Meet Dana Buendia: Your Personalized Skincare Guide

In this special edition, Dr. Fisher introduces Dana Buendia, an invaluable member of the Anti-Aging Medical and Laser team. This episode kicks off a new series aimed at highlighting the skilled professionals you might meet at our clinic.

Dana began her journey with us as a receptionist and quickly climbed the ranks to become our knowledgeable skincare manager. Today, she shares insights into her role and the personalized approach she brings to help our clients achieve their best skin.

Dana comes to us with an impressive background, having been a marketing manager in her home country, the Philippines, and completing her master’s degree at the University of Canada West. Though relatively new to the beauty industry, her commitment and passion have allowed her to quickly adapt and become an expert in skincare.

As our skincare manager, Dana ensures each client receives tailored advice suited to their skin type, goals, and budget. She walks us through her personalized consultation process, emphasizing the importance of understanding a client’s skincare type, seasonal needs, and specific concerns—whether it’s laxity, hydration, or anti-aging.

Dana highlights the importance of staple products like Vitamin C, particularly the CE Ferulic from SkinCeuticals, which helps with DNA mutation, inflammation, and collagen production. Her expertise doesn’t just stop at skincare—Dana is also well-versed in guiding clients through other aesthetic treatments offered at our clinic, ensuring they feel informed and safe.

Dr. Fisher and Dana put into the spotlight the approachable and team-oriented culture at our clinic, breaking down the intimidating facade one might feel when entering a high-end aesthetic clinic. Dana reassures listeners that all questions are welcome, and our friendly staff is always ready to help.

Join us in appreciating the amazing work Dana does and get to know the friendly face who might greet you on your next clinic visit. Located in Vancouver’s Kitsilano neighborhood at the corner of West 4th and Yew Street, we invite you to drop by and experience our top-notch care.

Tune in next week for another enriching episode, and until then, be well!

Key Insights

• Dr. Teri Fisher introduces a new podcast series featuring staff members from his clinic to help patients understand their roles and contributions.
• The episode features Dana Buendia, a former receptionist who was promoted to skincare manager at the Anti-Aging Medical and Laser clinic.
• Dana shares her background, highlighting her journey from being a marketing manager in the Philippines to studying in Canada, and eventually joining the clinic.
• As a skincare manager, Dana personalizes skincare routines for patients based on their skin type, season, and skincare goals.
• She emphasizes the importance of Vitamin C in skincare and often recommends the CE Ferulic product from SkinCeuticals.
• Dana advises patients to feel comfortable asking questions and seeking information about treatments, stressing that there are no stupid questions.
• Dr. Fisher appreciates Dana’s role in the clinic, encouraging potential patients to visit the clinic and meet the friendly and knowledgeable staff.

Episode Transcript

Dr. Teri Fisher: Hey there and welcome to this week’s podcast. I’m really excited this week because I get to feature one of the incredible members of our team at Anti-Aging Medical and Laser. I’ve decided I want to do a little bit of a series, this will be done intermittently throughout the podcast episodes, and the purpose of this is to highlight and feature some of the people that you may meet if you come into the clinic.

As well, I think it’s really important to share what their roles are and how they help you and how they help us as a team member, make sure that you are getting the best possible care that you can. And also making sure that you have the most knowledge that you can in order to make the best decisions about your aesthetic appearance, your aesthetic treatments, and ultimately help you to be as confident as you can.

So today I’m really excited. I get to feature Dana Buendia. She started as one of our receptionists at our clinic, and she has since been promoted to skincare manager. And we talk a little bit about what it is like when you come into the clinic and to be greeted by Dana, what her roles are, and of course, the knowledge that she has gained and continues to gain when it comes to your skincare.

So with that being said, sit back, relax. Here is Dana and I’m excited for you to meet her.

Hi, Dana, thank you for joining me on the podcast.

Dana Buendia: Hi, Dr. Fisher. Thank you so much for having me.

Dr. Teri Fisher: It’s my pleasure. We’re gonna learn a little bit about you and I want to have a chance to express what you’re all about, what your story is, but I also want patients to have a chance to learn a little about who you are so that if they come and they see you at the clinic, then they know who you are.

So that’s great. So why don’t we start off with just maybe telling us a little bit about who you are, your background, where you’re from.

Dana Buendia: Yeah, hi, I’m Dana Buendia. Buendia means actually good day. Oh, nice. That’s why whenever patients come in, I always make them feel like I’m having a good day, I like being in this clinic, I enjoy it very much.

So, I actually started out as a receptionist in the clinic, and then after eight months, I got promoted to skincare manager.

Dr. Teri Fisher: Amazing, amazing. So I want to talk more about that. Before we get to that, so where are you from, and what was your background before you got here?

Dana Buendia: So, before I got here, I was studying my master’s degree in University of Canada West, but I used to be a marketing manager back in my home country, the Philippines.

Dr. Teri Fisher: Wonderful. And so how long have you been in Canada now?

Dana Buendia: Just one year.

Dr. Teri Fisher: Oh! I didn’t even know that. See, I’m learning things about you today. This is wonderful. Okay. That’s great. That’s great. Okay. So you came, you joined the clinic and how come you wanted to join this clinic? What brought you here?

Dana Buendia: Well, I’ve always been a people person. Like I enjoy meeting a lot of new person and in my home country, I was also a marketing manager. So I was welcoming for a resort. So I’m always welcoming people, and then when I saw that there’s a front desk opportunity at this center, fantastic clinic, I was like, I couldn’t miss this opportunity.

Dr. Teri Fisher: Great. So how long has it been now that you’ve been here? I’m trying to remember.

Dana Buendia: Um, I started August, so probably eight to nine months.

Dr. Teri Fisher: Yeah. Time flies. Okay. Well, it’s so nice to have you here first of all. So that’s wonderful. So tell everybody a little bit more about your role. So what were you doing when you first got here?

Dana Buendia: So when I first got here, I was assigned to the front desk. So I was actually doing front desk accounting and helping out Nadine with the back end. And it was so fun because the people here is so nice and so happy. I’m a newcomer here in Canada and I was surprised by the culture and how the working culture inside the clinic is. Everyone is so cooperative and the teamwork is amazing.

Dr. Teri Fisher: Awesome. So that was what you’re doing first and then you got promoted. So talk a little bit more about that and now what you do.

Dana Buendia: So now as a skincare manager, I’m actually new to the industry. I never had any experience in the beauty industry before.

So I had a lot of learning curve to do. So I had trainings with different brands, SkinCeuticals, I had to learn the components, the skincare routine, what is the laser treatment that must be paired up with this product, and it was so fun, I was discovering a lot of things.

Dr. Teri Fisher: That’s great. And so now that’s a very important role because that’s a very important part of what we do here in terms of the skincare. And so if somebody walks in the door and they see your smiling face, let’s say they come in and they say, I don’t even know where to start with my skincare. What would you… what advice would you give them or how would you guide them through that?

Dana Buendia: So it’s very important to know the patient first. First it was what is their skin type? If it is oily or dry skin, and then what is the season, because sometimes the skincare varies from summer to winter. And then after that, I ask them what is their skincare goals. Is it more on their laxity? Is it more on the tightening, firming, moisturizing? And then after that I work within their budget.

Dr. Teri Fisher: Okay, because we have a lot of different skincare lines here, so that’s interesting. What I’m hearing is you personalize things.

Dana Buendia: Yes, exactly. Yeah.

Dr. Teri Fisher: That’s really important so then they can come in and they can feel like they’re getting what they need for their skin. That’s great.

Dana Buendia: Yeah, and it’s very important to like recommend the perfect product that they’ll love.

Dr. Teri Fisher: So are there particular products that you see that people tend to start with when they’re first starting out? Is there something that’s more common that people will end up choosing or are you helping them choose?

Dana Buendia: The staple that I’m always telling them to use is the vitamin C. So the vitamin C varies from skin type to skin type, but the best seller that we have is the CE Ferulic from SkinCeuticals. It has anti aging in it. I actually have this memorized, the D I C E, DICE. So, Vitamin C is good for DNA mutation, inflammation, and collagen, elastin production.

Dr. Teri Fisher: Oh, that’s amazing. That’s great. Those little cues come from everything.

Dana Buendia: You’re learning a lot of things, right? It’s amazing.

Dr. Teri Fisher: That’s fantastic. Great. I know that also people come in and they may be asking you about different other types of treatments that we offer in the clinic as well.

So how do you approach that? Say they’re coming in, they’re like, I want to learn about injectables. Do you have a way that you would have that discussion with them?

Dana Buendia: Yeah. So first I try to see why they wanted an injectable, like what is your goal? And then after that I tell them what is the proper treatment for their skin concerns. And then I give them general information about it. It’s very important for them to feel informed and safe when we’re having a conversation within the clinic. And then after that, I recommend them to have a consultation with us for a more personalized skincare or a treatment plan for them.

Dr. Teri Fisher: Fantastic.

Dana Buendia: Yeah.

Dr. Teri Fisher: So I think you’ve given a really nice overview. People come in the door, they see your smiling face. Yeah. Have a great day. Good day, , based on your last name. Yeah. And they can learn very much from you. And you’re a very, very important part of the team, so that’s wonderful.

Dana Buendia: Oh, thank you so much, Dr. Fisher.

Dr. Teri Fisher: Any other final messages to clients or people that may hear this and they’re kind of wondering, like, should I come in? Should I not come in? Any other messages that you would send out about our clinic in general or the team?

Dana Buendia: Yeah. Well, actually, whenever you have any skin concerns, don’t be afraid to come into our clinic. I know it, the clinic design looks so fabulous that sometimes people are intimidated to go in, but just go for it. Just go inside, ask questions. There’s no such thing as stupid questions. Ask us everything that you want to know and we’ll be more than glad to help you with it.

Dr. Teri Fisher: That’s a really, really good point. I really like that because, yeah, we’ve done a very good job, and Nadine in particular, has done an amazing job of really making the clinic look fantastic. And it could be intimidating, but I love what you said, there’s no stupid questions. Come on in. We’re all friendly. You’ll get a sense of what you’re like.

Dana Buendia: You’re going to have a great time with us.

Dr. Teri Fisher: Absolutely. So again, well, just thank you for taking a few minutes to chat with us, and it’s a pleasure to be able to share a little bit about you with our clients and with our patients.

Dana Buendia: Thank you so much.

Dr. Teri Fisher: My pleasure.

So there you go. I hope that interview brought a smile to your face. As you can hear, Dana is just wonderful and she is one of the people that you may have the pleasure of meeting when you come into the clinic. Please feel free to visit us. We are in Vancouver, in Kitsilano, at the corner of West 4th and Yew Street. And at any point of course, feel free to come on and have a chat with any one of us. And who knows? You may even get to see Dana’s smiling face.

Thanks again to Dana for spending some time on the podcast. It’s wonderful to be able to share what she does. Share a little bit about her to all of you, the listeners. And I look forward to throwing in some of these types of interviews over the next few months. So stay tuned for those. We have a wonderful podcast episode coming up again next week. And I look forward to sharing with you at that time. Be well.