By AMSCO Medical

The med spa industry has experienced rapid and significant growth over the last decade, offering a sought-after blend of the luxury a traditional spa would offer while providing the clinical expertise of medical aesthetic centers. In fact, according to recent data collected by Precedence Research, a Canada-based strategic market insights firm, "The global medical spa market size exhibited USD $19.05 billion in 2023 and is estimated to be worth around USD $78.42 billion by 2033." While this growth is something to be celebrated and is certainly encouraging to those in the med spa space, this growth unfortunately comes with its own unique challenges and risks. Issues such as patient safety, regulatory compliance, employee/staffing issues, procedure risks and unreasonable patient expectations can make running a successful med spa business challenging. Although these challenges can sound daunting, proper business strategy and planning can negate them and, ultimately, help your practice navigate the ever-growing competitiveness of the med spa market.

From patient safety to compliance issues, med spa practices must set up their operation to ensure their staff's success while protecting patients. The first step in protecting your facility and staff is selecting the right insurance provider. According to Brittney Stinnett, a commercial insurance advisor for HUB International, "The right insurance carrier is a proactive partner in helping your med spa reduce risk, rather than just serving as a reactive partner to an incident." The first step in reducing risks for your med spa is finding ways to mitigate any potential patient safety concerns. Due to the nature of many common aesthetic procedures, such as IV treatments and Botox injections, there is a constant potential risk of procedures going wrong or patients having negative reactions. This could be an injection possibly hitting a nerve, a laser procedure causing a burn on a patient’s skin, or potential allergic reactions to various aesthetic procedures. 

Patient safety and navigating malpractice

The first step to avoiding these kinds of unwanted patient safety risks is investing in a comprehensive staff training and certification program. Poorly trained or underqualified staff can lead to dangerous outcomes for your patients and, in extreme cases, malpractice lawsuits. Although regulations for med spas have certainly gotten stricter as their popularity has grown, lawmakers have struggled to keep up with the rapid growth of the industry over the past five years, leading to a heightened risk of malpractice. According to a study conducted by the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery, "There was a significant difference in severity and frequency of adverse events when cosmetic procedures were performed by physicians compared with non-physician providers." Its study found that 73% of respondents reported having more moderate adverse events when cosmetic procedures were done by a non-physician versus only 41% of respondents reporting mild adverse effects with procedures done by physician providers. While facilities owned by non-physicians may not automatically be unsafe, this data highlights the importance of having a licensed physician and staff with the proper certifications to mitigate potential negative patient outcomes. In addition to investing in training and certification for your staff, conducting accurate initial patient consultations by reviewing every patient’s medical history carefully can also help your facility avoid any potential for malpractice.

Employee risk

As previously mentioned, the staff members you hire are vital to your day-to-day operations but can potentially lead to significant risks affecting your clients. Since the med spa industry is constantly evolving and introducing new, innovative treatments, it can be challenging for med spa operators to keep up with proper training and certification for their staff. Unfortunately, this can lead to poor outcomes when med spas do not keep up with things like licensure expiration and certifications and training for new treatments. The best approach to ensuring your med spa's staff stays up to date on the latest and greatest training for new and evolving treatments involves constant learning and research. Researching new devices, online courses and instructors, and keeping up to date with the latest trending treatments by visiting med spa conferences and trade shows can be a great way to proactively address your facility's training needs. Many manufacturers of cosmetic equipment and supplies are more than willing to provide free training on their devices and products to encourage you to use them. This can be a great way for you to leverage your buying power as a tool to further your staff's expertise and knowledge while being able to consistently keep up with the hottest trends in the aesthetic space.

Cybersecurity risks and safety practices

In addition to the challenge of ensuring your staff is up to date on the latest best practices, one component of employee training that is often overlooked is cybersecurity. Of course, this is not to suggest your staff members need to become professional cybersecurity analysts. However, according to the CM&F Group, a professional liability insurance firm, "Providing ongoing cybersecurity training to staff can ensure the safe handling of patient information and prevent data breaches." Since med spa facilities collect and store a variety of personal and health-related information from their clients, ensuring that the operational system your spa is using is secured by practicing smart cyber security protocols is vital to the long-term success of your business. Having individual usernames and passwords for each of your employees using your patient data system is a great first step to securing this sensitive data.

Although we all believe in the principle "sharing is caring," it shouldn't apply to your med spa's system, since sharing login credentials can increase the risk of unauthorized access and data breaches. According to AestheticsPro, a software management and development firm specializing in med spa software development, "One of the simplest yet most effective ways to enhance login credential security is by implementing strong password policies. Encourage the use of complex passwords that include a mix of letters, numbers and special characters." Additionally, its software engineers also recommend using two-factor authentication as an extra security measure. This involves having users of your database confirm their identity through multiple means, such as having a fingerprint or facial recognition system or using their smart phone in addition to their login credentials when accessing sensitive data. Training your staff on the importance of these security protocols and how to recognize suspicious activity such as potential phishing emails or spam can all go a long way in protecting your facility from the ever-growing cybersecurity threats we see throughout health care.

Navigating med spa compliance

Among the many constantly evolving challenges med spa practices must face, legal compliance may be the most important, yet it is among the trickiest to navigate. As you know, med spa regulations vary across different states, especially with regard to who can or cannot perform specific treatments. This creates a large grey area for med spa owners, which can make staying compliant quite the challenge. Despite this ambiguity, there are several general steps to compliance you can follow to ensure that your med spa is off to a good legal standing:

Compliance Checklist:

• Business license for med spas: You can apply for this license through either your state department's website or the U.S. Small Business Administration.
• Spa professional licenses: Verify that your staff members all have state licenses for aesthetic or cosmetic work and training from accredited programs or schools.
• Licensed physicians: While the requirements vary by state, having at least one physician or board-certified plastic surgeon on your staff is important to ensuring treatments are performed safely.
• HIPAA certification: Just like any medical clinic, your med spa must meet HIPAA regulations. You can read more on HIPAA regulations here.
• Building permits: If you are building a new facility or even making minor renovations to an existing structure, you will need a building permit along with an inspection.
• Seller permits: If you are selling products in your facility in addition to providing services, most states will require a retail seller permit.

While licensing and legal prerequisites for starting or operating a med spa can be different from state to state, these general compliance guidelines are a great start. Although there are many challenges facing the med spa industry today, pairing these guidelines with the previously mentioned tips on navigating the various challenges faced by med spas today can ensure your business flourishes.

Works Cited:

5 top risks faced by medical spas and how to mitigate them. CM&F Group. (n.d.). https://www.cmfgroup.com/blog/medical-spa/top-risks-for-medical-spas/
Makmel, G. (2024, February 2). Challenges in the Medspa Industry for 2024. Clinicminds. https://www.clinicminds.com/challenges-in-the-medspa-industry-for-2024/
Aleisa, A., Lu, J. T., Al Saud, A., Veldhuizen, I. J., Rossi, A. M., & Lee, K. C. (2023). The differences in the practice of cosmetic dermatologic procedures between physicians and Nonphysicians. Dermatologic Surgery. https://doi.org/10.1097/dss.0000000000003948
Login credential security in medical spas: Why it matters. Aesthetics Medspa Software. (n.d.). https://www.aestheticspro.com/Blog/Login-Credential-Security-Medspas/
Jurukovski, T. (2024, September 13). An essential guide to medspa compliance. Pabau. https://pabau.com/blog/medspa-compliance/