The staff at EnRich understand that beauty isn’t a one-size-fits-all affair and that every face needs to keep its character.
“Look at Cindy Crawford,” says Dr Michael Rich, known to his staff as ‘the Godfather of Dermatology’. “She could have got rid of her mole, but it has become her signature. Barbra Streisand could have fixed her nose, but she didn’t.”
This method of tailoring to a client’s needs – including taking their budget and downtime availability into account – is what keeps customers coming back for cosmetic surgery and skin treatment decade after decade.
In fact, Dr Rich has been working from this Armadale clinic for 30 years. Back when he opened, it was the first laser centre in Melbourne. Now it’s home to the largest collection of lasers in Victoria and the most up-to-the-minute technology.
He’s something of a beloved character in the building. All staff are involved in weekly meetings and are trained across the spectrum, and any of them can reel off (with cheeky grin) his well-worn analogies about walls and jam (best you ask him yourself). “It’s a real family feel,” says Dr Jodie Silleri, a GP who also works as a cosmetic physician at the centre. Dr Rich’s psychiatrist wife even has a practice here.
Here’s an example of the centre’s multimodal approach: someone with deep lines around their lips might be offered laser to smooth the skin, filler to plump it and Botox to prevent further damage. “Blind Freddy can spot a bad lip job,” says Silleri. “It’s an area that can go so wrong if it’s not done properly.”
Unsurprisingly, patients who have fallen victim to bad procedures elsewhere are frequently referred to EnRich to be skillfully fixed up again. Similarly, people wishing to remove their tattoos can take advantage of the two dedicated lasers here that target specific colours.
Referrals:
While many clients visit the centre to keep ahead in a competitive job market in which nobody can afford to grow old, the team cater to serious medical problems, too.
Whether you require spider vein or blood vessel removal, EnRich receives referrals from other dermatologists and doctors. Dr Rich is on the board of the Skin Cancer Foundation of Australia and frequently performs melanoma procedures at the Alfred.
Got an embarrassing problem? The team can cover everything from vaginal surgery, to sweat reduction and man boobs.
Cosmetic surgery:
Dr Rich has been performing liposuction here for 20 years, and is your go-to guy for cellulite treatment, spot fat reduction, liposuction, fat transfer and contouring. (For non-invasive cellulite treatment, there’s Acoustic Wave Therapy, which Madonna and Kim Kardashian are fans of.)
Skin blemishes:
Whatever ails you, there will likely be a variety of options made available. If you have an acne complaint you could be prescribed the birth control pill if it’s a hormone imbalance, or Cetaphil as a daily wash, or Neostrada as a pore unblocker.
Filler:
What’s dermal filler for? It has multiple uses. It can give the skin a youthful, plumper look, fill out the gaunt hollows under our cheeks and in our tear troughs, and eradicates lines.
For instance, a ‘Nike tick’ of gel in each cheek will add volume, which in turn lifts the nasolabial folds between the corners of the nose and mouth. They can be further softened by a technique called ferning in the lines themselves.
The team at EnRich have ten different types of filler with which to tackle specific areas of your face. A favourite combination would be Perlane in the cheeks and Restylane in the tear troughs. These are a non-animal source of hyaluronic acid, which is biodegradable and so breaks down naturally over time. And they only ever use temporary filler – you can see the results of permanent filler on many a Best Botched Celebrity Faces show. Temporary filler can be dissolved with a further injection. And the cost? Three mls – enough to do your cheeks, tear troughs and any other dips in your face – would set you back $1800.
PRP treatment:
Properly known as Platelet Rich Plasma Treatment, this uses ingredients from your own extracted blood plasma (which are separated in a centrifuge machine) to rejuvenate collagen elsewhere in your body. It can be used to treat injuries – for instance, St Kilda captain Nick Riewoldt has injections into his left knee – or cosmetically, i.e. for facial rejuvenation or even to prevent hair loss.
And if you think that’s hi-tech, you can be assured that whatever advancements in dermatology and cosmetic surgery are dreamed up next, the crew at EnRich will be the first to hear about them.