Editor: Renato Saltz, MD
Publisher: Quality Medical Publishing – 526 pages
Book Review by: Nano Khilnani
The world of aesthetic surgery is changing. While in the past, most if not all surgical procedures were invasive, today, because of technological advancements, it is a mix of invasive and non-invasive options, and a good number of them are non-invasive. Also, a variety of other allied pre- and post-surgical services are being offered by some practitioners to their patients at what are now termed ‘medical spas’.
The editor of this 2009 book Dr. Renato Saltz faced the situation he describes below at one point in his career in cosmetic medicine and aesthetic surgery. He relates to us he overcame the challenges to reach success. He writes in his Preface:
“Back in the mid-90s while practicing academic plastic surgery at the University of Utah, I found myself confronted with a career-changing dilemma. The specialty I loved and had invested so many years for was undergoing a monumental transformation. I realized that it was no longer possible to meet the needs of my patients and attract and retain new patients by offering only invasive surgical procedures that had traditionally defined a plastic surgery practice.
To meet these new demands, I had to offer a broad array of new services. After many frustrating attempts to make my academic practice conform to this new practice model, I realized that I would have to leave the university to explore these changes in a new environment. In 2002 I moved to private practice and opened up Spa Vitoria in Salt Lake City and Park City, the first medical spa in the intermountain West. My goal was to combine presurgical and post surgical care with conventional medical spa treatments for plastic surgery patients – all under the supervision of a board-certified plastic surgeon. Thus began a journey that continues to this day and is reflected in this book.”
Thirty-one specialists in aesthetic plastic and reconstructive surgery, dermatology, and related fields contributed to the contents of this book. Of those, 30 are from the United States, and one is from Brazil. They are authors and coauthors of the following 28 chapters:
- Cosmetic Medicine: The Writing on the Wall
- Part I. Choosing a Practice Model
- The Office Setting
- The Adjacent Medical Spa
- The Freestanding Medical Spa
- The Academic Setting
- The Multispecialty Aesthetic Center
- Part II. Business Considerations
- Questions to Address When Planning a Medical Spa
- Understanding the Basics and Formulating a Business Plan
- Developing a Financial Model
- The Bottom Line
- Staffing
- Spreading the Word
- Regulatory and Legal Issues
- Part III. Services
- The Complete Aesthetic Package
- Preoperative and Postoperative Skin Care
- Corrective Cosmetics and Camouflage Makeup
- Botulinum Toxin
- Fillers: A Dermatologic Perspective
- The Role of Soft Tissue Fillers in Cosmetic Medicine: A Plastic Surgical Perspective
- Structural Fat Grafting: A Versatile Tool for Your Aesthetic Surgery Practice
- Laser Therapy for Cutaneous Vascular Lesions and Sclerotherapy
- Laser Hair Removed
- Laser Resurfacing
- Chemical and Physical Peels: A Brief Overview
- Part IV. Products
- Cosmeceuticals
- Skin-Care Products
- Nutrition, Hormones, and Skin Health
- Ingredients for Success
- Secrets to Success
DVD Contents
- Intense Pulsed Light Photo Rejuvenation
- Fillers
- Laser Hair Removed
- Laser Resurfacing with the Erbium: YAG Laser
An interesting part of this book is chapter 14, The Complete Aesthetic Package authored by the book’s editor Dr. Renato Saltz, Tara Thompson, RN, and Tracee Lolofee who are respectively listed as patient coordinator and business manager of Saltz Plastic Surgery and Spa Vitoria.
The components of the ‘Complete Aesthetic Package’ are:
- Consultation
- Patient evaluation
- Skin care protocol
- Nonsurgical treatments for skin rejuvenation
- Facial rejuvenation and body-contouring surgery
- Lymphatic drainage massage
- Camouflage makeup
- Comprehensive maintenance program
The authors of this chapter write that among the trends in aesthetic surgery today is to offer patients a ‘package’ of treatments that minimizes as much as possible, the signs of aging with the least invasive methods, reduced morbidity, rapid recovery, and quick return to work.
The services offered include, but are not limited to:
- Botox
- Consultations
- Facials
- Fillers
- Laser treatments
- Microdermabrasion
- Tissue fillers
- Topical treatments
Noteworthy to read for those intending to specialize in, or already in the field of aesthetic surgery, is the concluding chapter, Secrets to Success. The chapter authors Jane Crawford, a clinical aesthetician, and Dr. Renato Saltz, this book’s editor, cite and discuss their Seven Cs of Success: Culture, Complement, Collaboration, Community, Creativity, Competency, and Consistency.
Without going into much detail about the coverage provided in other chapters, we state in sum that this book of over 500 pages provides a fairly extensive overview of the field of aesthetic surgery in the United States.
Editor:
Renato Saltz, MD, FACS is Medical Director of Saltz Plastic Surgery and Spa Vitoria in Salt Lake City and Park City; and former Associate Professor of Plastic Surgery in the Department of Surgery at University of Utah in Salt Lake City, Utah.
