Out and about: Galderma Aesthetics Academy Annual Conference
Galderma held the 15th Galderma Aesthetics Academy Annual Conference (GAA-AC 2018) at the Royal College of General Practitioners, London.
The title of this year’s Annual Conference was ‘Au Naturel’ and attending healthcare professionals were encouraged to take a fresh look at their patients to identify and fully understand the differences in both anatomy and desired outcomes across the different generations. As well as providing a networking platform, attendees benefited from presentations, lectures and live demonstrations which provided key insights into how to achieve the best results with the Restylane portfolio.
Commenting on why the GAA-AC is so important to healthcare professionals, Sharon Bennett, Chair of the BACN said: “Galderma’s range of Restylane products is the largest portfolio of hyaluronic acid fillers – often we will use a lot of different products in one treatment programme. The lectures and live demonstrations allow experts to upskill injectors by educating on what the products are made of and how they work, as well as providing guidance on product selection.”
The exclusive and interactive conference was chaired by Professor Syed Haq and supported by Galderma’s nationally and internationally recognised multidisciplinary faculty. Professor Haq opened the conference with an overview of the different technologies used in the Restylane portfolio; the broadest range of hyaluronic acid treatments which has been created to suit individual needs, while helping patients achieve natural looking results.
“The key learning is that you’ve always got two choices for each area. You’ve got the NASHA range if it’s a younger patient with better skin quality, or the OBT range if it’s an older patient with thinner skin,” commented Dr Harry Singh, Dental Surgeon and Aesthetic Practitioner. “But you can still treat the same area, so it’s not ‘choose this or choose that’, it’s that you choose the most suitable product for each area depending on the skin quality or the patient expectations.”
Focusing on how to treat millennials, Dr Ravi Jain discussed how this age group differ from other generations which, in part, is due to their increased online presence, and explained how to tailor communications for millennials and why a good consultation is so important. Interestingly he noted that society has transitioned from those looking for ‘15 minutes of fame’ to those looking to ‘broadcast’ themselves using social media.
Lectures were interspersed with live patient demonstrations where experts shared their tips and techniques. Sharon Bennett, Dr Kuldeep Minocha and Professor Bob Khanna treated patients using a selection of products from the Restylane range to create individualised looks which were tailored to each patient’s aspirations.
Dr Kuldeep Minocha presented on the facets of natural beauty and attractiveness, during which he emphasised that the first consultation that a patient receives is the most important. Professor Bob Khanna spoke about how to create the perfect profile and highlighted the importance of assessing the profile of a patient before assessing the facial view.
From a dermatologist’s perspective, Dr Sandeep Cliff delivered a captivating presentation on how best to manage skin health. He highlighted that a holistic integrated approach, combining key products with proven aesthetic treatments, can help aesthetic practitioners improve their approach to managing skin quality. He also presented several dermatological case studies, reaching out to the audience for assistance in diagnosing each common skin complaint.
Galderma aims to provide innovative aesthetic education founded on extensive, evidence-based medicine that delivers safe, ethical training by a distinguished multi-disciplinary team. Toby Cooper, Head of Medical Solutions, Galderma UK, commented “This group of healthcare professionals get an opportunity to find out what is at the cutting edge of the industry. The conference is also a great networking opportunity for them to talk to each other on a peer to peer basis. They will all be very experienced and they will have large busy practices so they don’t get the opportunity to come out very often and talk to each other. So it’s good for them from a networking experience and also for them to see what we’re doing at Galderma.”
The conference concluded with a panel discussion which provided attendees with the opportunity to ask the speakers questions regarding content presented in the sessions as well as any questions they had relating to their own practice.
The GAA-AC is part of the Galderma educational platform which provides award winning training programmes to ensure a commitment to growing a responsible aesthetic community. Galderma’s educational platform also includes the ‘Train the Trainer’ programme – created for doctors, nurses and dentists, by doctors, nurses and dentists – using KOLs in the aesthetic industry to train others to the best of their ability, masterclasses for intermediate and advanced aesthetic practitioners, anatomy master classes, and facial assessment and consultation training through Galderma’s Harmony programme.
