Dr Puroshini Pather is a Hair Transplant Surgeon at Treatment Rooms London. She looks at ways to make the hair loss treatment experience more personalised and patient-centred.
The most important aspect of medicine is patients, not outcomes.
Hair transplant surgery is about looking beyond the scalp and understanding the person the hair belongs to. The connection between hair loss and overall wellbeing run deeper than the skin.
Patient-centred care is not a new, ground-breaking idea. But for the hair industry specifically, it’s something we all must play our part in championing.
The personal and the physical
There is so much that goes into hair loss.
While we cannot deny the physical transformation that a good hair transplant can bring, understanding the patient’s journey and endurance is key to a real, satisfying result.
Hair loss has long been tied to identity, confidence and welfare, but many patients experience the impacts of hair loss in a myriad of other ways. Our perception of self stems from our environment, our genetics, our own situations and the situations around us, which is why it’s so important to take the time to really understand individual motivations. Personality, motivations, background and culture; these varieties go a very long way in understanding what the patient is truly looking for, as well as the best way to support them on their hair restoration journey.
To perform hair transplant surgery is to truly understand your patients, so that the experience can be tailored to preference.
For example, a simple yet powerful way our clinic tailors to patients and promotes a calm atmosphere is through curated playlists for each patient to help them feel more comfortable during the procedure. This in turn calms the nervous system, lowers blood pressure, lowers cortisol and makes the experience memorable for the right reasons.
A journey that goes beyond the surgery day
Holistic care in the hair industry means excelling at both pre- and post-operative care. At The Treatment Rooms London we specialise in entirely surgeon-led care, meaning that patients are operated on by their dedicated surgeon (and not an assistant) throughout their entire journey, from the initial consultation, the examinations, the surgical day itself, and for years into the post-operative period. We encourage our patients, as well as future patients, to think about not only the importance of the surgery, but the collaborative all-encompassing package that ensures they are safe and well looked after.
The why
Patients often want to know the why behind their hair loss.
While it is often hereditary, sometimes there is cause for further medical concern, and it is important our patients understand the difference. We go beyond a ‘need-to-know’ basis and help to make the hair restoration world more easily understood, accessible and thought-provoking. Every patient deserves to feel confident in their chosen clinic; to feel that they have made a well-informed decision for their own personal health. Even if this decision becomes medical investigation rather than surgical intervention, we work hard to make sure patients feel educated and ready to face whatever next steps await them along their hair journey.
Success moves beyond revenue
Holistic care additionally refers to how we respond and evaluate success. Of course, good quality outcomes and patient satisfaction are key elements; however, success can also be measured in the wider societal attitudes of our industry, and how we are able to reduce the stigma around hair transplants.
With time and education, we want to move our industry forward, where people who have suffered from hair loss can feel more confident and step forward into the world around them.
Holistic care is about going above and beyond what is required. Our patients must always, and will always, come first. It is entirely possible to practice ethically-sound, patient-centred care whilst running a profit-based clinic, and championing for education over sales paves the way for all future healthcare leaders looking to make a splash for the good of the people.
