Women in Aesthetic Medicine

At Aesthetic Medicine Live, we launched our networking group, Women in Aesthetic Medicine (WiAM), with a prosecco reception in the delegate’s lounge. There, we were lucky enough to host some of our amazing founding members and ask them about their goals for the initiative.

There’s a lot of hope for collaboration between women. Kast clinic director and nurse prescriber Amy Bird is looking forward to being involved with other women in the sector: “It’s really helpful to have a group of women who understand every aspect of our lives, to bounce ideas off and ask questions, and be supportive of each other.”

This is a sentiment shared by much of the group. “The more of us there are, the more we can help propel ourselves and push ourselves forward,” says cosmetic physician Dr Sabika Karim. “We’re all good at something and we can all learn from each other.”

Aesthetics is constantly expanding and changing, with new technology and scientific innovations, as well as people joining the industry. Editor Anna Dobbie wants women entering the sector to feel endorsed by the networking group. “I hope that, in five years, when women enter the sector, they’ll know they are supported. There are women on stage as key opinion leaders. They want to see women in the positions they aspire to be in, and I think that’s what we have in the group of founders we have selected.”

The changing landscape is also something that nurse practitioner Tracey Dennison is aware of and thinks that the support the group can offer will be valuable. “There will be the ability to engage, to ask questions, to challenge opinions, or discuss research that’s coming through, or look at case studies that we can develop and work on together to push forward in our practice. So, if you’re not a part of it, you’re missing out, aren’t you?”

“There’s so much opportunity because WiAM is such a new thing,” says Web Marketing Clinic’s digital marketing strategist Alex Bugg. “We can use your opinions, your thoughts, your ideas, and take this action group to where you, as aesthetics professionals, want to see it go.” The group plans to organise surveys and other interactive content for members, so they can see potential areas of improvement and celebrate the wins of women in the industry.

One outcome the group is looking to determine from the surveys is the ratio of men to women working in the industry, to find out whether aesthetics is male dominated by representation or influenced by a patriarchal structure. Founders expressed feeling that men dominate senior positions, leaving them fatigued and frustrated. “As an aesthetic doctor, I’ve had to work twice as hard as my male counterparts,” shares Dr Karim, “I have to prove myself twice as much, just to get to the same place.”

To join the community and get involved with WiAM going forward and support women in the industry as they become the leaders of tomorrow, please scan the QR code to join our LinkedIn group.