The face of things to come

Dubai’s grey market for plastic surgery is said to outweigh the mainstream.

In Dubai, appearance is everything. By sheer effrontery, the emirate has carved itself a global reputation as the GCC's El Dorado.

It should surprise no-one, then, that cosmetic surgery is hugely popular in Dubai. In a nation where personal number plates go for the price of a small hospital, a slight nip ‘n' tuck is barely blinked at.

But it's not just the bold and the beautiful that are fuelling the cosmetic industry. For the morbidly obese, cosmetic surgery can be a case of knife or death. Unfortunately, of late, the two seem to have gone hand-in-hand. Dr Adam Bader is CEO of the recently opened American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery Hospital (AACSH) in Dubai and he is not much impressed by the general standard of surgeon in Dubai.

According to Bader, the last six months have yielded three untimely deaths by plastic surgery - which in turn has sparked a series of closures by health authorities and a barrage of negative press for the emirate's clinics.

Malpractice in healthcare is rarely a feel-good story, but there are some positives to be taken from the meltdown of the plastics industry. Rogue clinics should have been closed years ago, but at least it is happening now. If, as Bader maintains, the AACSH is to take an active role in working with the Ministry of Health to develop strict new industry guidelines, then we can expect cosmetics to regain a veneer of respectability.

But as in any emerging market, there are two tiers to every industry. For every well-regulated hospital, there is a back-street clinic touting cut-price botox. As president of the Emirates Medical Association, Dr Ali Al Numairy has as informed a view as anyone.

Al Numairy, himself a plastic surgeon, believes that Dubai has mainstream healthcare, and then a "grey market" of unlicensed surgical practice operating under the official radar.

He paints a sordid world, where illegal physicians offer treatment in Dubai's less salubrious hotels. The stories are almost incredulous when compared to the glitz of high-profile developments such as Dubai Healthcare City.

Still, the cosmetic industry is a symptom of a wider affliction. For all its ambitious medical goals, Dubai still has the feel of a frontier town to it. Black markets don't exist by accident - they target patients unable to receive, or afford, the treatment they want through official channels.

The reports reflect the challenge facing the emirate's entire healthcare sector. Does Dubai want to be a genuine centre of excellence for healthcare or, like its inhabitants, will it settle for a quick fix if the cost is cheaper? For now, all the signs suggest the former. Of course, the thing about appearances is that they can be deceiving.

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