AI in Medical Aesthetics: Opportunity, Unknowns, and the Future of Patient Care

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Announcer
You're listening to the Esthetics Speaking podcast presented by Next Tech.

00:00:13:12 - 00:00:27:13
Robin Ntoh
Good morning and welcome to Nextech's Aesthetically Speaking podcast. We are live here this morning at Edge 2026, and I am so excited to introduce my guest today, Dr. Randy Rudderman. Dr. Rudderman, tell the audience a little bit about you.

00:00:27:16 - 00:00:46:13
Dr. Randal Rudderman
Good morning. I'm excited to be at Edge here as well. I am a practicing solo plastic surgeon in Atlanta, and we have an aesthetic practice with injectors of citizens as providers, and have been a client of Nextech for many years.

00:00:46:15 - 00:00:49:00
Robin Ntoh
So you've been in business how many years?

00:00:49:05 - 00:00:52:04
Dr. Randal Rudderman
We've been in business almost three decades.

00:00:52:06 - 00:00:55:23
Robin Ntoh
Wow. You've seen a lot of change in medicine, haven't you?

00:00:56:00 - 00:00:56:23
Dr. Randal Rudderman
We sure have.

00:00:57:01 - 00:01:01:15
Robin Ntoh
Would you say that AI is probably one of the most significant changes?

00:01:01:16 - 00:01:28:16
Dr. Randal Rudderman
Well, you know, AI is a fantastic advance in our ability to actually deal with data, and it's not really transparently clear what's going to happen with AI and the plastic surgery realm, particularly as it relates to aesthetic treatments on patients, that the type of patients that our practice would see currently.

00:01:28:18 - 00:01:53:15
Robin Ntoh
So we've talked about AI a lot this week here at Edge, and we hear a lot about it in the market. Nextech has just launched a scribing tool AI Cora for our ophthalmology customers. But when we think about plastic surgery specifically, high level, then we'll get into the to the nitty gritty. Where do you see AI fitting into a plastic surgery practice?

00:01:53:21 - 00:02:19:12
Dr. Randal Rudderman
Well, AI fits in places where we need data evaluation and in aesthetics, the places that we have the most amount of data that are likely to really be impactful by AI is looking at the data that we collected on how clients get to us, what happens with that data on on patient acquisition, and then what happens after they leave?

00:02:19:12 - 00:02:48:23
Dr. Randal Rudderman
How do we have retention of our clients and take care of the patients after they're there. AI fits a different type of place in when you're looking at scribing for the systems that really are very specific. For example ophthalmology, dermatology, there are specific questions that may be asked that are not really personal and they're very, very relevant and allow for analysis.

00:02:49:01 - 00:03:10:11
Dr. Randal Rudderman
We always have a chaperone with us when we're seeing a client. We have patients that come in with very personal information. And the trend really over, even over the last six months, is for clients to be much more concerned about who actually controls the information that they give us when they're in the practice.

00:03:10:13 - 00:03:30:15
Robin Ntoh
It’s a solid point, especially when you think about the chaperon. The chaperon serves as someone that like a bodyguard in the in the room, so to speak. But what about that patient experience? Aren't they part of developing that rapport that is so important within the plastic surgery space?

00:03:30:16 - 00:03:56:02
Dr. Randal Rudderman
Well, they're very critical on that in that type of space. Someone that's in for a cataract evaluation or a lesion on their arm is it's much more forward about what their problem is, what they their expectations for outcome and how you're able to actually manage that. And their approval for your practice depends on taking care of a problem.

00:03:56:02 - 00:04:16:04
Dr. Randal Rudderman
It's got to be solved doing it in a way that they feel like they got a good patient experience. And then whatever follow up you have. In plastic surgery, in particularly in aesthetics, clients are often likely to give different amounts of information to different people in our practice. They may say something different to the person that checks them in.

00:04:16:10 - 00:04:36:20
Dr. Randal Rudderman
They may talk to the nurse in a way of giving them information that they don't feel particularly comfortable verbalizing to the surgeon, and then may say things to your patient coordinator afterwards. So it's a much more coordinated effect, because there's a different level of comfort that each client will have with maybe different personnel in your practice.

00:04:36:21 - 00:04:46:04
Dr. Randal Rudderman
And so it's not all the information that you acquire is not just in the room at that one moment during your consultation.

00:04:46:05 - 00:05:09:22
Robin Ntoh
So key there to me is there's a part of that patient journey. And as you think about that journey, before they even sometimes walk in the door and the information that's collected, all of it eventually provides information that you need to really understand what those patients desires are, what they need to do. And let's face it, it's luxury health care.

00:05:09:23 - 00:05:25:15
Robin Ntoh
They're paying for services that insurance isn't going to pay for, most likely. And when we think about their perception and how they perceive that experience, how do you think they would feel about AI listening?

00:05:25:17 - 00:05:47:04
Dr. Randal Rudderman
There's an art to a consultation, and we're not extracting the same amount of information from every person because it takes a bit of training and experience to really understand what patients are trying to tell you about what. Number one, what do they really identify as their issue? What do they expect out of this?

00:05:47:05 - 00:06:18:17
Dr. Randal Rudderman
And sometimes, you know, that will change during the consultation. So they may walk in with one expectation of thinking they need this procedure. And by the time they're out, we've completely converted them to a different paradigm because they weren't sure what they needed and we weren't either. So there's a flow that is different that patients have to sometimes have to extract that in a very general way to develop to trust with the person to be able to make that happen.

00:06:18:18 - 00:06:42:00
Robin Ntoh
Right, right. Well, I think there's a lot of things to talk about when we consider AI in the healthcare space, especially when it relates back to the scribing component, because where that data is, if it's stored, if the recording is part of that, as one of the things that Nextech had to be very thoughtful and intentional about was what happens to that information.

00:06:42:02 - 00:07:10:04
Robin Ntoh
But back to the patient experience. You said something that I think is key here. The patient share very intimate or sometimes very personal information. But that information is important to you as a surgeon. Sometimes you want to document some of those components, because it's context. It gives you information about their frame of mind, their mental wellbeing.

00:07:10:05 - 00:07:16:05
Robin Ntoh
Because you have to assess that as a surgeon. Tell us a little bit about your thoughts on that.

00:07:16:07 - 00:07:40:09
Dr. Randal Rudderman
You know that becomes a critical part of a consultation is do we think the patient is the right candidate for what they're doing? Can they manage what we can deliver and we deliver something that meets their expectations. And they, so we you you essentially do a bit of your own psychological profile on everyone that comes in the door.

00:07:40:11 - 00:08:21:09
Dr. Randal Rudderman
One of the concerns that people have written about with AI, particularly because of the power of the assessment of information, is that right now with HIPAA, patients give consent for their general information for PHI, their personal health information. AI in most platforms and most vendors will tell you this takes that information and then makes assumptions, assessments, other models, projections, which is beyond what the general what the factual information is that client has given you.

00:08:21:12 - 00:08:56:14
Dr. Randal Rudderman
So it's not clear who actually, number one owns that information even without any personal identifier. And, and how that information is used. For example, what if you've seen a thousand patients this year and you have a great AI model that's been storing your data and making some assumptions out of this? And, and the assumption is this patient seems to fit into a category that looks like is not going to be a good outcome for X procedure and gives you that information.

00:08:56:15 - 00:09:20:18
Dr. Randal Rudderman
Whose responsibility is it then? How do you how are we going to manage that information on helping us make a decision? Do we take this person as a client? Are they not going to be a client? Is that discoverable information? Is it helpful? Is it something that now we need to act on that they need to be, you know, referred to it to another health care provider or something like that?

00:09:20:18 - 00:09:53:02
Dr. Randal Rudderman
There's a there's a lot of really open end questions on where the data goes, who manages it, who's responsible for it. And the way we look at it right now is we don't I don't consider it a courtesy that I would tell a patient that we're we're collecting this data. I think we have a we have an obligation to let them know what we're doing with that information, because if they in the end of the day, if they don't end up trusting everyone in our practice, they're not likely to choose us to be a provider for whatever service thereafter.

00:09:53:04 - 00:10:15:04
Robin Ntoh
I think the jury's still out when we think about scribing, but we've talked about where AI potentially, you mentioned data and where data, how it looks at data and pulls data. And you spend a lot of time really understanding your business. You drill down, you double click into your metrics all the time. You have a very good sense of your business.

00:10:15:06 - 00:10:26:01
Robin Ntoh
Does AI have a place operationally, and where do you think that top 2 or 3 places are, that it would really strike a chord and be effective?

00:10:26:03 - 00:10:50:23
Dr. Randal Rudderman
Operationally, I'm super excited about developing platforms that will help us manage that information. I mean, we are really careful to know what our costs to services are. We manage all that on real time basis. And I mean, Nextech is very effective of helping us grab some of that data. And then we move that data to other platforms to really get analysis.

00:10:51:02 - 00:11:13:02
Dr. Randal Rudderman
We don't worry so much about managing that patient journey once they're in our practice, because we've developed the right kind of paradigm. And, and I think culture of our practice to help people. But how they get to us, what happens to get the right selection of of clients that walk in the door and then how to manage their expectations afterwards?

00:11:13:06 - 00:11:32:12
Dr. Randal Rudderman
I think there's enormous possibility and opportunities for AI to actually look at that. But, you know, that's more than just transcription, data entry, that type of thing. It's going to require some real thoughtful analysis by humans to put those paradigms together. So we get useful information that we can act on.

00:11:32:17 - 00:12:02:22
Robin Ntoh
Well, yeah, I mean, AI isn't there to replace the staff per se. I think there's a lot of anxiety in the market to some degree with, you know, the staff feeling like AI is intended to replace them. To your point, the data and what you're trying to do to really help you, that patient interaction is so critical in maintaining that relationship and continuously cultivating that relationship is so important.

00:12:02:22 - 00:12:31:11
Robin Ntoh
But that takes the human interaction. And if AI can free your staff from some of those tasks that they're continuously having to do, I think that really double clicking into that and understanding, where is it that AI allows my staff or your staff to really focus on those interactions? I think about competition in the market. There's so many med spas that are coming into play.

00:12:31:15 - 00:12:47:20
Robin Ntoh
You have a very large medical spa in your business as part of your business model. If your staff could really use AI to continuously cultivate those relationships, think about where that differentiates you in the market.

00:12:47:21 - 00:13:22:06
Dr. Randal Rudderman
Well, I mean, our staff I think is pretty excited about the opportunity for AI because it I do believe that we're going to be able to elevate the patient experience and that translates to happier clients, more referrals, better business model, more efficiency. And all of that also means that my staff and our team is less stressed, has more ability to actually do the things that they enjoy.

00:13:22:08 - 00:13:29:19
Dr. Randal Rudderman
And there's I mean, it's it's positive on on all aspects of this. If we can just put the put it together that way.

00:13:29:20 - 00:13:52:23
Robin Ntoh
You said something key: stress. Let's just really dig in a little bit there. I mean, there are so many things that are going on in a practice all day long. High turnover is a problem in some practices. I know you've got a really great culture in your business. Your staff, they really work well together and they've been there for many, many years.

00:13:53:04 - 00:14:23:17
Robin Ntoh
When you really think about where AI could help the practice, one of those areas is, you know, reducing that friction, really focusing on making their job easier in so many ways so that they're not trying to manage multiple systems, not trying to manage all of the additional data points that need to be accessed or entered into a system and give them, you know, a better quality of that work life component so that they really can enjoy their job.

00:14:23:19 - 00:14:32:05
Robin Ntoh
I think that's a key area that AI can help solve that a lot of people just don't think about is relinquishing the stress that staff have.

00:14:32:06 - 00:15:00:20
Dr. Randal Rudderman
It has to be carefully orchestrated, in a sense. The way that I talked to my staff about AI is whatever we implement with AI, I think AI should be basically practically invisible to our clients. So we are, I'm not a proponent of having automation and answering phones and scheduling patients because our clients are used to this interaction, this personal interaction with our staff.

00:15:00:20 - 00:15:26:17
Dr. Randal Rudderman
And if they call somebody on the phone and they walk in the practice, they don't want to find out that the person they spoke with was not a person. They want to develop that relationship. And that relationship, that's critical to the care that we deliver and our reputation. And so, when we think about AI and I don't think the industry has started to head this way, there's a big rush right now in the industry on can we do scribing?

00:15:26:17 - 00:15:58:06
Dr. Randal Rudderman
Can we do this? Can we do data? Can we get data in the charts and all that type of stuff? But very few of of AI developers have actually sat down and had conversations with practices that want AI to be there, but be very powerfully invisible to the client. So the client has a different type of experience with us, and it's going to require more thought than just that hammer of putting the data into the into the graphics, which is in some fields,

00:15:58:08 - 00:16:25:08
Dr. Randal Rudderman
I mean, it's not just critical, it's like essential, but it's not the choke point for us. And so it's not we don't need to solve a problem that's that we don't have right now. But anything we do or and anything we do should be, you know, it is designed to actually make that patient experience better, which helps our, you know, helps my staff.

00:16:25:09 - 00:16:26:04
Dr. Randal Rudderman
Yeah. Of course.

00:16:26:08 - 00:16:26:18
Robin Ntoh
Of course.

00:16:26:19 - 00:16:33:09
Dr. Randal Rudderman
Yeah for sure. And it gives them the power to you know, I hire people. I want to have that interaction. I want them to have time to have that interaction.

00:16:33:10 - 00:16:41:19
Robin Ntoh
Yeah. How do your staff think about AI? Do they have their wish list of wouldn't it be great if AI did this for us?

00:16:41:21 - 00:17:06:02
Dr. Randal Rudderman
You know, they get excited about things and a meeting like this with Edge where they get exposed to a lot of different opportunities of using regular like LLMs that are available to explore different, different opportunities to manage the things they do daily. I think it's been I think it's been powerful since we've been at Edge.

00:17:06:04 - 00:17:27:08
Dr. Randal Rudderman
What's equally powerful is it's let them look at other problems that we might have or challenges within our practice right now that they actually maybe didn't think about a week ago, and that here's another opportunity to look at how do we manage patient flow, how do we manage their experience when they're calling, checking in, showing up for our practice?

00:17:27:09 - 00:17:44:09
Dr. Randal Rudderman
What do we do with that information? They've been exposed to ideas at this meeting, particularly that I don't think they ever even thought about and having a tool to actually address it, which is, you know, the most. Otherwise it's just another confusion.

00:17:44:09 - 00:17:52:10
Robin Ntoh
Yeah, absolutely. You mentioned earlier that the society, Plastic Surgery Society is got some views around AI. You want to share those?

00:17:52:16 - 00:18:20:11
Dr. Randal Rudderman
Well I can't speak for the society directly. I think that I think we're all concerned about the what happens to patient information. And most people would say it's not really a problem. We can we can de-identified information. Some of the, you know, the closed and models and that work with AI data are going to tell you that can be reconstructed.

00:18:20:11 - 00:18:46:12
Dr. Randal Rudderman
So there's going to be a lot that's going to unfold over the next several years on each vendor. Do the vendors really know that are selling you information on their AI platforms? What happens with the data? Who's managing it? What servers is it on? Is that information available to other other servers and other other platforms? And I mean, those those questions are out there.

00:18:46:13 - 00:19:08:02
Dr. Randal Rudderman
They're clearly there. Who ethically, morally, legally is who's going to be held accountable for this. And I'm not I really I'm not worried about it because I think it will play out. But there's there's a lot of open ended questions right now on how that's going to be processed.

00:19:08:04 - 00:19:19:13
Robin Ntoh
Well, thank you very much. I'm super excited about our listeners giving us feedback and, you know, sharing their insights as well. But this has been very enlightening. Thank you.

00:19:19:18 - 00:19:24:00
Dr. Randal Rudderman
Well, thank you for the opportunity.

00:19:24:02 - 00:19:46:15
Announcer
Thanks for listening to Aesthetically Speaking, the podcast where beauty meets business presented by Nextech. Follow and subscribe on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you like to listen to podcasts. Links to the resources mentioned on this podcast are available in your show notes. For more information about Nextech, visit Nextech.com or to learn more about TouchMD, go to TouchMD.com