Medical director and founder of The IV Clinic and Ghosh Medical Group Dr Arun Ghosh shares his experiences of using and training in the use of IVNT

I have been performing Intravenous Nutritional Therapy (IVNT) exclusively for more than three years and, during this time,
I have seen the growth of the industry throughout the UK. Though we are behind our American counterparts, much can be learnt from their practices and their pitfalls. Our clinic has seen an increase in all demographics for this type of therapy; from the fitness and beauty industry to those worried about their health and nutrition. Personally I have trained on many of the different courses on offer, both here in the UK and abroad. Currently for practitioners, the standards of training differs hugely between companies and organisations. Companies also differ in their goals for IVNT benefits and client base. Clinical standards and guidelines are not the same throughout the different companies and their claims are often not based on any recognised controlled trials. This has led to much criticism in the way IVNT

is being offered, from high street shops and home/hotel visits to expensive health clinics, and has contributed to patient complacency and concern regarding the use of IVNT.

AIMS is the first attempt in the UK to set standards of training and support for practitioners

Standards of care

There are always risks associated with any procedure and I have personally seen reactions and side effects from poor formulas and clinical guidelines, which in hindsight could easily have been avoided if the standards of training were higher and follow-up care was easy to access. The IV Clinic, as a result, tries to be at the forefront of setting these standards in terms of advertising and clinical administration. The IV Clinic has now grown into several clinics in the UK and abroad, and I have taken onboard clinicians across a variety of areas from acute care, oncology and community IV backgrounds. Included in

my team are medical, pharmaceutical and nursing directors to create medical standards on par with NHS hospital and CQC levels of care. Currently there is no reason for other clinics to follow suit, but having a level set as high as this means I can reassure all of my clients and staff that their wellbeing is at the forefront of The IV Clinic’s ethos.

Tailoring treatment

The IV Clinic team has now been well
established and gathering feedback from
our clinics has been our first aim in tailoring
our IVNT menu for maximum benefit. All our
practitioners have a good understanding of
drip ingredients, osmolarity and infusion rates
for safety, so are able to tailor IV drips for
individual client’s needs, rather than follow
set menus. The IV Clinic has blood pathology
levels, which are standard for all clients, as
they are in many clinics in the US. We feel
they are a vital part of the process in order to
demonstrate if and when IVNT is indicated, beneficial, and not harmful. The learning has not stopped for me; I continue to train on courses around the world to bring together global data and constantly look to improve our IVNT menu.

Looking forward

We are now aiming to hold trials to provide clear data comparing IVNT with placebo, alternative treatments and how much quicker goals are achieved when IVNT is introduced, whether they be nutritional, beauty or athletic. On a more long-term scale, we also aim to train those who want to bring their IVNT standards up to our level and advance their IVNT training to achieve results safely and gather data from our own collective trials.

Personally, I think that IVNT is very much in its infancy and we will see a huge amount of change in the coming years, for which I hope to be well prepared. If we are willing to learn from the experience of the aesthetics specialty we can correct many issues quickly at this infant stage, prior to it becoming over run and mismanaged by rogue practises. Thus, laying to rest many of the misconceptions that we see printed and, more importantly, reassure the public over the safety of IVNT. The

Association of Intravenous Micro-nutritional Supplementation (AIMS) is the first attempt in the UK to set standards of training and support for practitioners. It offers a chance for companies to try to pull together and set clear standards across the board. Self regulation is the first step in raising the level of IVNT and public reassurance, so I would urge all practitioners looking to offer IVNT to sign up to AIMs.