The Junior Trainee Mentorship Scheme (JTMS) is the first scheme of its kind in the non-surgical aesthetics industry. It is a not-for-profit scheme created by Interface Aesthetics Director and Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery Registrar Mr James Olding.
As the lead at Interface Aesthetics, Mr Olding is regularly asked the same questions by trainees from across the key professions, and these commonly include how to train, where to get reliable information and how best to obtain ongoing support and mentorship. The lack of a clear training pathway leading to regulated and accredited qualifications (such as the VTCT Level 7 Diploma in Injectables) was a major concern that kept appearing. Many concerns are common to doctors, dentists and nurses, and addressing these requires a joined-up approach from the undergraduate through to postgraduate stages. With this in mind, in late 2020 Mr Olding brought together the entire Interface Aesthetics team to implement the scheme for operation commencing in January 2021.
As a dual qualified doctor and dentist specialising in facial surgery in the NHS, Mr Olding has experienced first-hand the consequences of poorly regulated training and practice, seeing patients across NHS and private practice suffering the consequences of what is effectively a regulatory vacuum.
After carrying out teaching and research with undergraduate medics and dentists, it became clear that despite concerns and hesitation among undergraduate and recently graduated health professionals, the interest in facial aesthetics was huge. Mr Olding decided to address this chasm between a desire to learn more and hesitation about how to do this through creating the JTMS.
The scheme provides access to high quality, evidence-based webinars throughout the year, with exclusive clinical observation days for undergraduates and junior trainees, providing a holistic mentorship experience at this early and crucial stage. On these clinical observation days, mentees assess, mark up and observe injectable treatments on real patients. The first year of the scheme has mentees from across the professions, with a mixture of medics, dentists and nurses coming from across the UK and even some mentees from even further afield in Europe.
Stage One of the JTMS aims to prepare the mentee for the postgraduate stages of training which may include:
Learning Objectives
Prepare the undergraduate/recently graduated doctor/dentist/nurse for post-graduate training in facial aesthetics:
. Evidence-based practice<. Patient psychology in injectables
1. Facial Anatomy for Injectables (4 Webinars)
2. Injectables Products (2 Webinars)
3. Principles & Practice of Injectables (4 Webinars)
4. Clinical Practice (2 Webinars, 2 half-days of clinical observation)
Trainees will be able to book on to dates (multiple sessions will take place throughout the year) from a list of options. These training days take place at weekends. Mentees will be attached to an experienced injector assessing and treating a wide range of patients. Treatments will cover the two key modalities of Botulinum Toxin & Dermal Filler.
| Date | Subject |
|---|---|
| January | 1. Introduction to Facial Aesthetics and the JTMS. |
| February | Facial Anatomy for injectables 1: The Layers of the face |
| March | The Journey: From Undergrad to Injector :Three Separate webinars (medic/dentist/nurse) delivered concurrently by current aesthetic practitioners in each profession |
| April | Facial Anatomy for injectables 2: The Upper Face |
| May | Facial Anatomy for injectables 3: The Mid and Lower Face |
| June | Products 1: Dermal Filler |
| July | Products 2: Botulinum Toxin |
| August | Principles & Practice of injectables 1: Regulation & Education in the aesthetics industry |
| September | Principles & Practice of injectables 2: Evidence-based practice in the aesthetics industry |
| October | Facial Anatomy for injectables 4: The role of bone loss in facial aging |
| November | Principles & Practice of injectables 3: Psychological aspects of facial aesthetics |
| December | Principles & Practice of injectables 4: Foundation Treatments in injectables: preparing for practice |
Upon completion of the first 1-year stage of the JTMS, the next step will depend on your current level and how quickly you would like to commence the post-graduate training pathway.
Option 1: staying on the JTMS pathway until you graduate, or finish vocational/Foundation training, undertaking further theoretical learning via our webinar scheme and attending more clinical observation days. This is ideal for those still at the undergraduate level, or recently post-graduate and still in Foundation/Vocational training stages of practice.
Option 2: moving on to the next step along the training ladder, and on to the Level 7 Diploma in Injectables. This is a 6-18 month qualification with multiple stages, and requires that you are registered with the GMC/GDC/NMC.
Zeanab Chaer, a third-year dental student at King’s College London, is the coordinator for this scheme, working closely with Director Mr Olding. If you are interested in learning more about the scheme, or would like to sign up, please get in touch with us:
The scheme is not-for-profit, and there is an annual subscription cost of £240/year to cover the delivery of the programme and face-to-face observation days. This can be paid as a monthly subscription of £20 per month.
Whether you are starting out in aesthetics, or looking to perfect and advance your skills, securing your place on one of our accredited training courses is easy.
