Adrian Palma, M.D.
Board-certified surgeon (FMH). Founder and medical director of the artis AESTHETICS clinic in Zurich.
"The greatest compliment is when people don't recognize my work until they take a second look."
Anyone who performs surgery must first understand
There's a phrase that has guided my work for as long as I can remember:
First, do no harm
My top priority is to do no harm to my patients and to provide sensible and responsible medical care, including in the field of aesthetics.
It sounds like something out of a textbook, but it’s the exact opposite. It’s a daily decision. It means that I don’t operate on whatever catches my eye at first glance; instead, I want to understand first why it stands out. Sometimes this analysis leads to surgery. Sometimes it leads to a less invasive procedure than you might have expected. And sometimes it leads to a “no.”
This “no” isn’t a marketing ploy. Anyone who comes to me with a filtered photo and wants a face that isn’t their own hears it loud and clear: “I consider fulfilling such a request to be unethical and unprofessional.” Beauty is based on individuality, and individuality creates uniqueness. My job isn’t to change people. My job is to make them more clearly visible.
And because honesty is the foundation of any good treatment, this statement is also part of my philosophy: “There’s no guarantee of a happy ending.” Anyone who promises you otherwise is just trying to sell you something. I offer advice.
From Craft to Art
I was born and raised in Zurich. My first career was not in medicine, but in the hospitality industry.
I began by training in the traditional hospitality industry, studying at the Belvoirpark Hotel Management School in Zurich and working for many years in the luxury hotel sector. If you want to succeed there, you learn three things that will serve you well for life: attention to detail, composure under pressure, and the ability to read people before they’ve even said a word. I didn’t realize at the time just how much that would prepare me for a career in medicine.
Surgery found me; I didn’t find it. What keeps me in this field is the unique combination that no other specialty offers: absolute precision on the one hand, and creativity on the other. “For me, aside from experience, expertise, and empathy, it has a great deal to do with art.” This conviction later inspired the clinic’s name: artis.
After studying medicine in Cádiz, Frankfurt am Main, and Munich, I completed my residency training in various departments of plastic and reconstructive surgery as well as general surgery. After more than 15 years in aesthetic surgery, I know this: The decisive moments don’t take place in the operating room. They happen during the consultation, when someone voices for the first time what’s really on their mind. That’s when my work begins, with listening, observing, and making the correct diagnosis. Many people can perform surgery. Understanding when and why, that’s what this profession is all about.
With artis AESTHETICS in Zurich, I’ve created a place where this philosophy is part of everyday life: a clinic where surgery and aesthetic medicine operate under one roof, with transparent pricing and no promises that no one can keep.
Stations
"Those who know, do. Those who understand, teach."
Aristotle, the motto of artis ACADEMY
For me, sharing knowledge is part of the job. Those who teach must understand, and those who understand perform better.
- Training in the restaurant industry and studies at the Belvoirpark Hotel Management School in Zurich; many years of experience in the luxury hotel industry
- Medical studies in Cádiz, Frankfurt am Main, and Munich
- State Examination in Human Medicine, University of Cádiz, Spain
- Doctorate (Dr. med.), University of Zurich
- Board-certified surgeon (FMH); residency training in plastic and reconstructive surgery and general surgery
- Founding of docstation, Stettbach Health Center
- Founding of artis AESTHETICS, a clinic specializing in cosmetic surgery and aesthetic medicine, Zurich
- Current: Instructor and founder of artis ACADEMY, which provides training and continuing education for physicians in aesthetic medicine
- 2026: Another professional exchange and observation period with Juliana Barbi, specializing in eyelid and periorbital surgery, to further develop my own surgical techniques
Precision and Taste
You can tell what a person is really like by what they do when no one is watching. For me, there are three things, and if you look closely, you'll see the same pattern in all three.
For me, cooking is the most authentic form of relaxation, and at the same time a school where I’ve spent more time learning than in any lecture hall. A dish isn’t made better by more ingredients, but by the right ones, in the right proportions, at the right time. Reduction is the supreme discipline, both at the stove and in the operating room. And in the end, the same thing matters in both places: flavor. That instinct for knowing when something is just right.
Photography has taught me how light shapes a face. Anyone who has ever tried to photograph a person as they truly are, not as they pose, begins to look at faces differently. More closely. More patiently. With greater respect for what’s already there. I bring this way of seeing with me every morning to my clinic.
Golf is perhaps the most honest sport there is: there is no opponent other than one’s own impatience. A good swing doesn’t come from strength, but from calmness, repetition, and the willingness to work on a single detail a thousand times. Anyone who finds that boring has never tried it. Anyone who loves it understands why precision, for me, isn’t a requirement but a pleasure.
And then there’s what sustains it all: my family, Achilles, my dog, music, travel, a long table filled with people I care about, people for whom I’m happy to spend hours in the kitchen. These are my sources of strength. If you give a lot, you have to know where you draw your strength from.
Scientific Papers
A selection of peer-reviewed publications, including those on autologous fat transplantation (lipofilling) and the quality of medical patient information. Additional works are listed on PubMed.
- Quality of Patient Information on Lipofilling on the Internet
Dermatologic Surgery, 2021 · DOI 10.1097/DSS.0000000000002752 - Autologous Fat Grafting for Bone Defects Resulting from Osteomyelitis: A Report on a Novel Method and a Systematic Review
International Wound Journal, 2019 · DOI 10.1111/iwj.13119 - Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: Analysis of Online Patient Information Using the EQIP Tool
Chirurgie de la Main, 2015 · DOI 10.1016/j.main.2015.04.003 - A Novel Rescue Procedure for Inferior Vena Cava Reconstruction in Living-Donor Liver Transplantation Using a Vascular Graft
Transplant International, 2013 · DOI 10.1111/tri.12238
Let's get to know each other
Perhaps you’ve been carrying a question around with you for some time. Perhaps it’s just a thought that keeps coming back when you look in the mirror. Either one is a good reason to talk, and not a reason for surgery. Together, we’ll figure out which is true. Calmly, honestly, and taking as much time as it takes.
It Begins With a Conversation. Then an Analysis. Then your tailored artis AESTHETICS Solution. Time to shine!
Change takes courage, but you don’t have to face it alone. We’ll support you with a personalized treatment plan tailored to your goals and needs. Every consultation with us is as unique as you are, open, transparent, and clearly focused on your satisfaction.
Please use our contact form to get in touch with us. We will get back to you right away to discuss all the details, personally, discreetly, and as equals.
Treatments
artis AESTHETICS
Am Stadtrand 5
CH-8600 Dubendorf
- T: +41 44 820 00 66
- F: +41 44 820 00 55
- info@artis-aesthetics.ch
Hours of Operation
Mon–Fri 8:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m.
Evening and weekend appointments are available upon request.