If you are a registered nurse working for the NHS and looking for a career change that offers a better work/life balance, fits in with your lifestyle, and is well-paid, training as a cosmetic nurse could be the solution you’re looking for.

Non-surgical aesthetic treatments are currently in high demand, and more people are becoming aware of the various treatment options available to improve their appearance. Consequently, it has never been a better time than now to take the plunge and launch your own aesthetics business as a cosmetic nurse.

1. Better work-life balance. Once you are experienced in administering cosmetic injection treatments, you will be able to complete a Botox treatment in 15 minutes and a dermal filler treatment in 30-45 minutes, giving you plenty of time to pursue your interests or fit your work in around your children’s school hours and term times.

2. Unlike when you work in the NHS, when you run your own clinic, you can have as much patient contact time as you need to assess your client’s treatment needs and expectations. You can take the time to sit down and talk with your patients to work out how you can best help them to improve their self-esteem. The time you spend listening to and nurturing your patients will result in better treatment outcomes, higher customer satisfaction rates and ultimately, more business for you as you receive rave reviews and glowing testimonials.

3. Increase your earning potential and work fewer hours. We all know how financially squeezed the NHS is and very few people who become medical professionals are motivated by money. Still, the stark reality is that with rising costs and a cost-of-living crisis that shows no end in sight, becoming a cosmetic nurse is a great way to boost your income.

There are various steps you need to take to launch your new cosmetic nursing career and start injecting Botox and/or dermal fillers. We’ve put together a helpful list that you can work through to get you started.

If you are a qualified nurse and still practising, you should be registered with the NMC. If you have taken a career break, however, and your registration has lapsed, you will need to reactivate it to practice as a cosmetic nurse in the UK.

As a provider that exclusively trains medical professionals at Derma Institute, our facial aesthetics courses are available to doctors, dentists, nurses & midwives, dental hygienists and dental therapists, pharmacists, ODPS, paramedics and physiotherapists. So whatever medical professional role you’re currently occupying, we can provide the necessary training to give you an additional income stream with flexible working hours.

Once you have completed the steps above, the next step is to find a training centre that offers the training you need to get started. With over 50 providers up and down the UK offering Botox courses, when looking for a training provider, it is essential that you consider the following factors:

• Who provides the training and how much experience they have
• Where the training is delivered and whether it is in a clinical environment
• Which medical professionals are part of the team of trainers
• Will you be able to practise on live models or mannequins
• How big the class sizes are (preferably no more than 5 delegates)
• What post-training support/resources are offered, e.g. help launching your business
• What previous course attendees say about the training (reviews/testimonials)

We offer a range of courses, starting from our initial weekend combined training course to a comprehensive OTHM Level 7 Diploma in Aesthetics. All of our practical courses are delivered in small class sizes by experienced medical professionals and provide the opportunity for you to practice on live models. We also offer further training and masterclasses so you can continue your professional development.

Browse our courses today and find one that’s right for you!

If you want to administer Botox, you will also need to be a prescriber or work with one, as it is a prescription-only medicine. You can apply to become a nurse prescriber by completing a V300 course with a university. If you don’t wish to become a prescriber, you will need to find a prescriber, such as a doctor, dentist or nurse prescriber, willing to have a face-to-face consultation with your patients before you treat them so that they can write the prescription for you.

Once you have registered with the NMC, decided whether you will become a prescriber, and completed your training, it’s time to start thinking about finding a pharmacy that can dispense your Botox and dermal fillers.

You will also need to take out a cosmetic indemnity insurance policy. Once you are qualified you will be presented with a certificate that you will need to present to your insurance provider to set up your professional indemnity insurance.

We recommend that you start using your new skills as soon as possible after completing the training, even if at first you just offer it at cost or model prices to family and friends. This will help you grow in confidence and help consolidate what you have learned on the course. It also means that when you start treating paying patients, you will feel more confident and provide the best possible service.

As an aesthetics training provider, we know how important it is to support our delegates after they have completed the course. As we only provide training to medical professionals, most of our delegates have only ever worked in the NHS or private practice and have no or limited marketing experience or knowledge of how to find patients and run a business.

We offer all our delegates marketing advice and courses to help you embark on your new venture as a newly qualified cosmetic nurse. There is also our Aesthetic Business and Marketing Bootcamp, in which we share all our top tips. Our previous delegates have found this marketing support invaluable.

We hope you have found this blog useful and are happy to discuss any questions you may have. Contact us today to find out more about our cosmetic injectables courses.

The Derma Institute is a globally recognised, award-winning aesthetic training academy run by doctors. It specialises in providing healthcare professionals with training in a range of aesthetic procedures. We currently have training centres in the UK, Middle East, Australia, and Canada that offer the highest-quality training on live models that adheres to the safest and most advanced techniques in aesthetic medicine.