A SCOTS business woman has been chosen to give essential training to plastic surgeons, dermatologists, nurses, dentists and doctors from around the world.
Cosmetic nurse Jackie Partridge, who has championed responsible cosmetic treatments in Scotland, is now providing her expert insights as part of a global push to raise standards in the cosmetic treatment sector.
The founder of Edinburgh’s Dermal Clinic been handpicked to be part of a four-strong panel with some of the world’s top plastic and reconstructive surgeons. Already a series of test events have been carried out, chaired by celebrity Dr Christian Jessen, from TV’s Embarrassing Bodies.
As part of that showcase she has been on stage and in front of the camera at meetings of 50-300 delegate, to demonstrate sensitive facial injection techniques and to explain how and why certain treatments should be positioned.
Jackie, who founded and runs Dermal Clinic in Morningside Edinburgh, said: “It involves presenting to my peers so it’s pretty daunting. The people who are watching this are usually surgeons, doctors, dentists and nurses.”
Founded by Jackie and husband Jarrod in 2007, Dermal Clinic celebrates its 10th anniversary next month (NOV). It has established a loyal clientele, particularly professional women aged 30-50 who juggle families and careers, often in Edinburgh’s financial sector.
She added: “When it comes to face augmentation, there are different fillers that can be used for different parts of the face and to achieve different results and these are the experts who are keen to learn as much as possible about how to do it correctly.
“I also tend to do a live injection of a treatment on camera. Usually I’m just off stage, being filmed, but still taking questions, while the delegates are watching on big screens in the main conference area.”
Jackie has campaigned for tougher regulation of who can inject facial cosmetic fillers. If not carried out properly, such procedures carry risks including blindness, facial paralysis and skin death.
Her encyclopaedic knowledge of facial treatments caught the eye of global pharmaceutical giant, Galderma, which employs 5500 people and works in 70 countries researching and developing medical treatments for skin conditions including cancer, psoriasis, acne and rosacea. It also has a thriving aesthetic division.
Now Galderma, which is owned by Nestle, has recruited her to work as part of the expert panel, which also includes a respected Swedish dermatologist, a high-profile Canadian ocular plastic surgeon and a renowned plastic surgeon from Hong Kong.
She added: “Galderma is a huge pharmacy company, so it is a massive honour to be working with the aesthetic division and a fantastic opportunity to be involved in developing best practice of nurses and what we can bring to aesthetic medicine.”
While preparing a dedicated training programme to be launched in 2018, the panel have already undertaken a number of trial events for medical professionals involved in cosmetic surgery and cosmetic treatments. Those trial panel sessions were chaired by TV’s Dr Christian.
Jackie said: “Dr Christian is a lovely guy and great to work with. He has practiced some aesthetic treatments in a small way, but as a GP his biggest area of interest and background is in the psychology of body dysmorphia and the psychology behind aesthetic treatment and medicine.”
The new panel has already presented at two major conferences in Leeds and London, each time to around 300 medical professionals. In late October, Jackie will further hone her presentation skills at a conference in Belfast – including a live injection – for 50 doctors, dentists and nurses.
Once the panel starts its work in earnest in 2018, Jackie will have a packed schedule of events in both London and Sweden with plans to reach thousands of professionals worldwide.
It’s not the first time her credentials and campaigning for better patient safety have led to such opportunities. Jackie was headhunted to help usher in new Scottish Government-led regulations in 2016.
Those require all private clinics to register with Healthcare Improvement Scotland – and Dermal Clinic was the first to register in November 2016.
The clinic has also recorded double digit growth every year. It now employs 10 people and offers state of the art cosmetic treatments from its clinic in Church Hill Place, Edinburgh.
