Ethics and Education in Aesthetics
Aesthetics is a branch of medicine. The beauty and glam aside, it is still a medical specialty.
Aesthetic medicine is a specialty that takes additional trainings and continued education, as the field is ever evolving with new trends, techniques and products. It is important to stay up to date on the aforementioned, to provide the safest and most effective, beautiful results.
Aesthetic medicine is not a side gig, a side hustle. To be the best and practice most safely, this is just like anything, it must be done regularly and one must be able to evaluate many different anatomical and psychological differences that make someone a good vs poor candidate for any particular treatment.
I urge all patients to look into your provider and ensure they have taken more than a weekend class (or 2) before working in this field.
Find someone who does continued education often and who sees and treats patients multiple times a week.
Not all providers take the same path to learning and mastering aesthetic medicine.
Here was my path:
I was working as a personal trainer, with intentions to open my own gym so I was also pursuing a degree in Business and obtained an AA in Business Administration.
During this time, I had to take some basic sciences which I elected to take anatomy and I fell in love, so I then acquired my AA in chemistry and in Biology. I received a scholarship for my biology studies and was able to complete my B.S. in Biology at University of California Irvine. While completing my B.S. I also worked as an EMT and volunteered in an AIDS clinic ( Sculptra® was originally used for patients with AIDS before making its’ way into the aesthetic medicine world). I also was a volunteer for the American Red Cross and volunteered in several hospital units.
I was accepted into multiple Physician Assistant programs across the country and I chose to study in Boston where I complete my Master of Physician Assistant Studies at MCPHS and completed my human anatomy and cadaver course at Harvard Medical School.
I did rotations in all fields of medicine in some of the top countries in the world.
I received a job offer, before graduation, after having completed a 6 week rotation in a plastic surgery practice in Southern CA. I worked at this practice for about 3.5 years.
I relocated to Florida and worked in 2 medspas where I continued to master my skillset and build relationships with local injectors, reps and other individuals in the industry for another 2.5 years. I finally opened my own clinic in October of 2022 in the beautiful downtown Sarasota area.
I believe that a background and base of knowledge gained through working in the plastic surgery specialty and having hands-on experience in performing facelifts, eyelifts, neck lifts and body procedures, gives a much more in-depth appreciation and knowledge of anatomy that I feel is irreplaceable in what I do know a full time injector and business owner.
Since starting in this field in 2017 I have participated in continued education from Beverly Hills and many cities throughout California, Miami, Tampa , Boca and the Keys, Las Vegas, Nashville, Monaco(France) and more. I also intend on participating in a hands-on training with Julie Horne ( the queen of lips) in Oslo, Norway, this winter.
Personally, I attend conferences, webinars, in-person trainings, cadaver labs, networking and educational dinners, averaging about 200 hours per year, every year. This is expensive and it is an investment, but that is what it takes to be the best and to be safe.
I will never attempt a treatment or use a product I have not been thoroughly trained in and will never recommend or perform a procedure when someone does not need that specific treatment. I believe in educating my patients to understand why we do and don’t do particular treatments and why we use certain products to meet their aesthetic goals, within any given budget.
I believe if you run an ethical business and practice, the financial part takes care of itself. I am here to guide you and help you be the best, most confident version of you!
In addition, I choose to maintain my general medicine board certification as a PA- which requires me to take an extensive exam every 10 years on topics ranging from cardiology, neurology, OBGYN, emergency medicine, pediatrics, orthopedics, dermatology, rheumatology, infectious disease, hematology, urology and nephrology.
I am currently in the process of this board exam!
Continued education helps understand treatment options, risks, side effects and how to manage these. Networking with other providers in the field who you can collaborate with also helps in sharing personal experiences and outcomes. Community over competition is a great mentality we have here in Sarasota.
If you’re ready to book a consult or treatment, use the booking link: https://www.vagaro.com/sunkyssedinjector/book-now
If you have any additional questions, please email me at sunkyssedinjectorcrystal@gmail.com and follow me on Instagram for updates on my practice and bookings.
Crystal Osborn, PA-C
Owner at Sunkyssed Injector
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