At their 29th Annual Scientific Meeting, held in the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre in the heart of London, BAAPS announced the launch of the National Institute of Aesthetic Research (NIAR). A joint initiative with the Healing Foundation, the institute will aim to address the lack of data surrounding aesthetic and cosmetic treatments, highlighted in the Keogh review, by setting research priorities and managing a programme of research.

Consultant plastic surgeon and BAAPS President Rajiv Grover said, ‘We are pleased to launch the Government-endorsed National Institute of Aesthetic Research, the first of it’s kind in the world. As concluded in the Keogh report earlier this year, thorough scientific evaluation, peer-reviewed studies and public education are urgently needed in the aesthetics sector; these have always been the BAAPS’ own objectives, and are now the NIAR’s.’

Hearing of the NIAR’s launch, Sir Bruce Keogh recognised the important work the institute will undertake to address the issues highlighted in his review earlier this year. Work all the more important as the Government have yet to confirm whether they will initiate any of the recommendations themselves. He said, ‘I welcome the announcement from the Healing Foundation and BAAPS on the launch of the National Institute of Aesthetic Research. This joint initiative is the first recommendation of my review to be implemented and I know it will provide a major contribution to patient safety.’

The NIAR will to begin working on this contribution to patient safety right away with the establishment of the Breast Implant Safety Campaign. Breast implant manufacturers worldwide are being invited to donate £1 per device sold towards funding a research programme aimed at improving all aspects of breast implant safety, treatment, and aftercare. Two companies already on board with this initiative are NAGOR, the UK’s only manufacturer of implants, and Eurosurgical, distributors for Silimed medical devices.

The NIAR will be based in the offices of the Healing Foundation in the Royal College of Surgeons. The Healing Foundation is a national charity championing the cause of people living with disfigurement and visible loss of function by funding research into new surgical and psychological healing techniques.

Chief Executive of the Healing Foundation, Brendan Eley, said, ‘At the Healing Foundation we are delighted to launch the National Institute of Aesthetic Research in conjunction with the BAAPS, with the backing of our corporate partners to help the profession, as well as the public, make sense of a sector where the objectives of business and medicine are known to regularly collide.’