Privacy Policy

Star Aesthetic Centre ("Star Aesthetic Centre", "we", "us", or "our") is a medical aesthetic practice located at 22 Ennisdale Drive, Durban North, 4051, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

We operate this website at staraesthetic.co.za and provide medical aesthetic treatments and pharmaceutical-grade skincare products under the direction of Dr. Rajeev Bangalee, a qualified General Practitioner with postgraduate training in Aesthetic Medicine.

We are committed to protecting your privacy and handling your personal and medical information responsibly, in accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act, 4 of 2013 (POPIA) and the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) guidelines.

We collect different categories of information depending on how you interact with us:

Personal Information

• Full name, date of birth, and gender
• South African ID number or passport number
• Contact details: phone number, email address, and physical address
• Medical aid / health insurance details and membership numbers
• Payment information (processed securely — we do not store card details)

Medical & Health Information

• Medical history, current medications, and known allergies
• Treatment records, clinical notes, and consultation summaries
• Before-and-after photographs taken for clinical documentation purposes
• Informed consent records
• Adverse event or complication records

Website & Technical Information

• IP address and approximate geographic location
• Browser type, operating system, and device information
• Pages visited, time spent on pages, and referring URLs
• Cookie data and session identifiers (see our Cookie Policy below)

We use your information only for legitimate, lawful purposes:

Primary Purposes (Medical Care)

• To provide medical aesthetic consultations, treatments, and follow-up care
• To maintain accurate and complete patient medical records as required by the HPCSA
• To schedule, confirm, and manage appointments
• To process payments and issue invoices or receipts
• To contact you regarding your care, results, or safety follow-ups
• To comply with legal and regulatory obligations under South African law

Secondary Purposes (with your consent)

• To send you newsletters, promotions, or information about new treatments and products
• To share before-and-after photographs on our website or social media (only with your explicit written consent)
• To conduct patient satisfaction surveys and improve our services
• To analyse website usage and improve the online experience

You may withdraw consent for secondary uses at any time by contacting us at info@staraesthetic.site. Withdrawal of consent will not affect the lawfulness of any processing carried out before the withdrawal.

We may share your information only in the following limited circumstances:

• With other medical professionals involved in your care (e.g., referring doctors, specialists, or pharmacists) where clinically necessary and with your knowledge
• With trusted service providers who assist us in operating our practice (e.g., appointment booking systems, payment processors, accounting software) — these parties are contractually bound to keep your information confidential and may not use it for any other purpose
• With medical aids or insurers for the purposes of billing and authorisation, where applicable
• Where required by law, court order, or a regulatory or governmental authority
• In a medical emergency, where disclosure is necessary to protect your life or the life of another person

We implement appropriate technical and organisational security measures to protect your personal information against unauthorised access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. These measures include:

• Encrypted data transmission (SSL/TLS) on our website
• Secure, access-controlled servers for storing digital records
• Role-based access controls — only authorised staff can access patient records
• Regular staff training on data privacy and information security
• Physical security measures at our premises

While we take every reasonable precaution, no method of electronic transmission or storage is 100% secure. We will notify you and the Information Regulator of South Africa promptly in the event of a data breach that is likely to affect your rights.

We retain your information only for as long as is necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, or as required by law:

Upon expiry of the applicable retention period, we will securely delete or anonymise your personal information.

As a data subject under the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA), you have the following rights:

• Right to access — you may request a copy of the personal information we hold about you
• Right to correction — you may request that inaccurate or incomplete information be corrected
• Right to deletion — you may request deletion of information where there is no longer a lawful basis to retain it (subject to our legal obligations as a medical practice)
• Right to object — you may object to the processing of your information for direct marketing purposes at any time
• Right to complain — you may lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator of South Africa

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the details below. We will respond within 30 days.

Our website uses cookies — small text files placed on your device — to improve your browsing experience, remember your preferences, and analyse how visitors use the site.

• Essential cookies — required for the website to function (e.g., shopping cart, session management)
• Analytics cookies — help us understand how visitors use our site (e.g., Google Analytics)
• Marketing cookies — used to deliver relevant advertising (only with your consent)

You can manage or disable cookies through your browser settings at any time. Please note that disabling cookies may affect the functionality of certain parts of our website.

We do not knowingly collect personal information from persons under the age of 18 through our website without the consent of a parent or legal guardian. Where a minor requires treatment, a parent or legal guardian must provide written consent prior to any consultation or procedure.

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or in applicable law. When we make material changes, we will update the 'Last Updated' date at the top of this page and, where appropriate, notify patients directly.

We encourage you to review this policy periodically. Your continued use of our services after any changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

For any questions, concerns, or requests relating to this Privacy Policy or the handling of your personal information, please contact our Information Officer: