recently i have been reviewing the subject of medical spas and in my files i found an interesting article published in plastic surgery practice several years ago. the story was an expose of medical spas with very thin physician coverage. the founder and executive director of the international medical spa association was quoted as saying “there are many medical spas operating throughout the united states whose medical director is not necessarily an md. ” i do think it is important that a physician and particularly one who is a skin specialist be on site and available at all times. after all the decision to initiate treatment is a medical decision. secondly what if there is a complication? who is more capable of recognizing and treating a complication? now medical spas certainly may have medically trained personnel including estheticians who are typically licensed by the state in which they practice. generally the state board of cosmetology oversees estheticians and the spa environment. however some medical spas take on procedures that are a bit more aggressive than an esthetician may be comfortable with performing. if you are considering having a skin-care treatment at a medical spa as opposed to a physician’s office it would be prudent to ask the following questions: 1. is there a md on site or available for me to see? 2. what is the medical director’s specialty? it is not unheard of for some spas to meet the licensure requirement to merely appoint a willing md who is not necessarily trained in skin management. the appropriate specialties are plastic surgery facial plastic surgery and dermatology. your skin deserves as much prudence in selecting professionals to care for it as any other part of your body.
what should i know about going to a medical spa?