Dear Reader June 2008

June is the month we celebrate Father’s Day, so here is to all the men who are fathers. Have a wonderfully relaxing day and enjoy your children, whether small or tall. Each moment with them is a precious gift to be cherished. For all of you women, I hope you had the chance to read the men’s issue in May and glean some tips you are putting to use this month on all the fathers who will be receiving gift cards on June 15th.
As for this month’s issue, we are focused on the newest microcosm, which is experiencing a surge of interest – Medical Aesthetics. I Googled medical aesthetics and came up with 378,000 hits. There were sites on everything from places to receive treatments, to training opportunities, to manufacturers of equipment and products that fall under the heading of medical aesthetics. But what exactly is medical aesthetics and who exactly is covered to perform these treatments?
When I hear the word medical, I think of years spent toiling through classes and over books. I think of internships and residency. I think of commitment and dedication to intensive learning… One of the hits that came up in my search touted a training and certification program that was barely more than a week.
Needless to say, this is a topic that raises much debate. In fact, this issue was a large part of the conversation raised at the recent AIA meeting in Dallas, Texas. As we are hard at work finishing our National Certification Exam, the topic of whether or not to include medical aesthetics was a biggie. Should it be included? Should it not? If it is included, should we refer to it as Medical Aesthetics or is there a more appropriate name? So on and so on…
Obviously, medical aesthetics is a more advanced treatment than your average European facial and skin analysis. I think you will find the articles in this issue speak to what those treatment are; the various ways to blend your practice with that of a medical practice; insurance and liability issues that one should be aware of; and we also have included an article on lymphatic drainage, which is very important in the recovery of some of these more advanced treatments.
Finally, we have a very special section on Healthy Aging that should give you and your clients some pointers on how to minimize or hold off on these medical treatments for as long as possible!
With all of these informative articles in the June issue, I’m positive this magazine will educate you from this page to the last!

Have a wonderful summer,

Saundra