"Dermatologists, plastic surgeons and cosmetic surgeons are finally beginning to recognize that their patients have certain questions that may be better answered by an esthetician. A long time ago I realized that esthetic Dermatology is a kind of dermatology that patients are demanding. It represents the best that the dermatologist, cosmetic surgeon and esthetician, all working together, can offer."
- Lewis Tannenbaum, M.D., dermatologist, San Francisco

Clinical Cosmetology: A Medical Approach to Esthetic Procedures is a pioneering text in the exciting new filed of clinical cosmetology. Written as an overview of the field as well as a working manual, this comprehensive text is intended for estheticians interested in working within a medical setting, nurses who want to cross over into this new sub-medical specialty, and physicians who want to have a general understanding of clinical cosmetology.

When someone has undergone a disfigurement, "medical care is not complete until the patient has been trained to work and live with what he or she has left." says author Victoria Rayner, who based the book on her twelve years of experience as a pioneer in the filed. The text details a therapeutic camouflage program focusing on all aspects of the patient's appearance, including cosmetic procedures, facial and hair prostheses, and hairstyling, with an emphasis always on teaching patients how to use the techniques themselves.

Though Clinical Cosmetology is definitely a "how-to" text with step-by-step instructions for practitioners, it is far more than that. Throughout the book there is a strong emphasis on sensitivity, caring and the importance of communication in dealing with patients whose physical challenges and/or traumatic experiences make them especially vulnerable; in addition, a full chapter on patient management addresses the psychological aspects of working with patients as a health care provider. The goal of the camouflage therapist, says Rayner, should not only be to support patients' efforts to learn how to normalize their appearance through the use of cosmetics, but also to offer them an open forum for personal discovery -- an opportunity to accept what has happened to them and to re-create their sense of identity.

"Essentially the book is about giving control back to patients, about letting them experiment and get in touch with themselves," says Rayner.

A Comprehensive Approach

The scope Clinical Cosmetology is both broad and deep. Much of the content is based on Rayner's personal experiences and the detailed journals she kept over the years, but it is liberally supplemented with chapters, introductions and commentaries by dermatologists, psychiatrists and psychologists, social workers and other experts. The entire chapter on working with disfigured children, for example, was written by a child psychologist, and discusses not only how to deal with the child's wishes and needs but those of the parents as well.

Separate chapters address broad subjects such as color; techniques of corrective makeup and cosmetic therapy, and the differences between them (with drawings and diagrams that can be reproduced for patients); materials and equipment (complete with lists of sources and an architect's "to-scale" rendering of an ideal treatment room); and Micropigmentation/permanent cosmetics.

Detailed chapters are also devoted to the special camouflage needs of patients with dermatological conditions (psoriasis, acne, rosacea, alopecia, vitiligo, etc.); burns (skin grafts and unwanted hair removal, special skin care needs, recreation of features such as freckles and beard stubble, etc.); plastic surgery; cancer (hair replacement alternatives such as synthetic and natural wigs, hair extensions, head wraps and scarves, artificial eyelashes, etc.); and AIDS. Rayner is especially proud of her chapter on teaching adaptive grooming and makeup techniques to the blind and visually impaired.

Throughout the text there is an emphasis on providing camouflage therapists with the skills necessary to work in a medical setting. The importance of proper hygienic and sanitary procedures is strongly stressed. One chapter is devoted to standard procedures for documentation and record keeping. "As part of the medical team, we need to know about what goes into patients' records, about sharing patient information, confidentiality, reports and consent forms, obtaining a patient's medical history, medical terminology and charting terms, and photography to document cosmetic results," says Rayner.

In addition, chapters on medical conditions include not only information on the causes, symptoms and treatment of the disease or condition, but "discussion of what it's like to be burned, to be blind, to have cancer, to have AIDS," says Rayner. She discusses listening skills and interpreting patients' body language, and stresses the importance, in both speech and actions, of putting the patient before his or her condition ("a person with a disability" rather than "a disabled person").

"Maintaining the dignity of the individual is vital," says Rayner. "Working successfully with patients who have been disfigured requires a great deal of empathy and compassion."

For additional information, please email us or contact us at (415) 398-6013 and provide us with your name and telephone number. An admissions counselor will contact you to personally discuss your particular educational and career objectives.