Cosmetic Practitioners [JCCP], and others formed part of the wider ecosystem supporting progress. Some arrived later in the process like SMASG; others contributed in more focused ways like directly with Health Improvement Scotland [HIS]. But what matters most is not a list of names it’s the nature of the work. This was not driven by one group or one agenda. It was built through collaboration across the sector, with input from those willing to engage in the detail, not just the discussion. Roll up their sleeves and use their tenacious ability on overdrive.

“One of the most powerful aspects of the Scottish journey has been the inclusion of real patient experience.„

WHEN PATIENT EXPERIENCE SHAPES POLICY

One of the most powerful aspects of the Scottish journey has been the inclusion of real patient experience. Voices like Renata’s, a patient in Scotland who bravely spoke directly at government roundtables, brought a reality that no policy document alone can capture. This is when lack of data is not an excuse anymore. The data is telling you in real life, simply that this has to stop. Alongside this, sustained advocacy from individuals such as Jill Best working over eight years side by side educating her MSP to push patient safety higher on the agenda demonstrates what long-term commitment looks like. This wasn’t tokenistic involvement; it was not for self-commercial gain. It was meaningful, and it mattered.

Perhaps one of the most telling outcomes is this; the final vote achieved unanimous support across all political parties. That doesn’t happen through noise. It happens when the groundwork is solid, the engagement is broad, and the message is clear. It reflects a process that has been taken seriously not just by the sector but by those responsible for shaping policy.

SO, WHERE ARE WE NOW?

Here’s where we need to be honest with ourselves. Across the wider UK, the conversation around regulation is growing but much of it is happening in the wrong places. Social media has become the loudest platform. Opinions are shared, frustrations aired and calls for change repeated. But awareness is not action. Visibility is not strategy and regulation will never be built in comment sections.

So what happens next? This is where the responsibility shifts from Scotland, to all of us. Regulation doesn’t end with a bill. It moves forward through people willing to continue the work. That means rolling up our sleeves. Strategise, look for solutions, follow success and most of all, keep the focus. It should not be a mud slinging game, that pushes us further away from the end goal. We must be taking patient stories directly to MPs not as anecdotes, but as evidence of why this matters. We should be educating, not confronting. Presenting clear rationale, not just opinion. This cannot become a “them and us” conversation between government and practitioners. It needs to be something far more powerful than that.

We need a quiet, professional movement aligned, consistent, and grounded in the same message, as real change doesn’t come from shouting the loudest... It’s about who stays in the room. It comes from people moving in the same direction, with purpose. Regulation is coming. But how it arrives and how effective it is depends on whether we are prepared to do the work required to support it.

Scotland has shown us what that looks like. The question now is whether the rest of the UK is ready to follow not with noise, but with action. If we collaborate and listen, together we have one more chance ahead of the consultation.

This isn’t about noise. It’s about alignment. And it’s time we all start singing the same tune in our professional ability. Click bait for your follows is not what I am talking about. Find the representation, and ask, ‘how are we doing this?’

Bird’s the word

Every issue, Amy Bird, our aesthetic nurse on the inside, reflects on life within the sector

AMY BIRD

Amy Bird RGN NMP is an award-winning nurse prescriber, speaker, trainer and KOLwith more than a decade of full time experience in medical aesthetics. She is lead nurse at her practice, KAST Medical Aesthetics in Cheshire and recently became chair at BAMAN. She is a passionate advocate for best practice, standards and patient safety.