Arbutus Laser

Our Process

A Legacy of Excellence.

With more than 3 decades of experience, still growing, independently owned and solidly into our second generation of management, our foundation is not only built on the trust of countless satisfied patients but also the continuous endorsements and referrals from other practitioners in the healthcare community. Such recognition is a reflection of our reputation for consistent results, professional integrity, and the unparalleled standards we strive to uphold in every treatment and service.

Choosing devices: The know how.

Do you choose a carpenter only because he has an expensive saw? Or do you choose your carpenter because they are skilled and do quality work?

The same concept applies when choosing to have a laser treatment. A device is only as good as the operator behind it.

Arbutus Laser Centre was one of the very first facilities of its kind and we have been the very first facility to introduce many newly developed technologies. We have been the first facility in western Canada to adopt the Pulsed Dye (Vascular) Laser, Permanent Laser Hair Reduction, Tattoo Removal, Coolsculpting, VelaShape, CO2 and Erbium Lasers, IPL, Thermage, Fraxel, EVLT, Emsella and many more.

Why do we choose one device over another?

We take many things into regard. First, we consider the power, efficacy, adjustability and safety of the device. And then we look at the results and the patient’s experience. These are our main considerations to ensure we are bringing the soundest devices into our practice. We have also been in business long enough now to know which devices have stood the test of time. Some of our legacy (older) devices are our favourites and sometimes really good technology is not as popular as other brands simply because of marketing and implementation issues (VHS vs Beta problems).

We have devices produced by most of the major North American manufacturers, but we have been affiliated with Candela Medical since we first opened our doors in 1992. We are, in fact, Candela’s oldest designated Key Opinion Lead (KOL) facility. Candela is based in Boston MA, also home to Harvard Medical and Wellman Labs where some of our industry’s most evolutionary technology has been conceived. We believe their lasers are solid, powerful and are supported and used by some of the very best laser surgeons around the world. They first enabled us to treat vascular birthmarks and facial veins in the early 90’s, have been the backbone of our award winning Hair Removal department for more than 20 years, and have made it possible for us to expand our tattoo removal services to encompass most modern ink colours.

We have grown and matured on the leading edge of the explosive Aesthetic Medicine industry as it has developed. We are proud to provide our patients with a grounded approach that is based in the knowledge and understanding of this maturity. We are immensely proud to be a team of committed professionals, dedicated to the work that we do for you.

A word about how our services are priced.

It is always our goal to provide excellent value for our services, with highly skilled providers at reasonable rates. We very consciously try to maintain middle of the road pricing tied to an industry average benchmark and do not believe you will find a similar caliber of skilled practitioners at better prices. People who care about value are people who value us.

A word about our expertise and training.

Members of our team receive extensive technical training and most of them are already professionals in their own areas of expertise before they have joined our team (see bios on our staff profile page). We are a collection of professionals with diverse backgrounds, each committed to lifelong learning and excellence in what we do. As one of the very first facilities of our kind in the world, many of us have shared these walls for more than 10 or 20 years and have grown up along with our developing industry. We have pioneered and helped develop much of the technology the Medical Aesthetics industry now takes for granted. We have introduced Vancouver to the first Vascular laser, the first permanent type of hair removal laser, the first CoolSculpting device and many, many more. Our team continues to break ground in techniques and ways of utilizing our devices in new and more effective ways, always trying to serve our patients better.

It is not unusual for us to be doing in house training with members of our own team, or professionals and colleagues from other clinics. We believe in the synergy that comes from diversity of experience and understand that teaching is a valuable tool for learning. We are always excited to share with others. We are frequently looking for training patients, and also study patients for a wide variety of investigative endeavors. Thank you in advance for those of you willing to say yes to our requests for participants!