INTRODUCTION TO

AESTHETIC MEDICINE

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 Medi-aesthetic treatments can be a valuable and profitable adjunct to the ser-
WELCOME
vices you already provide in primary care. By diversifying your practice you will
meet the rising patient demand for cosmetic procedures, retain existing patients
and attract new ones while offering a reliable additional revenue stream for your
practice.

Based on Australia’s only university quality-assured Professional Diploma

Program in Aesthetic Medicine, this quick guide aims to provide GPs with a basic
introduction to aesthetic procedures in your general or skin cancer practice.

Interested in further education in aesthetic medicine?

Learn more about Australia’s only university quality assured certificate and
profesional diploma courses in aesthetic medicine, available fully online and with
practical workshops.

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 WHAT IS
AESTHETIC MEDICINE
& WHY PRACTISE IT?
Aesthetic medicine is a growing industry. Non-invasive and minimally invasive
cosmetic treatments enjoy extraordinary popularity worldwide. The training
to perform such procedures is relatively simple compared to complex medical
specialties, such as plastic surgery.

For general practitioners, aesthetic medicine is an exceptional opportunity to

develop and expand their range of services.

Who provides Medical practitioners who provide cosmetic services include:

cosmetic treatments?
y Plastic surgeons,
y Dermatologists, and
y General practitioners

Some nurses, technicians, and therapists can also conduct consultations and
aesthetic treatments.

What are the While most specialists see aesthetic patients impromptu, general practitioners
advantages of a (GPs) usually know the patients very well. That includes the knowledge of the
general practice patient’s medical and social history.
background in
aesthetic medicine? This familiarity helps GPs to advise the patients on various health-related topics.
Therefore, practising aesthetic medicine as a GP puts you in a position to give
advice about aesthetic treatments and manage patients’ expectations in a high-
quality manner.

Skin Cancer Doctors Skin Cancer Doctors are in a position to offer cosmetic advice or practise aesthetic
are well placed to medicine. The reason is they exclusively get to see patients with skin concerns.
practise aesthetic These concerns often present as benign issues, such as:
medicine
y Vascularisation changes,
y Pigmentation issues,
y Redness, or
y Freckles

With a background in aesthetic medicine, doctors can treat these issues, or they
can recommend further treatment.

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 Why subspecialise in Aesthetic patients are looking to improve their physical appearance. In most
aesthetic medicine? cases, they lack medical indications for treatment. That takes off a lot of pressure
from the care provider and creates a positive work environment.

A medical professional with adequate knowledge of anatomy and basic patient

care guidelines can expand their range of services and increase overall patient
satisfaction with training in:

y Skincare,
y Injectables,
y Laser therapy,
y Chemical peels,
y Microneedling, and
y Non-invasive body-sculpting procedures

A wide range of skills will inevitably raise people’s confidence in your expertise
and likely lead to an increase in the number of regular patients.

How to start There are many entry points to start practising aesthetic medicine.

You should only pursue a professional upgrade in aesthetic medicine if you have
a keen interest in the subject. Otherwise, poor treatment outcomes can harm your
career because cosmetic patients have a low tolerance for:

y Discomfort and pain,

y Long recovery,
y Poor aesthetic results, and
y Side effects and complications

As a GP, you can learn aesthetic medicine if you seek training and information
from the right source.

Organisations such as HealthCert Education offer high-quality introductory and

advanced aesthetic medicine courses.

Additionally, almost all manufactures of products and equipment for aesthetic

medicine offer practical courses.

You can also learn from a mentor.

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 HOW TO DELIVER
AN AESTHETIC MEDICINE
CONSULTATION
In aesthetic medicine, a consultation is not much different from general practice.
However, there are some distinctions.

A consultation in aesthetic medicine involves:

y Taking patients’ medical history,

y Performing a physical examination,
y Taking the “before” photographs,
y Suggesting a treatment plan,
y Managing patients’ expectations, and
y Discussing the cost of treatment

Medical history Medical history is not only a valuable source of information about other treatments
or underlying and chronic conditions. It also gives you an insight into the patient’s
motivation.

You will want to know why they are seeking a particular treatment so that you
can identify potential psychological causes that may require mental health
assessment. It is not easy to manage expectations in patients with mental health
issues, such as depression and anxiety.

The purpose of physical examination is to check the quality and texture of the
skin. It is also a way to look for damage signs, such as:

y Redness,
y Pigmentation,
y Acne and acne scars,
y Vascular lesions,
y Fine lines and wrinkles,
y Loss of volume, and
y Skin laxity issues

Some aesthetic procedures, such as laser therapy and energy-based treatments,

require grading the patient’s skin on the Fitzpatrick scale. The safety and
effectiveness of these treatments depend on skin colour.

Photographing Photographing the treatment area before the procedure is essential. The common
practice is to photograph five standard views of the patient:

y Two oblique views (one from each side),

y One anterior view, and
y Two lateral views (one from each side)

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 The photographs serve as objective proof of treatment outcomes.

Once you are familiar with the patient’s aesthetic issues, you can suggest the
treatment plan and explain all the options.

The ageing process causes multiple changes in facial skin. As a result, wrinkles,
discolouration, saggy skin, sunken cheeks, and other issues start to appear. For
these issues, there are different solutions, and you should explain them to the
patient.

For example, botulinum toxin can improve frown lines and crow’s feet, but it
cannot add volume to the lips. Dermal fillers can improve jawline definition but
cannot erase sunspots, and so on.

The idea is to provide adequate information and discuss all available options with
the patient, to manage their treatment expectations in the best possible way.

Last but not least, you need to make sure that the patient fully understands the
total cost of treatment.

That’s how you will gain trust and build up a following of aesthetic medicine
patients.

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 COSMETIC
INJECTABLE
TREATMENTS
Injectables are the basis of minimally invasive cosmetic procedures. They are the
gateway to aesthetic medicine for most general practitioners.

What are injectable There are two main groups of injectables:

treatments?
1. Botulinum toxin injections, and
2. Dermal fillers

Botulinum toxin Botulinum toxin injections mainly address the static wrinkles in the upper third
injections of the face. Static wrinkles are present when there is no movement of facial
muscles. These include:

y Horizontal forehead lines,

y Frown lines, and
y Crow’s feet (wrinkles in the outer corner of the eye)

Additionally, botulinum toxin can treat bunny lines (nose wrinkles), marionette
lines, and tiny lines around the lips (smokers lines). Migraines and hyperhidrosis
are also botulinum toxin indications.

These are some valuable facts about botulinum toxin injections:

y Australia has the highest percentage of patients having botulinum toxin

procedures.
y There are three brands of botulinum toxin available in Australia.
y Botulinum toxin is a Schedule 4 drug. You can only discuss it with patients in
your room, but you cannot mention it in any form of advertising.
y Botulinum toxin blocks the communication between a nerve and a muscle,
inducing muscle relaxation.
y The maximum treatment results are visible two weeks after the procedure.
y The effect of botulinum toxin injections is temporary. It lasts three to four
months with an adequate dose. Therefore, it is an entirely reversible procedure.

Dermal fillers Dermal fillers add volume to the skin and fill deeper wrinkles and creases. There
are several types and many brands currently in use.

Fillers are second on the list of most popular aesthetic treatments in Australia,
after botulinum toxin. The indications for dermal fillers include:

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 y Fine lines,
y Deeper lines,
y Facial re-contouring, and
y Loss of volume

Most dermal fillers are temporary. However, permanent options exist too.

Temporary dermal fillers are broken down over time inside the body until their
effect wears off completely. The visible results usually last nine to 12 months
after the treatment. The exceptions are the areas around the mouth where the
effects last six to nine months.

Skin Booster Skin boosters are dermal fillers that improve the skin’s regenerative ability, rather
than just adding volume. They are a quality tool for enhancing skin texture and
improving the appearance of scars.

The facial re-contouring ability of dermal fillers also attracts patients dissatisfied
with the size of their lips, the shape of their nose, or chin.

Platelet-Rich- Platelet-Rich-Plasma (PRP) and Biostimulation are two other popular injectable
Plasma (PRP) and procedures. Biostimulation boosts collagen production within the skin, and PRP
Biostimulation improves the skin’s self-rejuvenating ability. Compared to botulinum toxin and
dermal fillers, these treatments produce subtle results.

In all cases, it is essential for the administrator of injectables to properly assess

the overall condition of patients’ skin (according to their age), their psychological
stability, and treatment expectations.

Avoiding the abuse of injectables to achieve unnatural-looking results is the best

way to ensure patient satisfaction and increase your patient base.

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 LASER &
ENERGY-BASED
DEVICES
Modern technology plays a big part in aesthetic medicine. Therefore, using
energy-based devices, such as lasers, is vital for many non-invasive and minimally
invasive cosmetic treatments.

The energy-based devices currently in use by cosmetic physicians are:

y Intense Pulsed Light or IPL devices,

y Laser devices,
y Radiofrequency devices,
y High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) devices, and
y Plasma Pen devices

IPL devices and lasers enjoy widespread application. They utilise light energy
to deliver a therapeutic effect. They target melanin inside the skin to improve
pigmentation issues and vascular lesions or cause permanent hair removal and
so on.

IPL devices IPL devices treat superficial skin issues, such as:

y Lentigines,
y Freckles,
y Tiny blood vessels, and
y Background redness

Compared to laser devices, they can cover a larger skin area. However, their
effectiveness is limited to parts of the body where the skin is thin.

There are two kinds of lasers used in aesthetic medicine:

y Non-ablative lasers, and

y Ablative lasers

Non-ablative Non-ablative lasers have a wide application because they are less aggressive and
lasers can address issues such as:

y Fine lines and wrinkles,

y Minor scars,
y Brown spots,
y Melasma,

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 y Redness,
y Seborrheic keratosis,
y Telangiectasia (spider veins), and
y Other vascular changes

Ablative lasers Ablative lasers perform skin resurfacing treatments. They are harsh on the skin
as they destroy tissue segments to promote the formation of new skin layers.
These lasers effectively treat skin lesions and deeper scars.

The energy-based devices are not cheap, and they have their limitations too. IPL
devices, for example, work best on light-coloured skin and dark hair. Therefore,
you will have to take into account the demographics of your patients before you
purchase such a device.

The use of these machines does not require as much medical knowledge
as injectables. So, you can also have an adequately trained therapist or nurse
delivering these procedures at your clinic.

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 ACNE &
ACNE SCARRING
Acne is a common skin condition, and scarring is a frequent complication. Many
patients resort to aesthetic medicine after trying various other treatments.

Due to their hormonal basis, curing acne is a difficult task. However, aesthetic
treatments can improve the skin’s appearance and other symptoms.

If patients understand the causes of acne and its chronic nature, they are more
likely to comply with treatment recommendations.

Most patients understand the hormonal aspect. After all, acne usually starts to
appear in puberty. The overproduction of sebum (oil) is also an apparent cause.

However, there are some factors patients don’t know. For example, the increase
of keratinisation and stickiness of skin cells contributes to congestion. Squeezing
and picking of pimples worsen the situation, as does heavy makeup.

Most acne patients first reach for over-the-counter products. However, these are
incredibly drying and, therefore, only effective short term. Drying the skin causes
rebound congestion and makes acne worse.

Diet has a connection to acne, but not a direct one. Oily foods don’t cause oily
skin. Foods with a high glycaemic index can make acne problems worse.

Medical management is the first step. It can include:

y Oral antibiotics,
y Topicals for acne,
y Contraceptive pills, and so on.

Anything beyond this is in the domain of aesthetic medicine. The aesthetic

management of acne may involve educating the patient about proper skincare.
That includes proper cleansing, exfoliating, moisturising, and sun protection.

Since everybody’s skin is different, it requires special care. With acne, too much
cleansing and exfoliating can have a negative effect, as can greasy moisturisers
and sunscreens.

Topical skincare products with niacinamide (vitamin B3) can help regulate oil
production and defend skin from inflammation, sun damage, and infections.

Exfoliating products with alpha-hydroxy acids and beta-hydroxy acids break down
the bond between dead cells on the skin’s surface, helping prevent congestion.

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 Topical vitamin A (retinoids) also help reduce oil production and improve acne
scars.

A typical acne skin care regimen should start with a cleanser and niacinamide
serum in the morning. A non-greasy moisturiser and water-based sunscreen can
follow. In the evening, an exfoliating serum and topical vitamin A are enough.

Aside from skincare, aesthetic medicine offers physical treatments for acne.
These include:

y Microdermabrasion,
y Chemical peels,
y LED therapy,
y Laser Genesis, and
y Kleresca.

Microdermabrasion Microdermabrasion exfoliates the skin and uses suction to remove debris and
dead skin cells. It works particularly well for whiteheads and blackheads. It is
ineffective for cysts and nodules. Microdermabrasion can help manage acne
symptoms if the treatment starts in an early stage.

Chemical peels Chemical peels often work together with microdermabrasion. Exfoliating serums
such as glycolic and salicylic acid help with congestion and inflammation.

LED light therapy LED light therapy uses light energy to treat acne but with a milder effect than
IPL or laser devices. The treatment uses blue light to reduce bacteria on the
skin’s surface and red light for inflammation. LED therapy in combination with an
active topical substance is called acne phototherapy. The usual plan involves two
sessions a week for at least four weeks.

Laser Genesis Laser Genesis uses a vascular laser at low energy levels to provoke gentle ageing
of deeper skin layers. That reduces the activity of sebaceous glands and improves
redness, inflammation, and scarring.

Kleresca Kleresca is a novel acne treatment. It is a bio-photonic gel. In combination

with LED blue light, the gel fluoresces. The energy from the fluorescence has a
beneficial effect on acne. The treatment works very well for severe acne, but has
a high cost.

Some aesthetic treatments also work very well for acne scars. These include:

y Radiofrequency,
y Microneedling,
y Dermal fillers, and
y Laser skin resurfacing.

It is possible to begin the treatment of scars while active acne are still present.
That way we can improve the appearance of existing scars, prevent the formation
of new ones, and ameliorate other common symptoms, such as rosacea.

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 UPSKILL IN
AESTHETIC MEDICINE
This guide provides a brief introduction to aesthetic medicine and the topics covered in
the HealthCert Professional Diploma of Aesthetic Medicine program,
available fully online with optional practical workshops.

NEXT STEPS The three-part program provides comprehensive training to help you meet
increasing patient demand for cosmetic services in primary care, featuring
interactive lectures, case discussions, live demonstrations, and optional practical
workshops for hands-on practise on pork parts and simulated models.

TOPICS COVERED y Planning cosmetic procedures y Sclerotherapy

y Chemical peels & topical treatments
y Botulinum toxin injections
y Dermal fillers & biostimulators
y Hyperhidrosis treatments
y Laser for hair & tattoo removal
y Laser for vascular & pigment
conditions
y Resurfacing laser treatments
y Ultrasound & radiofrequency
y Acne & rosacea management
y Threadlifts
y Cryolipolysis & body shaping
y Managing complications
y Set up & marketing of services

CERTIFICATION Receive a university-assured HealthCert certificate and accreditation points:

PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATE
RACGP: CPD Accredited Activity 40 Points
ACRRM: 20 Educational activity, 15 Performance review PDP
units + MOPS points: 6 Surgery

ADVANCED CERTIFICATE
RACGP: CPD Accredited Activity 40 Points
ACRRM: 23 Educational activity, 12 Performance review PDP
units + MOPS points: 12 Surgery

PROFESSIONAL DIPLOMA
RACGP: CPD Accredited Activity 40 Points (+40 Points with
Clinical Audit)
ACRRM: 42 Educational activity, 12 Performance review PDP
units + MOPS points: 6 Surgery (+57 units with Clinical Audit)

LOCATIONS BRISBANE SYDNEY MELBOURNE PERTH ONLINE

Quality-assured by Postgraduate Accredited by Accredited by

studies with
NO PHARMA
SPONSORSHIP
 INTRODUCTION TO
AESTHETIC MEDICINE
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