The Latest Resort Medical Spa Offers Holistic Care, Wellness

It blends in so well with Longmeadow’s scenery, Spa on the Green is actually easy to miss.

 

History buffs and those with an eye for New England architecture might spot the spa, but never suspect that the small, clapboard building that once housed the town’s general store is now home to one of the fastest growing types of health care businesses in the country – medical spas, which pair cosmetic medical procedures with a little bit of luxury to make the experience that much more enjoyable.

Having just completed its second full year in business, Spa on the Green is garnering attention for its unique business model – pairing a day spa with a physician’s office to offer a comprehensive suite of cosmetic treatments.

Dr. Glen Brooks, a plastic surgeon and owner of Spa on the Green, envisioned a setting in which his patients could escape the clinical feel of the doctor’s office, and when the historic building on Longmeadow Street went on the market, Brooks’ plans went into motion.

Now, his enterprise is actually two separate businesses operating under one roof – the spa and Brooks’ practice, formally named Aesthetic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, P.C. (APRS). But due to increased interest in cosmetic procedures and the move toward treatment-based spa services meant to improve appearance as well as provide relaxation, Brooks said he sees a unique blending of the two services taking shape.

“There is clearly a needed relationship between aesthetic procedures and having a place to relax,” Brooks said. “and it’s important to integrate the aesthetic side of things into medical procedures. It’s all about the patient’s overall wellness and comfort. There is a lot of crossover.”

Renewing Revitalization

Architecturally, Spa on the Green has little resemblance to a traditional physician’s office. Devoid of stark white walls and cavernous hallways, the small business includes a waiting room painted and decorated in earth tones and private examination rooms set off of a carpeted hallway. Patients visiting Brooks for medical procedures such as plastic surgery consultations, liposuction, or Botox injections (Brooks said all major procedures are completed at the hospital, and simpler, less-invasive procedures can take place within his offices) can enter through a private entrance in the rear of the building for privacy, as well.

Spa on the Green also offers a number of spa treatments including massages, manicures, pedicures, facials, and other relaxation and cosmetic treatments independent from his practice. However, patients can also take advantage of those services to add to the comfort of their experience, either immediately after a procedure or in the days following.

Brooks said that integrating aesthetic medical procedures and spa services is a growing trend – one that began with physicians employing aestheticians in their offices in order to offer cosmetic services to patients and create a more complete experience for them.

There is also a growing awareness and acceptance of cosmetic surgery, he said, thanks in part to the predominance of ‘makeover shows’ and other reality-based programs on television, and that is helping to not only increase Brooks’ business, but also create a comfort level among consumers that makes a medical spa like his more acceptable, and, increasingly, more the norm.

He said he often fields unsolicited calls from prospective patients asking if he offers a specific procedure, one that they may have watched on TV or read about in a popular magazine.

“Doctors aren’t used to those kinds of calls,” he explained. “We are more accustomed to having a patient come in with a problem and giving them options to fix it. But now, people have a lot more information, and they are calling or coming in knowing what they want. They are much more aware, and that makes them much more comfortable with what procedures are available to them.”

That acceptance is spurring more medical spas like Spa on the Green to open across the country – a second medical spa, Syzygy, is already located locally in Northampton – although they are still more predominant in large metropolitan areas. Brooks added that over the past two years, he has seen a steady climb in revenue stemming from spa services, augmenting his already established plastic surgery practice.

“Spas are becoming increasingly more treatment oriented.”

“In the last two years, I definitely learned a lot,” he said, noting that while he enjoys a solid, 13-year history with his practice, owning and operating a spa was a completely new venture for him. “But I feel that we are exactly where we should be after two years. Both my medical practice and spas in general benefit from strong word-of-mouth advertising, and because of that, I’m also seeing the two aspects of the business benefit from each other.”

He added that spa treatments in general are also moving away from just relaxation services, and more toward corrective procedures, and that is causing the gap between spa services and cosmetic procedures to close slightly.

“Spas are becoming increasingly more treatment oriented,” he said. “What we’re going to see are more products used by spas that are geared less toward just pampering and have a medical spin to them.”

The pairing of a medical office with a facility like Spa on the Green, he said, offers a sort of comfort level to spa clients in search of a growing number of treatment or corrective procedures, as well as a wide gamut of options – from non-invasive treatments to more-involved cosmetic procedures.

“There are a lot of topical treatments available now,” said Brooks. “Regardless of what it is, everything here is regulated or supervised.”

Further, the many options available at a medical spa are not relegated to a small portion of the population; Brooks said that, although cosmetic procedures and the option of pairing them with spa services could be considered a luxury, it’s a common misconception that only the wealthy can enjoy such services.

It’s not just the affluent set that are taking advantage, he said; due again to increasing awareness and acceptance of cosmetic procedures, Brooks said Spa on the Green offers an alternative to an annual vacation or another major purchase for many middle-class individuals who hope to splurge on a luxury, and he said many of his patients represent that sector.

Making History

Still, regardless of the patient, Brooks said more people are entering Spa on the Green, a little piece of Longmeadow’s history, in order to take advantage of state-of-the-art treatments and relaxing services.

“We’re different from every other spa in the area,” he said, “and this is the direction I think more spas and more medical offices are going in. I really think we’re right on track.”