A FORMER restaurant has reopened as a new skincare clinic, offering a full range of dermatological treatments.
Derma, run by husband and wife team Rima and Jon Clayton, launched at the beginning of the month at Shepherds Hill in Woodley. They have gutted the former Frankie & Benny’s diner to create the new centre, which helps people with range of issues from acne to wrinkle removal treatment.
Dermatologists undergo at least five years of specialist training to learn all there is to know about skin, hair and nails, and the new clinic can offer some of the latest and top-of-the-range aesthetic treatments.
The move has come about because Dr Clayton has seen demand for her work soar in recent years.
Husband Jon said: “She had got to the point where the number of people wanting to see you filled up within a week, so those patients would have to go elsewhere because they didn’t want to wait too long. Dr Clayton is very popular, so we wanted to offer far more to our patients.
“We’ve got the ability to offer cosmetic treatments here that we couldn’t offer before. Owning our own clinic means we can make decisions about what patients are going to want and put those things in place.
“Effectively, it’s a private dermatology hospital.”
Mr Clayton said that a lot of customers come for acne treatments, and another set come to have moles checked or removed. They can also help with eczema, skin tags and cosmetic procedures such as botox and skin tightening.
Business has been good since they’ve opened, with the site benefitting from plenty of parking and being easily accessible.
“People can walk in and make an appointment,” Mr Clayton said. “They’ll see Dr Clayton, and she will recommend what they can do about their particular issues. For some issues, we will offer a consultation with a nurse.
“With treatments such as botox, as a skin specialist we are in a far better position to fully take care of our patients. We have years of experience and know the anatomy of people’s skin and what you’re pushing the needle in to.”
“We have probably seen more patients with acne than anybody else in the Reading area. To be honest with you, the level of results you can get with an acne treatment are fantastic. A lot of the treatments we can offer are not things that you can get on the high street or from your GP.
“We can also now treat acne scarring after someone has had the acne treatment.”
Mr Clayton says that their move to Woodley has been “brilliant”.
“It’s a great site, it’s spacious inside, it’s kitted out the way we think it should be laid out for dermatology clinics,” he said. “It’s been a great place to work – and it’s a fantastic location in terms of visibility and accessibility. It’s easy for people to get here from Henley as well.”
Derma is fully Covid-secure compliant, with track and trace in place, and measures including the receptionist being behind a glass screen, face coverings in use and plenty of space inside.
For more details, log on to: www.dermareading.co.uk
