To commemorate the International Women’s Day, we have decided to prepare for you a short series about several inspiring and successful women who have shared with us a few stories from their personal and professional lives.
We would like to present to you Ana Ivekić Jambrošić, a dermatologist who, in addition to working full-time at the Veli Lošinj Health Resort, also works at the Spa Clinic Center of the Bellevue Hotel.
Dr. Derm. Ana Ivekić Jambrošić
Good afternoon, Ana! For starters, tell us a bit about your life on the island.
I have been living on Lošinj for 20 years. I came here as a young doctor and started working in the Emergency Department of the Mali Lošinj Medical Centre, namely in the dialysis section, and 15 years later I enrolled in the long-desired specialization program, after which I came back and continued working on the island.
How did you decide to become a dermatologist?
I think that it’s a wonderful job for a woman, especially a woman of my age.
How do you manage to balance your professional life with your personal one?
While working at the emergency department, it was a lot harder for me, but now I manage to reconcile work and family responsibilities well. The hardest period for me was the specialization program, when I had to live in Rijeka and Zagreb, far away from my family, but we got through it. Working as a dermatologist is really nice, there are no stressful situations, no on-call time, and I manage to balance everything well.
What is your biggest business challenge?
When I started working as a dermatologist, there weren’t many options and only basic examinations were available to patients, while now we deal with everything – from excisions, suspicious formations and biopsies to allergy testing. As far as dermatology is concerned, patients have almost everything available to them on the island and do not have to travel anywhere, which is a great advantage for both local residents and tourists.
You often receive visits from our guests, who come to you for examinations and consultations. What dermatological problems do you most commonly encounter?
Most often, guests come for consultations, due to rash problems, mild sunburns and the like. In addition, they often come for mole examinations as in the countries they come from they have to make an appointment and sometimes wait for a very long time, while here at the hotel the whole process is very fast and smooth. We will also soon have a few cosmetic procedures in our offer. The Bellevue Hotel was the first in Croatia to offer Ultherapy, a non-invasive facelift treatment; and this year we’re planning to start offering fillers, Botox and thread-lifting as well. There will be lots of surprises!
What would you recommend to our guests as far as keeping their skin healthy goes?
People let themselves indulge in the sun easily, but skin needs to be protected – it is our largest organ. It should primarily be protected from the sun – the sun should be avoided when it is strongest, namely from 10 am to 16 pm, and one should use hats and photoprotective creams with high protective factors to reduce the effects of photo-damage and skin aging. The skin should be hydrated enough and one should drink plenty of fluids, especially when exposing oneself to the sun. It is also helpful to have a healthy diet full of vitamins A, C and E, as well as omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids that regenerate and stimulate the skin not to age and to stay young longer. A healthy lifestyle and lots of movement and exercise are also essential. In case of minor burns, cold compresses should be applied, and so should herbal gels such as those containing aloe vera which soothes the skin. I would like to point out that we rarely encounter patients with a sunburn problem – they either treat the sunburns themselves or protect their skin well.
What natural products from the island are good for the skin, hair and nails?
I would definitely like to mention aloe vera and immortelle. Immortelle is often used in oils or balms as it soothes the skin.
Do you have any other advice for our guests when it comes to maintaining the well-being of their body and spirit?
They should try to move as much as they can and enjoy the quality of the Lošinj air, as well as medicinal aromatic herbs – as soon as you get on the ferry, you will feel that the air smells different here. Also, they should try to relax and enjoy themselves as much as possible!