BOTOX FOR ONLY $8/UNIT? THERE'S GOTTA BE A CATCH!

Almost every day, new potential patients call in and ask my staff how our Botox is only $8 per unit when almost everyone else regularly charges $11 to $14 per unit. Though the financial savings are enticing, inquiring patients are justifiably concerned about both the quality of the product and the quality of care we can deliver at such a low price. Is the Botox real or a fake substitute manufactured in China? Is the Botox diluted and therefore less effective? Is the doctor inexperienced, lessening my chances of a great result? In this first blog entry, I want to address these concerns of our potential patients (our current patients already know that they are getting the best quality service at the fairest prices in town!). At Happy Clinic Denver, we purchase all of our Botox directly from Allergan USA, the manufacturer of Botox Cosmetic. To prove it, Allergan USA recognizes Happy Clinic Denver as a Black Diamond Provider Since 2014, we are currently ranked #19 out of 40,000+ Clinics in the United States, which puts us in the top .01% of genuine Botox Cosmetic providers – by volume - of all clinics/physicians nationwide. Patients can check us out on the official Botox Cosmetic website www.botoxcosmetic.com and do a search for physicians/clinics in their area. As of this blog post, if you look-up any Denver area zip code and search a 50-mile radius, we are ranked #1 out of over 200 Denver Botox providers (only the first 50 are shown in the search). Patients do need to be aware that not all clinics/physicians use genuine Botox manufactured by Allergan USA. We get calls almost every week asking us to buy discounted Botox supposedly from Canada or Europe or Asia. We report all of these calls to Allergan USA, as not only would purchasing and administering un-approved Botox be unsafe for our patients (who knows whether possibly dangerous ingredients could be included), but physicians can be prosecuted by the FDA and DEA for purchasing and administering non-FDA approved drugs. Whether or not you get your Botox from Happy Clinic Denver or elsewhere, we want you to be safe and make sure that the Botox you are receiving is truly manufactured and quality-assured by Allergan USA. The great news is that Allergan has provided an easy way for you to verify the authenticity of your Botox as well as save you money! It is called the Brilliant Distinctions program. It is a rewards program that Allergan USA created two years ago that is similar to a frequent-flier program: it is free to sign up, you receive points every time you purchase their products (such as Botox, Juvederm, Latisse, or Vivite), and those points can be redeemed as coupons for future purchases. What most people don’t realize is that it is also a way for you to know if you are getting genuine Botox or Juvederm. All Botox vials and Juvederm syringes are assigned a unique lot number, and Allergan USA will NOT issue Brilliant Distinctions points to you unless the doctor provides the specific lot number for the product that was administered to you. If the doctor cannot issue points to your Brilliant Distinctions account, then the doctor either did not document which lot number was given to you (which is sloppy medical practice), or the doctor gave you product that had no lot number because it was not genuine Allergan USA product. IF YOU TAKE AWAY NOTHING ELSE FROM THIS BLOG, PLEASE REMEMBER THIS: become a member of Allergan’s Brilliant Distinctionsprogram and always make sure that the clinic/physician that administers your Botox and Juvederm issues your Brilliant Distinctions points to you! Potential patients also always ask us, "Are you diluting the Botox?" Many patients are not aware that Botox Cosmetic comes in a powder form from Allergan USA. The powder does have to be reconstituted (diluted) with saline solution before it is injected. Physicians have different formulas for reconstituting their Botox Cosmetic depending on how they were trained and according to their experience. Having worked with Botox Cosmetic for over 11 years, I have my own dilution method which I believe works the most effectively for my patients. So the correct answer is, "Everyone dilutes their Botox Cosmetic, because it must be reconstituted with saline solution before it can be injected." With respect to both the quality of the product and the experience of the physician, the best question to ask anyone administering Botox Cosmetic is "Are your patients happy with the results?" For us the answer is found in our nearly 1000 FIVE-Star patient reviews found throughout online rating websites such as genbook, yelp, and citysearch. It’s no secret that when it comes to online reviews, customers are more likely to go out of their way to write about a bad experience than a good one. However, we strive to let patients know that we value them and that we are committed to taking care of them throughout their entire experience with us - and to our delight our patients consistently respond with happiness and praise. We understand that when you come to Happy Clinic Denver, you come voluntarily and have chosen us over any one of dozens of other aesthetic clinics or medical spas around. Though we are not perfect, we will always do our best earn your trust and to do right by you. Now that you know that there is no cutting corners and no sacrifice in quality here at Happy Clinic Denver, I can let you in on our secret and answer the original question: how is our Botox only $8 per unit? When I first started in aesthetic medicine 11 years ago, I made many business mistakes. I rented an expensive office space, leased expensive equipment, spent money advertising in all the wrong places, and just generally wasted my resources on things that were not improving my ability to care for my patients. As a result, I used to charge $12 per unit for Botox. After experiencing those hard lessons, I opened Happy Clinic Denver two years ago to implement what I learned. For example, Happy Clinic Denver is completely free of debt: we own our office space and medical equipment outright so we don’t owe large monthly payments to a bank or landlord. Because the business is efficiently run and our expenses are lower, we can pass our savings on to you, our valued patients. Here at Happy Clinic Denver, we truly love what we do and we love the patients who are a part of our family. In these challenging economic times, we are proud to be able to offer aesthetic treatments – whether they be Botox, Juvederm, or laser skin rejuvenation – that are affordable and accessible for everyone, without any sacrifice in quality. We do our best to treat every patient like they are a part of our family: quality care and affordable prices with a personal touch. So now our secret is out. For the same product, the same quality of care, and the same results, why go elsewhere and pay more? - Dr. Nguyen