Mala McAlpin Allergan is on a mission to educate consumers on injectables, with an extensive list of new marketing campaigns and initiatives throughout the year so far. One of the latest is Beauty Decoded, a ticketed evening event replicated throughout cities across the world, aiming to improve consumer understanding of injectables and what makes a great practitioner and, in turn, treatment result.
Australia was the latest to experience the impressive roadshow, with Sydney playing host at The Hilton last week. Guests were able to explore a range of activations like Coolsculpting demos, custom lipsticks by Lip Lab, makeup by Sarah Laidlaw and hair styling by Oribe while they learned from some of the industry’s best cosmetic treatment providers, including Dr Cara McDonald.
International expert for Allergan, Dr Mauricio de Maio, has been the drawcard for the global series, showcasing his renowned, self-formulated and completely unique injecting system, MD Codes. Dr de Maio explains it as protocol for injections, based on the objective of the treatment.
Combining patient self-assessment with practitioner recommendations to create a treatment plan, MD Codes requires patients to select three features (from a face chart) that they would most like to treat, as well as selecting various traits that they would like to address or improve, ie. to look less tired, angry or sad, or more feminine, slim or young. From there, practitioners can determine where and how to inject using various Allergan products.
Megan Everett, a Registered Cosmetic Nurse from Perth, is a long-term lover of the system. “I have been using the MD codes system for over 4 years now,” says Megan. “What I love about the codes is its simplicity. Equations and formulas provide a treatment guide for specific facial signs or deficiency that is easy to follow whilst still having the ability to tailor treatments to the individual needs of the patient.”
Megan says it has revolutionised her strategy when it comes to both consulting and application. “It has definitely changed my process as an injector. I assess the face now in subunits with the knowledge that augmentation of these specific sites will create the most desirable outcomes. It has also improved communication between practitioners as the codes have introduced specific terminology and patterns which can be easily referred to when discussing treatment plans.”
“I would definitely recommend the MD Codes to other practitioners. Not only for the reasons above but whether a novice or experienced injector, the codes assist practitioners to address specific issues whilst balancing the wants and needs of a patient. The codes also address technique, product selection and injection method as well as common challenges faced in clinical practice. There is just nothing else that compares to the brilliance of the MD Codes!”
While the system is suitable for injectors of all levels and act as a road map, as Dr de Maio explains, a great aesthetic eye will still influence a patient’s results.
“Imagine that you have two pianists,” says Dr de Maio, “and you have the score. The score is MD Codes, the guidelines, step by step. Two people sit – the music is not necessarily the same.”
We asked Dr de Maio to tell us, in his opinion, what makes a great injector. The answer?
“Technical skill is the first. There are people that are more skilled than others. The second is taste, the aesthetic eye. As we see very often with interior designers, where they don’t have good taste, or they don’t have ownership of harmony, the same thing happens with injecting. The technique you are likely to learn, and I think taste you can polish. Sometimes you are born with the eye, sometimes you are not but you can make it better.”
*Hero image photographed by Esteban La Tessa.
For more news and updates, subscribe to our weekly newsletter.
