The medical director of Privé Clinic at Palais Renaissance who was recently appointed president of the Association of Women Doctors (Singapore) shares with Melissa Gail Sing her more-than-skin-deep impressions on beauty, the beauty industry and the meaning of a beautiful life.

With a charmingly down-to-earth disposition and a ready smile, Karen Soh makes a strong first impression when she meets the Tatler team for a photo shoot. Even more impressive is that this 40-something Raffles Top Scholar is also a medical doctor who has trained in not just one but several fields: surgery, intensive care, obstetrics, gynaecology, ophthalmology and anaesthesia. The medical director of Privé Clinic at Palais Renaissance who was recently appointed president of the Association of Women Doctors (Singapore) shares with Melissa Gail Sing her more-than-skin-deep impressions on beauty, the beauty industry and the meaning of a beautiful life.

Did you always aspire to be a doctor?

My father is a businessman, my mum is a housewife and my sister is a journalist, so I don’t come from a family of doctors. However, I’ve always felt that job of a doctor suits my personality. I am a people person. I’m bad with numbers and have never liked desk work—I hate going through email and sorting things out from behind a desk. I like to see a problem, face it and solve it. Being a doctor, not just in aesthetics but in a lot of other fields, takes a lot of intuition.

What made you decide to specialise in aesthetics medicine?

Some years after I graduated from the National University of Singapore with a Bachelor of Medicine, I spent a year in Philadelphia, USA, where I became interested in anti-ageing medicine and received training and certification from various institutions. My interest in aesthetics was sparked off by a desire to help everyone, young and old, look and feel their best at every stage of their lives.

The aesthetics business is thriving in Singapore. Does it mean our society is becoming too vain?

We have a lot more options now. Previously, it was about ageing naturally and very few people opted for the plastic surgery route. Right now, however, we have a nice middle ground where you can pop into a clinic for a quick injection or laser and you can come out looking better and feeling much more confident about yourself. In today’s society where people are judged by first impressions, it’s impossible to ignore the importance of outer appearances. Beyond the way we look, we are also judged by how we look after ourselves. Is my hair neat and tidy? Do I have a bad complexion? Am I excessively overweight? Lack of attention to such things indicates a certain lack of self care. So, looking good, and I don’t mean just looking beautiful but looking groomed and together, is important for our professional as well as personal lives.

What is your personal philosophy on beauty?

Everybody has a shot at being beautiful. No matter what features you are born with, there is something you can do to make yourself look better and feel better, more confident. However, I don’t think you need to change to become somebody else. You need to be able to own that beauty and say, “This is me, and I will take care of whatever problems are specific to me, whether it’s dull skin or pigmentation problems. You shouldn’t change to be completely different, and you should do it for no one else but yourself. It all boils down to being confident and having a desire to improve on your own rather than being swayed by people who tell you yes or no, more or less. Only then will you truly enjoy the results of any beauty treatment. You should know what you want, and I really enjoy treating people like that. 

What’s your big wish for the aesthetics medicine industry?

It would be for doctors to be focused on training and to be very professional in what they do, very respectful of the anatomy that they are treating. And also to be very respectful of the patient’s needs and wants. In a way, my wish is for doctors to always build a partnership with the patient. I am sure most doctors are already doing this, but one cannot be sure if all of them are. If we all keep very high ethical standards, then the aesthetics industry will have a very good reputation.

Which aspect of your work brings you greatest fulfillment?

There are two. First, is when patients really appreciate my skills and knowledge. That’s really important in a competitive industry where patients understand that you’ve gone through training, that you are careful with them, that you want the best outcomes with the best products. If they appreciate that, I think that’s really satisfying for me. The other aspect is the opportunity to work with extremely capable people. It’s liberating to be able to work with a team that has far better ideas than I do, far better connections or with greater drive and tenacity. That gives me the confidence to say, “Let’s go ahead and make this something we can be proud of.”

You’re the mother of four children, from a toddler to a 13-year-old. What are you like at home?

Spending time at home with the family is my “balm” at the end of a day at work. In order to be a more hands-on mum, I build teams around me, whether it’s at work or at home, in the form of helpers and tutors. I want my kids to be very motivated on their own so we have a lot of heart-to-heart talks. I tell them, “Why do you want to work hard? Is it because you want good results or because it should be a way of life? No matter what you’re pursuing, you need to do it well. Whether it’s designing or clearing the rubbish, you should have the tenacity to do that well.

I enjoy scuba diving and I love to cook for my family. We often travel as a family, sometimes with friends too. It really broadens the mind, lets you see how other people do things, and you learn so much from each other.

You’re a woman who seems to have it all: career, family life, social engagement. Any unfulfilled ambitions?

I have always wanted to do a bit of missionary work. Maybe one day when I slow down a little bit, I would like to do that, whether alone or with my children. However, I am very conscious about being seen as a missionary tourist; I don’t want to go there and descend upon them like an angel of help then just leave them. I haven’t had the time or resources to really think of what I want to do; but I really admire people who engage in missionary work. What I do try to do is support my church whenever I can and lend my support to charity events.

What is luxury to you?

Having time when you are healthy to do what you want to do, be with the people you want to be. I think that’s really luxury and what makes a beautiful life. You can’t buy it.

 

Credits

Photography: Lionel Lai/Acepix

Grooming: Benedict Choo

Location: Grand Hyatt Singapore