"I Only Want to Bring the Best Science to My Patients": Why this Renowned Dermatologist Chose EVERESSE

Dr. Bertha Baum is a board-certified dermatologist and founder of Aventura Dermatology in Aventura, Florida. Born in Miami, raised in Colombia, and educated and trained in the U.S., Dr. Baum is an internationally renowned cosmetic dermatologist frequently interviewed in both English- and Spanish-speaking media. She opened her Aventura location four and a half years ago, offering boutique care focused on cosmetic treatments.

Although Dr. Baum only added EVERESSE monopolar radiofrequency to her practice a few months ago, it has already become a success both in terms of patient satisfaction and business returns. In this exclusive interview, we sit down with Dr. Baum to learn more about her approach to aesthetics, why she decided to bring on the EVERESSE, her love of stacking treatments, and the impact she’s seeing on her practice.

Cosmetic Dermatology Meets Boutique Care

Q: Thank you for sitting down with us, Dr. Baum. Can you tell us a bit more about your practice?  

Dr. Baum: I’m a board-certified dermatologist and have been local to the Miami area for 28 years. I previously ran a practice in Hallandale and also opened a location in Doral, but I’ve always wanted to open a practice in Aventura that offered boutique style care. So about four and a half years ago, Aventura Dermatology was born. At this practice, my goal is to offer my patients the best care and white glove service, as well as the best treatment options, including devices. I teach two residency programs as well, so it’s always been important to me to stay up to date on what technologies and treatments are out there – for both my students and my patients.

We’re very fortunate to have extremely loyal, wonderful patients who have been with us since the beginning. Currently, about 90% of what I do is cosmetic, but I also offer clinical care as well. We have a great and growing team, including a clinical coordinator and a new cosmetic coordinator. I truly believe in educating and training the entire staff, not just the providers. Our entire office is fully trained from the front desk to the backend; every person on staff knows about all the procedures that we offer, and this plays a big role in providing great service for our patients.

Beyond the trends: Choosing the best technology

Q: When you brought on the EVERESSE, were you considering any other monopolar RF devices at the time? 

Dr. Baum: Fortunately and unfortunately, social media can often drive patient interest and what they ask about. So I originally started looking into another device because there was some buzz going around at the time, and I wanted to see if it was just a trend or good science. Bringing the best technology is important to me; regardless of what people are saying on social media, I’m very careful about what I can back up and what I trust in terms of skincare and technology, and I only want to bring what I believe is good science to my office.

I tried out and demo-ed the different monopolar RF devices and attended different conferences. This led to my decision to bring on the EVERESSE. It had stronger science behind it than the other devices, and it was a more pleasant experience for patients – all the while delivering great results. The EVERESSE matched everything we were looking for.

Q: Was the lack of downtime a factor for you when deciding to bring on the EVERESSE?

Dr. Baum: The lack of downtime is huge, and this has really changed in the last five to six years. Patients used to be more accepting of downtime, but now they’re not as tolerant. What’s great is that technology has advanced so much that you can get great outcomes with very little downtime. And with the EVERESSE, you get zero downtime, which is wonderful.

I do see it as a red carpet treatment; we can perform it the night or day before an event, and so far we haven’t experienced any issues with swelling or redness. But in general, I recommend two treatments spaced out two months apart, we’re seeing great results with that timing.

Q: Are there any trends you’re seeing in your market that EVERESSE aligns with?

Dr. Baum: As a trend, we’re seeing more pushback on fillers. And I do think it can be partially attributed to misinformation about fillers out there. I love fillers and still use them, but it’s helpful to have other alternatives for patients who are a bit uncertain about them. We’re offering more devices like the EVERESSE and more biostimulators. It’s a trend we’re seeing that patients are looking for devices now more than ever.  

Expansive Applications & Combination Potential

Q: Who do you think is an ideal patient for EVERESSE?

Dr. Baum: Pretty much anyone over the age of 30-35 looking for collagen boosting is a candidate for EVERESSE. I can also pair it up with biostimulators or patients coming in for simple procedures like hydro facials. Whenever the patient asks me, “what else can I do?”, I think this is a great option. If you have a patient that’s using Botox for a little lift but want something else for the eye area, or someone who’s starting to notice a little jowling and we’ve already done Sculptra or Radiesse, I think EVERESSE is a great add-on.

The EVERESSE is also great for the body. We’re seeing great tightening effects on the arms and abdomen, especially for my GLP-1 patients who have lost a lot of weight and start to notice that they need some tightening in those areas. It’s a device with a lot of applications for a lot of different people.

Q:  We know you love to combine treatments. Tell us a bit more about what you’re combining with EVERESSE.  

Dr. Baum: I love to stack treatments, and EVERESSE is a great device for stacking. I wouldn’t do a superficial filler on the same day as EVERESSE since that’s going to dissolve the filler, but I have no problem adding EVERESSE a few weeks later to someone who’s had filler. On the same day, I’ll do an IPL on a patient then move onto monopolar RF. I can also combine biostimulators with EVERESSE on the same day.

And of course, we often combine it with laser resurfacing. I do have to explain to the patient that they’ll have a little downtime with the laser, but you can absolutely do EVERESSE then laser on top. And once you open those micro channels with the laser, you can also add laser-assisted drug delivery, whether that’s exosomes, PDRN, or anything along those lines.

Stacking treatments is here to stay. We’re already seeing studies that show that stacking treatments in one visit can lead to a better outcome than performing those treatments on separate visits, and I wouldn’t be surprised if we see more clinical support for that coming out soon.

A Great Return on Investment

Q: How many treatments do you perform on average?

Dr. Baum: We perform around 30-40 treatments a month. Lately, we can perform up to 3-4 EVERESSE treatments a day on our busy days.  

Q: We’re thrilled to hear about the success you’ve achieved in such a short period. Did you do anything specific to launch the device to your patient base? 

Dr. Baum: It’s funny you asked! We used to do so many events at our old location in Hallandale, but we’ve been so busy since we opened the Aventura practice that we did our “grand opening” eight months after we opened. We didn’t do our first event until two months ago in June, and it was around the time that we got the EVERESSE. We had 150 people show up, and we demo-ed the EVERESSE. So many people who had prepaid for the event ended up choosing the EVERESSE treatment. Our provider Keyla has been booked with EVERESSE back-to-back for the two months since. Demo-ing is a great way to showcase this device, and patients can see right away that it’s not painful.  

Q: If you’re talking to another provider who’s considering EVERESSE, what would you tell them?

Dr. Baum: Return on investment is very important when you own a practice. And every practice is different, but if you have a practice that is somewhat cosmetic, and your patients are asking you what can I do for tightening or what else do you offer besides injectables, EVERESSE is a great add on. There’s no downtime, no pain – these are the things patients are really looking for. And most importantly, it’s a great technology backed by science.

From a business perspective, the disposables are very affordable, and this is important to consider in the broader scope of your investment. There are some devices that are too expensive to run, which can damage your returns. If you’re a busy practice, you can get your return on investment [on EVERESSE] in 3-6 months. There’s a need out there for treatments like this and patients are looking for it, and if you’re not going to offer it, your patients will go to your competitors.

Follow Dr. Bertha Baum @drberthabaum @aventuradermatology