THE first-ever Asia Dermatology and Aesthetic Medicine Summit 2022 (ADAMS 2022) is an initiative to enhance the primary care dermatology and aesthetic medicine industry in Malaysia and provide medical practitioners with key information and insights from professionals from across the globe to ultimately make Malaysia the hub for aesthetic treatments internationally.
Over 500 conference delegates and 30 exhibition booths participated in the conference, along with speakers from Singapore, Philippines, Croatia, South Korea, Thailand, Taiwan, and Malaysia.
"Medical tourism has been one of the crucial sectors for sustainable economic growth and development. I believe that if we continue to learn and improve from our neighbouring countries through these conferences and develop ideas with our highly-skilled and broad range of doctors and practitioners, we can aim to place Malaysia on top of the list of Southeast Asian countries to rely on for medical and medical aesthetic purposes," says Health Minister, Khairy Jamaludding who graced the official opening of the event on Sept 24.
ADAMS 2022 plays a vital role in the community by providing a platform for local dermatologists and aesthetic physicians to familiarise themselves with one another to promote partnerships and collaborations.
More importantly, it also serves the purpose of creating awareness about the importance of skin health as the field of aesthetic medicine still has ample room for development.
As the general health of the population improves and people are living longer, the focus moving forward is to promote youthfulness as we age, and this can be done with aesthetic medicine.
Consultant dermatologist and chairman of KO Academy, Datuk Dr Ko Chung Beng says dermatology and medical aesthetics is an incredibly important industry - even more so than it is perceived in the world today.
In addition to improving quality of life and enhancing individual confidence, the skills to diagnose and treat various skin diseases allow for early detection and treatment of severe skin conditions such as skin cancers and various skin infections.
"To put into perspective, skin and subcutaneous disorders were the fourth leading cause of non-fatal disease burden worldwide in 2010 and 2013 while also being one of the leading causes of disability, further emphasising the importance of dermatology in the ever-expanding field of global health," he says.
He adds that the future of dermatology lies in the efforts we make today in educating the next generation of dermatologists and aesthetic physicians globally.
"We must come together as one to share our knowledge and work towards making ground-breaking discoveries that will aid a large number of people in the world and ultimately encourage healthy and youthful ageing," says Dr Ko.