By Alfred Munoz
Dr. Daria Hamrah Talks Summer Face Trends Here In Miami And Beyond
The summer heat is here and that means everyone here in town will be heading to the beach, pools, and any outdoor event possible. With no masks needed anymore really, the time to let your full face shine is now.
And so, we turned to Dr. Daria Hamrah, a graduate of the University of Miami who is now the top double Board Certified oral and maxillofacial/facial cosmetic surgeon in America for some insights into what trends are happening here in Miami in regards to facial surgery. We also spoke to him about his life away from Florida with his successful practice and more!
Even though you are based just outside of Washington, you come to Miami a lot, why does this area hold such a special place to you?
Miami is kind of home to me. I spent close to 5 years of my life there, which is the second most amount of time I had spent in any city in the US all my life since I emigrated from Germany. I did my residency training at the University of Miami/ Jackson Memorial Hospital and treated facial trauma at the Ryder Trauma center for 4 years.
When you serve a community for that long, you become attached to it and consider yourself as one of them. We are talking about 80+ hours a week! Since I pretty much worked the entire time living in Miami, I never got to really enjoy myself and benefit from what this amazing city with its diverse culture has to offer.
So, today, I visit multiple times per year and every time I visit Miami, somehow it feels like home, even though I have been living in the Washington D.C. area for 12 years now. So, I am very grateful for my time and experience there, especially for having had the opportunity to learn the Spanish language and the diverse South and Central American culture.
It is one of the reasons why I am able to travel to South America for my mission trip every year to take care of children and young adults with cleft lip and palate through my foundation “Alegria, A Foundation for Cleft Lip and Palate” (www.alegriafoundation.com).
You completed your residency at the University of Miami over 14 years ago. What advice do you have to current students there wanting to be surgeons like yourself?
Utilize this amazing and unique opportunity and try to learn as much as you can. You will never understand and appreciate how much you’ve learned, training at one of the best hospitals and universities in the world that has the most diverse patient population you can imagine.
I remember on my first day in residency listening to my program director and chairman of the department Dr. Robert Marx, who said: “Here in Miami we see and treat things every single day that others only read about in books.” For people that had not trained at other institutions before, it sounded kind of cocky, but for me, it didn’t. That was the very reason why I had applied there and made it my first choice. Because I knew it.
Prior to going to Miami, I had trained at hospitals like Massachusetts General Hospital/ Harvard University and University of Illinois and Loyola Medical Center in Chicago, IL. What I’ve learned in Miami and Jackson Memorial Hospital was far beyond what I had experienced before.
Today, my experience has made me the surgeon I am and I am so grateful for it. Knowing my limitations and not being intimidated by any scenario is the best preparation anyone can ask for.
When you do come back to visit, where are some of your favorite spots to go out to?
I love staying in Bal Harbor because it is quiet and not far from South Beach and Downtown Miami. I just love the beach and the ocean and go there mainly to relax, regroup and meet up with old friends.
When I arrive, the first thing I have to do is to get my Cuban coffee before anything else! One of my favorite restaurants are Prime 112 and Joe’s Stone Crab! Since I used to live in Brickell, I love going back there especially since now it’s really developed with amazing restaurants and bars and fun to just walk around by the bay.
What trends here in Miami do you see happening when it comes to facial cosmetic surgery that may be different from where you currently practice?
In general, Miami is much more trendy than D.C. for obvious reasons. Miami has a much more exotic and mixed demographic simply because it’s one of the world’s largest tourist attractions. It’s where celebrities meet and set trends every single day.
People come to Miami to see and to be seen! They try to show the best version of themselves. So it’s only natural that people try to improve their face and body as much as possible. As to specific trends, I see a huge trend in people wanting to reshape their noses to a cuter and more refined nose and shaping their brows and eyelids to become more attractive.
Interestingly these trends expand quickly through social media to other regions of the country which have a lot of my patients traveling from Florida and other states to my clinic for rhinoplasties and brow lifts.
Do you ever see yourself opening a practice here?
I never say never in any aspect of my life. I always love the moment and believe that you can do anything you want. As I said, Miami is like home to me and therefore I would never exclude the possibility. Interestingly I have seen a huge shift in patients willing to travel to their favorite surgeon and see a large number of out-of-state patients traveling to my office for care.
In general, though, I never say never. Just recently I was asked to be flown into Dubai to perform surgeries there which had never crossed my mind. So now, I am actually considering it. I guess it depends on the circumstances and the possibilities that present themselves. If the opportunity is right, I will, if not, I am perfectly fine where I am.
What’s next for you in 2021?
My goals have always been the same and will remain the same for as long as I am in practice, which is the happiness of my patients. I really don’t have specific corporate goals or use any specific benchmarks if that’s what you mean. My entire focus is simple: How can I find better, more predictable, and safe ways to improve my patient’s self-esteem and self-confidence, of course within the context of my profession.
You could say it’s something I am obsessed with. A project that I’m working on because I’ve been frequently asked in the past, is to start a fellowship training program for young surgeons and teach the art of facial cosmetic surgery. I’ve always loved teaching and empowering others. It is also another way to give back and show gratitude and respect to my teachers and the field of cosmetic surgery. To pass on my knowledge to the future generation. Something I’d love to do!
In this article:A Foundation, A Foundation for Cleft Lip and Palate, Alegria, DR. DARIA HAMRAH, Featured, Miami Business, miami DR, miami influencer, miami magazine, miami news, Vault Miami
Founder & Editor-In-Chief of Vault Miami Alfred Munoz, is an American Army Veteran, Entrepreneur, and Talent Manager with over 20 years of experience in the Music industry, Leadership, Management, and Branding.
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