how the Royal Wharf Clinic uses medical expertise as a starting point for its services

by Jon Massey

I‘m aware that there aesthetic clinics where people are in it to make money, but I’m involved in this field because I want to improve people’s mental and medical health,” said Dr Shaan Mahmood. The founder of Royal Wharf Clinic created the business – based in Cunningham Avenue near Pontoon Dock DLR station – with two clear aims in mind.

“I’d noticed that, because of things like social media, people are much more concerned about their image than they used to be,” he said. “I wanted to offer individuals a holistic approach to aesthetic issues but also with their wider health.

“The idea was born out of frustration at not being able to provide the care for people that I wanted through my role as an NHS doctor working in a hospital.”

Initially Dr Shaan spent time pursuing medical research, gaining a masters from the University Of East Anglia’s Norwich Medical School before realising he preferred interacting with patients on a more personal level.

“I remain very interested in the science of medicine, but I like to have human contact as well,” he said. “I prefer speaking to people to get information from them. There’s a lot of data inside our heads that can’t be measured, so you have to talk to people to access it.

“That’s why I moved on to doing hospital work, graduated and then, eight months later, the Covid pandemic arrived which was very tough to start with.

“Normally, as a junior doctor, you are assured that your senior colleagues are there for you and that your job is to absorb the experience and the protocols rather than to make serious decisions.

“In the pandemic, many of the older doctors were shielding and so the juniors had to step up. That experience accelerated my development as a doctor because it taught me to quickly clarify my thought processes, made me