The Difference between Day Spas and Medical Spas

Before elaborating on the difference between day spas and medical spas, I'd like too tell you about a couple of reasons why the average person seeks out spa services. 

 

The main goal for most people is to enjoy a relaxing day of personal pampering. We all lead busy and stressful lives and the chance to have a team of professionals catering to our every need is appealing. 

 

But many of us are also looking for services that improve the way we look and feel, make a tired complexion shine, erasing the ever-present worry lines for a while, flushing toxins from the body, and of course, loosening up aching muscles and releasing stored tension. 

 

In short, we want an experience that allows us to indulge and forget our worries for a while, as well as come out looking and feeling like a million bucks. So the only real question is whether a day spa or a medical spa is just what the doctor ordered. 

 

Here are a couple of noteworthy differences that will help you to decide.



For starters, these two types of spas are likely to offer vastly different services, owing to the fact that medical spas must have a supervising physician on staff for the various procedures that are performed on site. 

 

While day spas tend to employ certified professionals such as massage therapists, aestheticians, and beauticians for their menu of services, medical spas cater to a different crowd. Most do not offer massages and facials, but instead provide treatments like injections of Botox and other fillers, along with other dermatological procedures. 

 

While medical spas can certainly include a slew of treatments found at day spas, including massages, facials, waxing (and other types of hair removal), manicures and pedicures, and so on, they also include out-patient medical procedures like injections, peels, and in some cases, plastic surgery procedures like liposuction; in other words, treatments that can only be performed by a qualified medical professional (or under the supervision of one).



So if you're just looking for standard spa services, a day spa is likely a better bet. But if you're interested in medical procedures you need to seek out a location that is staffed by qualified professionals. 

 

And along these lines, it pays to do your homework. Medi-spas seem to be a dime a dozen these days, and the reason is that there are pretty loose guidelines pertaining to the type of medical professionals that may oversee such facilities. 

 

While you might expect to receive Botox and other treatments under the supervision of a dermatologist, it turns out that any type of physician is eligible to take on this role, from a cosmetic surgeon to an OB/GYN. 

 

Even nurses and nurse practitioners may qualify for the role of on-site, supervising physician (and they aren't even physicians!). The point is that you may want to call ahead to ensure that a dermatologist will deliver or at least supervise your treatments, or else simply skip the medi-spa and see an actual dermatologist.

You can't really go wrong with day spa packages Perth to Paris to Pensacola. These facilities are staffed with certified professionals that have been trained to deliver exactly the services you're seeking. But when you head to a medi-spa you're rolling the dice. 

 

You may not have a qualified dermatologist providing your treatment or even supervising while someone else does. So for targeted treatments that have the potential to cause permanent damage you're probably better off seeking a professional office environment instead of going for a lunchtime lift at a trendy medical spa.

(Guest Post by Carol)