Enhancing Your Looks, Enhancing Your Life is not just a catchy tagline, for Dr. Robert F. Centeno it represents a pithy personal mission statement. Born in the waterfront town of Frederiksted, St. Croix, Dr. Centeno returned home to his native Virgin Islands to found Saint Croix Plastic Surgery & MediSpa in 2008. After over 20 years on the mainland pursuing his education, medical training and practicing Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, he fulfilled a life-long goal of returning to St. Croix to participate in the delivery of “best-in-class” health care. Inspired to pursue a career in Plastic Surgery by his brother Johnny (deceased), who was born with a craniofacial malformation, he hoped to return to take a leadership role in the continued improvement of healthcare services being delivered in the Virgin Islands, the Eastern Caribbean and beyond. That lofty goal, blessedly, is becoming a reality.
Prior to founding Saint Croix Plastic Surgery, Dr. Centeno resided in St. Louis, MO after completing his plastic surgery residency at the prestigious Washington University’s Barnes-Jewish Hospital and an Aesthetic Surgery Fellowship at the Institute for Reconstructive Plastic Surgery at The New York University Medical Center. After training at one of the nation’s busiest cosmetic surgery centers, he took his skills back to St. Louis to become a founding partner of the nationally recognized, BodyAesthetic Plastic Surgery & Skincare Center.
Although he specializes in all areas of cosmetic surgery, his expertise includes minimally invasive facial procedures, Botox(R) and fillers, short-scar breast procedures, laser procedures, vein treatments mole and skin cancer treatments and the relatively new field of body contouring after weight-loss. Widely published in his areas of expertise, he has been recognized nationally and internationally through professional speaking engagements and training. This year alone, Dr. Centeno has had two book chapters published in plastic surgery publications and requests continue to come in. Now that same level of expertise and his extensive experience is available right here at home with no travel required!
Located at the Beeston Hill Medical Center on St. Croix, the practice is a well appointed space designed with your safety and comfort in mind. Whether it’s the wonderful aromatherapy, fresh Starbucks (R) coffee, artwork, or current reading materials, patients often remark that they don’t feel like they are on St. Croix when they visit. Many of the wide array of services available at any stateside cosmetic surgery centers are offered either in the comfort and privacy of the office or at the Governor Juan F. Luis Hospital where Dr. Centeno also serves as the Chief Medical Quality Officer. MediSpa services including facials, musculo-lymphatic drainage massage, and therapeutic skincare services are also offered at the office in conjunction with the widely sought after aesthetician, Ms. Charlene Springer. “Our climate, while wonderful to live in, often ravages our skin from an appearance and health perspective,” Centeno states. It is common for patients to seek help in addressing their skin concerns. Many different modalities are available including exclusive skin care products, prescription medications, light and laser treatments, and scar minimizing surgery in more advanced cases. Treating moles and skin cancers is one of the most gratifying services offered to their clientele.
At the hospital, he is part of the management team assisting the staff in reaching its audacious goal of becoming the “most trusted patient-family centered health care system in the Caribbean by 2020.” While the team recognizes that much work lies ahead, they are enthusiastic about the advanced care already being delivered at the hospital by a new generation of well-trained, highly skilled clinicians. Under the leadership of its Board and newly appointed CEO, Mr. Jeff A. Nelson, the hospital has engaged the community in answering the question “What do you want from your health system?” The community’s answers to this critical question has already informed the team’s strategic plan and operations.
Dr. Centeno is “bullish” about the future of healthcare on St. Croix and the Virgin Islands at large. “One day soon, it will be commonplace for patients to travel to St. Croix not only for Asesthetic Plastic Surgery, but for a wide array of healthcare needs.” “We have an audacious goal of not only reversing the exodus patients from the community, but to expand the numbers of patients who have begun to recognize the excellence already in our midst.”
For additional information:
www.stcroixplasticsurgery.com
