Hair Transplant Tragedy: Chennai Mulls Strict Laws to Check Salons

The death of a 22-year-old final year medical student who passed away after a hair transplant prompted the push.

Officials have gone on to say that they have found it extremely difficult to proceed with investigations without involving multiple departments in the proceedings. (Photo Courtesy: The News Minute) 

The Health Department is considering imposing legislation and rules on parlours and salons that do invasive beauty and surgical treatments by doctors for hire, The Times of India reported.

This development comes after 22-year-old final year medical student P Santhosh Kumar passed away on 17 May after a hair transplant at a salon in Nungambakkam. Officials have gone on to say that they have found it extremely difficult to proceed with investigations without involving multiple departments in the proceedings.

After officials from the directorate of medical services inspected the procedure room and found it “unsterile“, they called officials from Greater Chennai Corporation to seal the salon.

Officials from the directorate of drugs control seized drugs, including anesthetics, that the salon used and stored without a license. The Health Department has also filed a complaint against the doctors in the state medical council.

It was a tedious process. We suspect that there are several salons and parlours doing similar surgeries but it is impossible to team-up with officials from multiple departments and raid them all.

Senior Health official

The Health Department has decided to set up an expert panel with senior officials from the health department, law department, corporation and representatives from the medical fraternity to draft a legislation that will create an “appropriate authority“ to bring non-medical institutions that conduct invasive medical treatment under scrutiny.

Though officially non-medical professionals are barred from conducting therapies, there is no monitoring authority to keep a check on such centres.

The committee will meet in a couple of days and submit a proposal to the government. The government may introduce it as a bill along with the clinical establishment bill which proposes to bring all the hospitals, nursing homes and clinic under the government scanner.

Senior Health official

Also Read: How a Hair Transplant Surgery Turned Fatal For a Chennai Student