Bridging aesthetics and medicine

Dr Anna Hemming tells editor Anna Dobbie how she has incorporated her military experience and work for the Royal family into Thames Skin Clinic

The design and layout of Thames Skin Clinic tell the story of Dr Anna Hemming’s personal and professional journey of resilience, creativity, and unwavering determination.

Even the rooms in her clinic are named after different key locations in her life, from‘Chicago’, where her first daughter was born, to ‘Tokoriki’, an island in Fiji where she spent eight months running a dive survey team. She also captained her boat club, racing to a win at ‘Henley’. Dr Hemming’s first army officers’ headquarters was in ‘Pimlico’ (she was an officer in the Royal Army Medical Corps), which is also a silent nod to her time as a GP at Buckingham Palace.

PERFECT PREMISES

It took Dr Hemming six months of searching to find the perfect premises. Even though the building, previously office space, was empty and run down, she could see that it held immense potential.

“It was pretty dilapidated, and just four big rooms,” she says. “I thought, ‘If we can get the change of use implemented by the council and make it into a D1 medical clinic, we can pull the whole thing apart!’ It took about five months for the change of use permission to come through. Then, all the walls came down, and the internal fabrication of the building came out; the wires, the plumbing, everything’s new.” However, just as the clinic was set to open its doors, the world was plunged into lockdown by the global pandemic. It was a setback that could have derailed Dr Hemming’s plans, but she refused to be deterred. Instead, she used the time to reassess, adapt, and prepare for the future.

“I’d already found myself an amazing therapist. She started in February, then on March 20, only two weeks after our opening event, we closed. It was a bit mind-blowing.”

With resilience and determination, Thames Skin Clinic weathered the storm and emerged stronger than ever. Throughout the lockdown period, Dr Hemming remained focused on her patients’ well-being. Despite the restrictions, she found innovative ways to provide care, offering virtual consultations and skincare products to support her clients.

“I had my pre-existing patients, so at that point, Iwas working hard to set up online consultations, home treatment plans, new facials using their skincare products and picking up new patients from across the UK whose clinics had turned off the phone and were not answering emails. Iwas trying to keep positive with trickles of income, while home schooling, moving house and renovating. Iwas juggling a lot of balls!

“My two small children were in the first wave of kids to go back to school, at the start of June, which meant that I had some time during the day. Medical treatments could take place, so I started to see patients in-clinic for mole and lesion checks and removals. By August, when aesthetic treatments could recommence, relaunching the clinic with my therapist was like starting all over again. Before opening the doors here, I had 300 patients of my own and we now have around 2,800.”

REFINED SPECIALISMS

Over the last four years, the clinic has refined its specialisms into four areas: acne, rosacea, pigmentation, and anti-ageing, including scarring and skin tightening. Dr Hemming also helps patients with other concerns including weight management, for which the clinic is CQC registered, body contouring, hair removal and lesion removal. Discussing the clinic’s specialisms, Dr Hemming said “Acne can affect anyone, young or old, from those struggling with congestion, oily skin, spots, pustules or cysts. I have developed acne protocols and an amazing acne skin suite of treatments, to stabilise acne. We are one of the first clinics outside the US to have Cutera’s new AviClear laser, which complements our acne skin suite perfectly. Our skin suite continues to support acne patients after resolving spots with redness, veins, pigmentation, and scarring treatments.

“Our rosacea treatments involve skincare and our Cutera Excel V+ laser resolves redness and veins from facials. Laser genesis treatments can also help manage ongoing rosacea symptoms.

“The third specialism is pigmentation. From an acne patient’s perspective, we have already stabilised their active spots, targeting and down regulated the oil glands with AviClear and now we can resolve the post-inflammatory pigmentation left behind. Of couse, we treat all types of pigmentation on all skin types with skincare, topical medication, laser treatment and occasionally with the side effects of polynucleotides, microneedling and Cutera’s Secret Pro CO2 laser treatment.

“The fourth area that we do incredibly well is natural-looking anti-ageing, from skin restoration, right the way through to face-lifting injectables. By using small tweaks in multiple anatomical layers, we deliver rejuvenation and restoration where it is needed to get the best, natural-looking results. We’ve also got body suites where we do radiofrequency, body treatments and muscle toning, sculpting the body, as well as weight management using injectables and diet plans. Other treatments include mole removals, mole screening, minor cyst removals – things that patients cannot find through the NHS anymore because it’s deemed cosmetic. We don’t have a private hospital in the borough and people don’t want to go to Harley Street.” So, why did Dr Hemming choose her Twickenham location, just outside central London?

“I didn’t want my clinic to be on a high street. My vision was a tranquil, private clinic, tucked away yet near the heart of everything. Here, we have parking outside, enabling patients to drive to us from all over the South, from Kent to Birmingham. The clinic is a 12-minute drive from the M25. We often have patients coming out of central London, and we have a large cohort from North London, too. In the beginning, I thought I wanted to be in central London. I’m a mum of two small children and I wanted to be involved in their lives, so I chose to be able to cycle my kids to school and get to clinic on time. Being in Twickenham makes sense. For me, being one of the best aesthetic doctors is so important, but being outside central London, that’s quite hard to achieve. “

Central to Thames Skin Clinic’s success is Dr Hemming’s unique approach to aesthetics. Drawing on her medical background and artistic flair, she offers a range of treatments designed to enhance natural beauty and inspire confidence. From acne treatment to anti-ageing procedures, every service is tailored to meet the individual needs of her patients.

“The first day that I held a syringe of filler was at a Wigmore training course about 15 years ago. I didn’t realise, but some of ‘the powers that be’ at the time were watching us, and I got a tap on my shoulder and a gentleman said to me, ‘What are you doing afterwards? Can I borrow you?’ This man was David Hicks, and he’d been watching me inject. He said,’ Anna, I want you to inject my filler’. Frankly, that was rather brave because the only person I’d put filler into at this point was the model in the room, so I asked, ‘Are you sure?’ He said, ‘Yes, I’ve seen you do it, you’re a complete natural’. For me, holding a syringe of filler was not a big deal at all. I’ve got anatomy and medical degrees, so I understand how the body works. It felt like a natural extension of my hands and Ifind it easy to see in 3D.

“I’m a visual person. When I did GCSE Art, people were drawing these beautiful 2D pictures, and they were really good, but I could never do that. I’d take my picture and create them into something sculptural.”

MILITARY BACKGROUND

In addition to her medical expertise, Dr Hemming’s military background has played a significant role in shaping her approach to aesthetics. Her time in the army taught her the importance of discipline, organisation, and teamwork.

“This may sound a bit weird, but I don’t think the experience changed me at all. When I went into the army, I’d been a rower for 12 years, I’d travelled on my own, I’d been hit by cars – I’m the ball that keeps bouncing back, there’s no getting rid of me. But the army did teach me about incredible teamwork. When disaster strikes and the worst-case scenario happens, there’s a core and a method behind everything that you can put together. Organisation is very key and that basis of structure and training is brilliant.

“I remember speaking at Aesthetic Medicine North in 2015, the first time I had spoken on stage at an aesthetic conference, and I asked David Hicks, who was running the scientific programme at the time, why he had chosen me. He said, ’Anna, you know what to do if a bomb goes off. This will be a piece of cake!’

“I look back at my childhood and I was the shyest person ever. If anyone had asked me to speak on stage in a school assembly, I’d have gone bright red and started shaking, but as soon as I’d methodically gone through it all in my mind, I thought, ‘Yeah, what is the worst thing that can happen? I know my stuff really well!’ I’ve learned not to worry, I don’t worry unnecessarily about anything. I focus on the benefits and have a very steady approach to speaking, media and TV work. Rather than wasting time worrying, I use my time productively. There are always hiccups, but a sensible approach helps to get through any problems without panicking about them.”

COMMITMENT TO INCLUSIVITY

One of the clinic’s defining features is its commitment to inclusivity. Dr Hemming believes in creating a welcoming environment where everyone feels valued and understood, offering personalised treatments for individuals of all ages and backgrounds, and an open environment where every voice is listened to and heard.

“It’s about being open and listening to people and their needs. I think if you do that properly, then you’re going to nail it. I’ve had a nervous, male patient in his sixties come, wanting a line treated, and what you find by listening over a period, is that this person wants a line treated to look more feminine because they wear women’s clothes in their social time. We’re one of the only places they feel confident to talk about their life. You can drive up to the clinic and nobody knows where you’re going necessarily. For some patients, that’s very important.

“The other thing is that all our treatments look natural, so if people don’t want others to know, they can leave our clinic feeling comfortable that nobody would know what they had done, they just look healthy and refreshed.”

Beyond her professional achievements, Dr Hemming is deeply committed to giving back to her community. As a member of our Women in Aesthetic Medicine board, she works tirelessly to support initiatives that promote inclusivity and empowerment.

Looking at consultations, Dr Hemming thinks that everyone is becoming more aware of neurodiversity and how people feel: “We’ve picked up people who’ve been abused as young adults and children who haven’t quite got through it all and, because of that, linked them into counselling. Seeing them again, maybe a year later, they have changed everything about their life. They come back after counselling to treat the frown line, or concern they originally came to me about, but as a completely different person.”

SPELLING OUT SUCCESS

As Dr Hemming reflects on her journey, she is filled with gratitude for the opportunities that have shaped her path. From her early days as a rower to her current role as a leading aesthetic practitioner, she has remained true to her six core values:

Confidence – “We install confidence in patients and are confident in what we do.”

Exceptional – “We are focused on exceptional customer journeys and results.”

Genuine – “It is in our nature, advice and our ability to deliver our results.”

Natural – “We provide only natural-looking treatment results and confidence in skin.”

Personal – “We offer a very personal service to all our patients.”

Passionate – “We absolutely love what we do, and I believe why we do it very well. We want our patients to be passionate about their treatments and skip through our door!”

Alongside her core values Dr Hemming has detailed her Thames consultation principles, which spell out T-H-A-M-E-S and is the philosophy the whole team works by.

Through Dr Hemming’s unique blend of medical expertise, artistic flair, and military precision, she continues to inspire confidence and empower individuals to embrace their natural beauty.