Cost of cosmetic surgery procedures conducted at the hospital in the past 10 years

1240/5(7799)

WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE MINISTER FOR HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES BY THE CONNÉTABLE OF ST. JOHN

ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON TUESDAY 10th SEPTEMBER 2013

Question

Over the last 10 years has the hospital carried out any cosmetic surgery within the health system? If so, would the Minister provide a breakdown of the procedures undertaken annually?

Who paid for this surgery: the patient, the taxpayer or both?

If the costs were met by the taxpayer, would she provide details of the annual cost to the tax payer over the past 10 years?

Answer

1. Yes. Health and Social Services has undertaken cosmetic surgery. The Department uses a visiting consultant 6 times a year.

Patients who are eligible to have their procedure funded by the taxpayer have to meet eligibility criteria set out in the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidelines.

2. Procedures that are determined to be clinically essential and, therefore, funded by the taxpayer are:

• Breast reconstruction for post cancer treatment
• Surgery for congenital deformities
• Facial reanimation. This is carried out mostly on children with the major surgery undertaken in the UK and post operative care or minor surgery carried out on Island
• Skin graft surgery, for example radical skin cancer surgery or trauma
• Bilateral breast reduction
• Abdominoplasty
• Gynaecomastia surgery

3. Clinically necessary public procedures are funded by the taxpayer. Private procedures are funded by individual patients.

4. Taxpayer Funded Cosmetic Surgery

Notes

All costs are average costs per procedure, shown at a 2012 price base. On average, price = cost.