The ISHRS is an international, non-profit medical society comprised of over 1,200 members representing 70 countries – dedicated to promulgating the highest standards of medical practice and medical ethics. Member categories include fellow, member, associate member, adjunct (researchers), residents, and surgical assistants. Since its incorporation in 1993, a renaissance in hair restoration surgery was set into motion by the ISHRS. The multidisciplinary, international membership of the ISHRS is a critical mass for innovation in hair restoration surgery.
MISSION: The ISHRS is dedicated to achieving excellence in medical and surgical outcomes by promoting member education, international collegiality, research, ethics, and public awareness.
The ISHRS offers continuing medical education to physicians and fosters an environment of open dialogue, sharing, and collegiality. The ISHRS is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education, which is the agency responsible for sanctioning medical education for physician licensure in the United States. Obtaining accreditation by this agency is difficult.
The ISHRS is dedicated to facilitating the training of physicians. The ISHRS has a Fellowship Training Program, enduring educational materials and online resources, and offers numerous meetings that include lectures and surgical workshops. The ISHRS holds its biggest event, the annual ISHRS World Congress, around the world. Several of the countries in which it has organized meetings and live workshops include: United States, Australia, United Kingdom, Japan, South Korea, United Arab Emirates, Canada, Mexico, Malaysia, Thailand, The Netherlands, Czech Republic, Belgium, Poland, Spain, Italy, India, and Turkey. Its faculty are world-renowned and the top experts, innovators, and pioneers in the field. The faculty and leadership are those physicians who write the textbooks in the field and author the most important journal articles. The majority of faculty have been in the field for 20+ years.
The ISHRS provides the public the latest information on medical and surgical treatments for hair loss. A large part of the ISHRS’s effort is dedicated to ensuring the safety of patients and developing methods to minimize risks to patients while meeting the expectations of patients. The ISHRS has published and maintains the Core Curriculum in Hair Restoration Surgery (Dermatol Surg 2006; 32:86–90 • DOI: 10.1111j1524-4725.2006.32010), the Core Competencies in Hair Restoration Surgery (Dermatol Surg 2009; 35:425–428 DOI: 10.1111/j.1524-4725.2008.01059), FUE Clinical Practice Guidelines, and an ongoing current project of Common/Best Practices in Hair Restoration Surgery. The ISHRS has released several position statements.
The ISHRS provides annual research grants to relevant clinical research projects directed toward the subject of hair restoration.
The ISHRS’s pro bono program, Operation Restore, was initiated in 2004 and matches volunteer ISHRS physicians with prospective hair restoration patients suffering from hair loss as a result of trauma or disease who lack the resources to obtain treatment on their own. The program has provided over $825,000 USD of free surgery and travel expenses.
The ISHRS holds a Delegate seat in the American Medical Association House of Delegates, which is considered “the House of Medicine” in the United States and one of the most important groups to effect standards and legislation.
The ISHRS is a liaison organization member of the Comite Europeen de Normalisation (CEN) [European Committee for Standardization] task force 403 “Aesthetic Surgery Services” where it assists with developing standards for hair transplantation among countries within the European Union.
The ISHRS is a member of and leads the organization entitled Global Council of Hair Restoration Surgery Societies which is comprised of 23 national and regional societies. Numerous countries’ Ministries of Health have contacted the ISHRS in the past for expert information on industry standards.