by Wendy Craft

La Jolla Spa MD™ is a place where rejuvenation and medicine merge. Located near the Pacific Ocean in La Jolla, Calif., the medical spa enhances the relaxing environment that clients feel when they visit. La Jolla Spa MD was founded in 2003 by Dr. Mitchel P. Goldman, medical director and board-certified dermatologist, along with his wife, Dianne York-Goldman. The couple strives to treat people in a comforting environment with medical procedures and relaxation techniques that complement one’s inner beauty.

Goldman describes the interior of La Jolla Spa MD as light, airy and with a feng shui feel, and the environmentally correct design incorporates a lot of water. For instance, bamboo flooring was chosen because it doesn’t deplete the rain forest, he says.

The simple but elegant Zen-like decor of the 15,000-squarefoot bi-level spa houses several guest amenities. The lower level incorporates eight treatment rooms, a retail center, a 40-person auditorium, research center, and café and juice bar.

Eight medical-examination rooms occupy the upper level, two of which are accredited operating rooms, Goldman says. Some of the procedures performed upstairs include laser treatments, vein therapy, breast augmentations and face lifts.

La Jolla Spa MD is set apart from other spas by its ability to offer a vast menu of services and treatments at one location, he says.

“I don’t know of any other spas that have certified operating rooms,” Goldman says. “Patients can come and receive anything from a facial to a face lift, anything from a massage to liposuction—all under one roof.”

The spa is available to clients seven days a week, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., and the operating rooms open at 7 a.m. Guests are comforted and served by more than 70 spa employees.

“We have four board-certified plastic surgeons and facial plastic surgeons and four board-certified dermatologists and cosmetic surgeons, and then we have three nurse practitioners and physician’s assistants,” Goldman says. “The rest are licensed estheticians and massage therapists.”

Staff members hold appropriate licensing and receive continuing education. If new treatments are introduced, Goldman will give a lecture in the auditorium for the staff.

“Almost once a month we have special training for our staff, so we’re really training-intensive,” he says. Goldman’s wife, Dianne, manages the facility. He credits her with the comforting feeling guests encounter.

“As soon as you walk in, you are enveloped in a warm atmosphere,” he says. “She’s instilled in our staff a very loving, caring quality.” Guests of La Jolla Spa MD hail from all over the world, including Europe and Asia. People travel to the spa from Los Angeles and Palm Springs, Calif.; Las Vegas; and Phoenix and Scottsdale, Ariz.

Many young adults and teenagers stop in for acne treatments. However, three-fourths of spa guests fall into the 35- to 55-yearold age group.

“The key thing I do with almost all my patients is I ask them to bring me a photograph of what they looked like 20 years ago, and that is what I want to turn them into,” he says. “I don’t want to change their appearance. I want them to look younger.”

Spa guests in their 60s and 70s who feel like they are in their 40s and 50s are serviced with face lifts, liposuction and vein procedures, Goldman says.

“We specialize in the treatment of unsightly veins, whether they are the size of your finger or the size of a hair,” he says. “Also, last year we did about 500 liposuction procedures.”

Spa treatments include the Spa MD Skin Therapy line, which Goldman developed. The line consist of cleansers, moisturizers, toners, sunscreens and a CRS growth-factor cream, which stimulates collagen production and wrinkle reduction. Other product lines used at the spa include Epicuren™ and La Roche-Posay.

The Spa MD Signature Facial ($100-$125) is a guest favorite. The customized European facial, combining antioxidants and green tea, is geared to reduce stress and boost circulation.

The Pore Reducing & Acne Therapy Facial (45 minutes, $85) was a popular treatment in 2004. “Last year we did almost 900 of them, versus the signature facial, which we did about 1,200,” Goldman says.

Another favored treatment is the Cosmecanique Facial (45 minutes, $100). Described as a non-surgical face lift, it is designed to help reduce fine lines and wrinkles, and stimulate collagen and lymphatic and blood flow.

In-demand body treatments include the Seaweed Detoxification Wrap (80 minutes, $165), which energizes and detoxifies. The Lime and Ginger Salt Glow ($65-$85) invigorates and exfoliates.

The customized Aromatherapy Massage ($95-$135), which incorporates Elemis products, circulates, stimulates and reduces stress. The Aromastone Massage ($100-$160) utilizes hot stones for relaxation and soreness relief. Spa guests who seek a warmer glow can receive SunFX spray-on tanning (15-20 minutes, $65).

A popular cellulite service is the Tri-Active™ LaserDermologySM treatment (45 minutes, $100). Goldman describes the treatment, which incorporates a device by Cynosure, Inc., as a deep-tissue suction massage with a diode laser.

“The cellulite treatments only minimize the appearance and only work while you’re doing it,” he says. “Within three months of stopping it the cellulite comes back.”

Another featured cellulite treatment is Ionithermie (90 minutes, $150). The inch-loss therapy is designed to boost circulation and flush out toxins and impurities.

“You literally lose inches, but it only lasts for 12 to 24 hours,” Goldman says. “The Ionithermie is a great way to look wonderful for a short period of time.”

According to Goldman, the No. 1- and No. 2-requested medical treatments at the spa are Botox® and Restylane®. Photo rejuvenation or IPL treatments, liposuction, fat transfer and leg-vein treatments also are popular.

The excitement at La Jolla Spa MD continues to grow as its popularity leads to new ventures in the San Diego area and other parts of the country.

“From 2003 to 2004, our spa went up 50 percent and our medical practice went up 35 percent,” Goldman says.

According to his data, the spa receives 70 percent of its business by word of mouth, 20 percent from physician referrals and 10 percent from media attention including articles written about him or his appearance on the FOX television series “The Swan.”

La Jolla Spa MD already has been integrated into a physician’s office in southern San Diego as well as a facial plastic surgeon’s office in Carmel, Ind., he says.

A March 1 grand opening was planned for the La Jolla Spa MD at the Sea Spa in the Loews Coronado Bay Resort in San Diego.

“Loews Coronado is a beautiful hotel with a gorgeous spa,” Goldman says. “They basically brought us in to run the spa and make it into a La Jolla Spa MD. Also, we’re in the final negotiations in Dallas and Newport Beach [Calif.].”

At the new La Jolla Spa MD locations, Goldman strives to provide spa guests a similar, if not identical, experience as they would receive at the San Diego facility. He also believes the physicians at other Spa MD locations should be skincare experts whom he would feel comfortable visiting for treatments.

For Goldman, La Jolla Spa MD is a chance for spa visitors not only to experience a comfortable and welcoming environment, but for him to make his guests feel better.

“I think that I am doing a lot for people’s self-esteem,” he says. “I’m not changing the way a person looks—I am just making them look younger.”

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