The Institute of Dermatologists: ‘We’re setting up Ireland’s first private skin cancer centre of excellence’

Proof of how hard these business partners work? When we finally get to jump on a call for this interview, it’s after 8pm, after a struggle to find a slot in their working week. Right now, they are busier than ever as they continue to run a successful dermatology consulting business while setting up two more projects. Of course, to look at them, you’d never guess the long hours they work. While I am wilting away here on the call at 10pm in Estonia, they look like they just stepped out of a salon. They clearly have the secret to rejuvenation and longevity nailed.

Ralph tells me she’s forbidding Ryan from getting pregnant again, or to go away on holiday, as it’s during those times that she comes up with her best ideas, ideas that have led to the impressive pair not only launching and running The Institute of Dermatologists in Dublin but also setting up a new surgical clinic and developing their very own longevity supplement.

“At the moment, we’re in the middle of setting up our new Surgical Institute of Dublin, and that’s a different venture altogether,” says Ryan. “It’s Ireland’s first private skin cancer centre of excellence.”

The venture will bring together a host of consultants, plastic surgeons and dermatologists, who are experts in skin cancer, under one roof. It will complete every step the patient needs along their treatment journey, including surgery, so no need to take external appointments or join hospital waiting lists. “This is a very different model; it’s a physician investor model. So there’s an awful lot of work going into that, a lot of balls in the air,” says Ryan, who is planning for a high standard of patient care with this model. They are also partnering with Conor Murphy on the project, who brings with him healthcare finance and directorship experience.

“If they [the physicians] are part owners, it brings the patient back into focus and makes sure that we uphold the highest standard of care when it comes to patient care – nobody gets squeezed. We will always operate to the very best for the patients,” she adds.

Both business models are following the US private clinic playbook, something Ryan was impressed with when she worked in the States after qualifying. Ralph and Ryan worked together as junior doctors before going on different paths; Ryan Stateside while Ralph remained on Irish soil. They were reunited again when they held practices alongside each other in Dublin. Why not pool their resources and expertise? Ryan was pregnant, the idea mill was overflowing, and alongside her first child, The Institute of Dermatologists was born. Ralph tells me that Ryan was signing contracts from the maternity ward as the clinic opened three weeks before she gave birth. “Looking back, we were signing a 20-year lease with a concept that hadn’t really been run in Ireland before, and we had it up and running by July of that year,” says Ryan.

The team of experts across all fields of medical and cosmetic dermatology has now increased to 14. “It’s been a bit of a whirlwind in the last six years,” adds Ryan.

Winning the IMAGE PwC Businesswoman of the Year award for Entrepreneur of the Year was a reward for the past six years of building and creating the new dermatology practice. Ralph happened to be away on annual leave, so she was celebrating the win from a dude ranch in Arizona, but Ryan was there to pick up the award on the night. “We were blown away, especially as we were surrounded by so many other great nominees,” she says. “It was such a powerful moment for us, we’ve put our heart and soul into everything we’ve done these past six years (and more), so to have the endorsement of this award, to recognise everything we have done and are trying to achieve, is incredible.”

The inspiration for the surgical clinic came from the Covid experience, when surgeries were cancelled and a temporary solution meant surgeries were done on premises, but private insurance complications meant surgeries had to return to the hospitals. “You have to be an approved facility; we have been working for five years to get this through,” says Ryan. This means that instead of seeing patients every six months to get another skin cancer removed in a hospital, they can be treated quickly in the comfort of the clinic. “That’s where the idea came about of having a surgical centre where the patient could come in to be seen with a lesion and potentially walk out the door with that lesion removed on the same day,” says Ralph. The surgical clinic will sit right next door to the dermatology clinic in Ballsbridge.

With a busy clinic on the go, a new clinic on the way and a longevity supplement scheduled to roll out in Q4, how do the pair manage to balance their working relationship to keep the partnership intact? “We work incredibly well together. We’ve never had an argument in the six years; it’s really a work marriage, I suppose. And we have very different personalities, but it works. It works brilliantly in the way we deal with things. Nikki is really logical, and I probably get more emotional. We’re great that way, because we always find the middle ground on things,” says Ryan.

“We worked together as junior doctors, and I think it’s the three hardest years of your life as a doctor. When you’re working long hours every week and you’re on call with a person who you know works just as hard as you and cares about the patient as much and you’ll help each other out – you’re literally thanking your lucky stars that you’re on call with that person. Because if you’re on call with someone who just isn’t that way inclined, you know your life’s going to be a lot tougher that night,” says Ralph. “Having worked with Caitriona in Beaumont over those first few years of our training, we were very like-minded in how we worked, and I knew she had my back, and vice versa,” she says. “She’s incredibly driven, so positive, and has had so many incredible ideas over the last six years, I couldn’t think of anyone better to work with. It’s not easy when you’re trying to be a doctor all day and then do these other bits at the same time, and so it’s having the same kind of goals and mindset,” adds Ralph.

We are losing the light on my side as we finish up the call. I know I’m fit for bed, but I have the feeling that they are about to jump onto their next task before finishing out their day. Same mindset, different personalities, a match made in skincare heaven.

This is the second in a series of articles written in collaboration with The Currency. Chief Executive of The Currency, Tom Lyons, was a judge at the annual IMAGE PwC Businesswoman of the Year Awards.

Become an annual member of The Currency today and get unrivalled daily coverage of Irish business, finance and economics. Get access to more than 7,000 unique interviews, investigations, insights, and features, as well as over 400 original podcasts – plus all new content for the next 12 months.

Online-only and subscription-only, The Currency examine the sectors, people, and companies that matter. Members also get access to regular events with business leaders, policymakers and opinion shapers; often in collaboration with blue chip partners. 

Join The Currency today.