gratifying to be able to offer these services and further that relationship, which breeds additional referrals.
Are there any training opportunities? NVB: There are training opportunities out there, but I think that we need our own training. That’s why I’ve been thinking about setting up some IR-specific training courses with Dr. Chamsuddin. We can use our combined 40 years of experience working as radiologists and aesthetic physicians who have successfully added cosmetic IR to our existing practices. We’ve learned so much in the past decades and have a unique replicable blueprint that can be utilized by radiologists without having to suffer through the many trials and errors that we did. There would really be a lot of time and money saved in the process.
I just want to tell everyone to go for it. There’s a lot of fun to be had, patients to help and revenue to be earned. Your patients will love and thank you for it.
microneedling, radiofrequency treatments, tightening and body contouring with lasers, chemical peels and vaginal rejuvenation. The new frontier is regenerative medicine with a lot of new treatments coming into the fold such as platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections, exosomes and stem cells, which are very powerful tools for antiaging.
What aspects of cosmetic IR would you say are more approachable for IRs who are interested to learn? What aspects do you think would be more challenging? NVB: It depends on the setup they’re working in. If you’re in an outpatient center that is already doing invasive procedures, then you have a good
38 IRQ | SPRING 2023
opportunity for a number of different cosmetic procedures. PRP injections for hair restoration, joint and tendon repair or sexual wellness, vein treatments and gentle lasers require more medical knowledge, but are fairly accessible to learn and introduce to existing clinic patients. From there, Botox injections and other fillers and aesthetician services can be added.
What are the benefits of learning cosmetic IR procedures? NVB: Strictly financially, it’s nice to have some independence from insurance companies because we’ve all experienced the sudden cuts. It’s nice to have that completely independent cash flow base that you can rely on to weather the storm. Patients also really enjoy these procedures. It’s very
What would that specialized training ideally look like? NVB: I would start with a survey to see what radiologists’ interests and current practice setups are like. A great place to start is injectables like fillers and Botox and PRP because of the low overhead. A lot of people bury themselves by purchasing fancy laser devices without market research or understanding of how to make them profitable. Plus, we can teach you how to plan your future purchases carefully and how to negotiate the contracts with laser companies successfully.
Another avenue is hiring and training providers who can offer many cosmetic services to patients in a med- spa environment under radiologists’ direct supervision. The laws for this setting are different in states and need to be researched.
What recommendations do you have for IRs interested in getting involved? NVB: Having navigated this long road the hard way, it’s important to focus on the IR community itself and try to establish our own cosmetic association and training. But overall, I just want to tell everyone to go for it. There’s a lot of fun to be had, patients to help and revenue to be earned. Your patients will love and thank you for it.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40
