KUALA LUMPUR: Hiding in plain sight among a row of shop lots in Sri Petaling, a beauty centre offering illegal dental and aesthetic medical services since 2024 was finally exposed in a raid on Wednesday (Aug 20), Sinar Harian reports.
The raid, conducted at around 10:40 am Wednesday following a public complaint, was carried out by a team of enforcement officers from the Dental Health Division and the Private Medical Practice Control Branch (CKAPS) of the Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya Health Department, in cooperation with the Sri Petaling police.
The Malay language daily reported that the premises were equipped with closed-circuit television cameras (CCTV).
Additionally, there were three special rooms believed to be used by clients for dental treatments, as well as another room for aesthetic medical services related to beauty, such as skin whitening and Botox injections. Each room contained beds along with various machines, medications, injection tools, and other equipment.
During the raid, two clients were undergoing dental treatment.
Dr Vivegan Doraisamy, an enforcement officer from the Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya Health Department, said that two women, including a 27-year-old Indonesian national and a 37-year-old, were arrested.
He told Sinar Harian that preliminary investigations revealed the beauty centre offered dental and aesthetic medical services that should only be conducted at private healthcare facilities registered with the Health Ministry.
"The suspects allegedly promoted their services on social media, including dental veneers, which can only be performed by registered dental practitioners with the Malaysian Dental Council.
"Additionally, the beauty centre also offered aesthetic medical treatments such as fillers, Botox injections, and other aesthetic procedures that can only be performed by registered medical practitioners with the Malaysian Medical Council and accredited with the Letter of Credentialing & Privileging (LCP) of Aesthetic Medical Practice by the ministry," he told Sinar Harian on Thursday (Aug 21).
He mentioned that the treatment prices ranged from RM4,000 to RM12,000, depending on the package chosen by the clients.
Both women will be investigated under Section 4(1) of the Private Healthcare Facilities and Services Act 1998 for allegedly operating a dental clinic and private medical clinic without a valid registration certificate.
"The case will also be investigated under Section 62(1) of the Dental Act 2018 for allegedly practising dentistry without being registered with the Malaysian Dental Council," he added.
He stressed that the ministry advised the public to seek treatments from legitimate medical or dental practitioners with appropriate qualifications.
"This is to ensure the safety and quality of the best treatment services and to prevent any unwanted complications," he said.
