By Tess Gilfedder, produced for online by Mitchell Ogden.

Cosmetic surgeons will have to earn a seal of approval under the new Australasian College of Cosmetic Surgery’s (ACCS) code of practice.

The college hopes this will encourage a higher standard of surgery in the industry.

Cosmetic surgeons from all over the country are gathering at the Cosmetex Convention in Cairns this week to discuss the new code.

A seal of approval will be awarded to members who comply with the high ethical standards set by the ACCS.

ACCS president Colin Moore says the seal will help patients when choosing a surgeon.

“The purpose of the seal is to provide evidence for the patients that a particular practitioner that they approach is compliant with the code of conduct of the ACCS,” he said.

He says customer testimonials, which are banned under the new code, are a big problem in the industry.

“You can pay people money to say good things about you, you can make up people to say good things about you,” he said.

“So we ban them, they are not allowed, and anyone who has testimonials on their website is asked to remove them.”

He says he hopes this and other deceptive behaviour will be abolished by the new code.

“If this is effective, and I think it will be, it will have a significant impact on the way cosmetic surgeons practice,” he said.

“Particularly those guys who are not compliant with the code.”

The new code will be officially launched tomorrow.