Skin Health Begins with Understanding
Noaem Skin is a doctor and pharmacist-led skin clinic in Brighton and Hove. Our work is centred on skin longevity: supporting how your skin functions and appears throughout life, with a focus on resilience as it changes.
We combine medical rigour with detailed assessment. Prevention, monitoring and treatment are brought together to care for your skin as it is now while anticipating how its needs may change over time.
Meet your practitioners
Noaem was founded by prescribing pharmacist Iki Rhode and Dr Christopher Vary to bring medical rigour to the long-term care of skin.
We work with technologies and medical partners selected carefully, but no brand or device determines a patient’s care. Their value depends on sound clinical judgement, including knowing when not to use them.
Together, we have shaped a medically led clinic where expertise stands behind our advice and recommendations are only what we believe is appropriate for the individual.
The consultation is where care begins
For us, the treatment is never the starting point.
We first take the time to understand your medical and skin history, examine your skin closely and discuss what you would genuinely like to change.
Observ520x clinical skin imaging helps us examine features that may be less apparent under ordinary light. Its images are interpreted alongside the consultation and clinical examination to build a fuller understanding of your skin.
Only then do we recommend a way forward. This may involve skincare or prescription treatment alongside a procedure selected for a clear clinical reason. Sometimes the right advice is to wait or begin more simply. At other times, treatment may not be appropriate at all.
Our patients often tell us that they leave their first consultation understanding their skin in a way they never have before. We want you to understand the reasoning behind every recommendation rather than feeling that something has been sold to you.
We look beyond appearance to understand how skin behaves
Skin is a living, responsive organ. What we see at the surface is shaped by how it renews and repairs itself. Pigment regulation and collagen production influence what becomes visible, as does the skin’s response to inflammation.
Healthy skin is not defined by the absence of every line or visible imperfection. It retains the capacity to function and recover as it changes over time.
Our aim is not simply to correct visible concerns in isolation. We look at the biological processes contributing to them and, where possible, support healthier skin function.
This is the distinction at the heart of Noaem. We want to improve how skin looks today while helping it remain healthier over time.
Meet Your Practitioners
Ms Iki Rhode BSc(Hons) PGCert MRPharmS IP
Prescribing pharmacist and skin health specialist
Iki is a GPhC-registered pharmacist and independent prescriber with more than 20 years of clinical experience.
Her background spans hospital pharmacy and GP practice, as well as community pharmacy. It gives her a detailed understanding of medicines, formulation science and the factors that can influence how skin behaves.
Her work at Noaem is informed by a particular interest in skin biology and regenerative treatments, including the changes women experience through their forties and beyond.
Iki leads The Noaem Skin Consultation. Her appointments allow time for detailed assessment, with complex skin science explained in a way that makes each recommendation clear.
What makes Iki different:
- Understands ingredient chemistry at a molecular level (not just marketing claims)
- Can spot manipulated statistics and misleading product claims instantly
- Knows which formulations will actually deliver results for your specific skin
- Can prescribe medical-grade treatments when needed
- Approaches skin concerns with pharmaceutical precision
Iki’s work at Noaem includes:
- The Noaem Skin Consultation and Observ520x analysis
- BBL HEROic, MOXI and other light-based treatments
- Microneedling, chemical peels and advanced facial treatment
- Skincare assessment, prescribing and longer-term planning
Dr Christopher Vary MBBS BSc(Hons)
Doctor and injectable specialist
Dr Chris is a GMC-registered doctor who qualified from St George’s, University of London in 2012.
His background in anaesthesia and critical care brings a deep understanding of physiology and patient safety. It also informs the calm, precise approach he brings to treatment and clinical decision-making.
At Noaem, Dr Chris focuses particularly on injectable treatment and facial assessment. His aim is not to change the character of a face, but to understand how movement, proportion and skin quality contribute to the concern being treated.
He also contributes to Noaem’s wider clinical standards and the assessment of patients considering laser or light treatment.
What makes Dr Chris different:
- Medical doctor training means he understands complications, contraindications, and safety at the highest level
- Anaesthesia background = exceptional needle technique and patient comfort
- Critical care experience = calm under pressure, meticulous attention to detail
- He critically appraises all drugs and equipment (only medical-grade products make the cut)
- He’ll tell you the truth, even if it means less treatment revenue
Dr Chris’s work at Noaem includes:
- Consultations for facial expression lines and wrinkles
- Injectable skin treatments, including polynucleotides and skin boosters
- Eye rejuvenation and treatment of the mouth area
- Polynucleotides, skin boosters and laser or light treatment
Medical expertise in practice
Being medically led shapes how decisions are made throughout your care.
Iki and Dr Chris work within the professional standards of the GPhC and GMC. Their clinical backgrounds allow them to interpret the skin within the wider context of health, medication and previous treatment.
Medical leadership does not mean that every concern requires medical treatment. Its value lies in knowing what may help, what is unlikely to add enough benefit and when another professional should be involved.
What we assess / How it informs your care
Medical history and current medication Helps identify contraindications and occasions when treatment should be postponed
Skin tone, pigment history, recent tanning and sun exposure Influences treatment selection, preparation and the settings that may be appropriate
Current skincare and previous treatment response Helps avoid unnecessary duplication or irritation
Available evidence and individual risk Establishes whether a treatment offers enough value to justify proceeding
The skin’s response over time Allows the plan to be reviewed and adapted rather than repeated automatically
Our approach
Many people come to Noaem because what they see in the mirror no longer reflects how they feel. They may feel energetic and well, yet notice tiredness or changes in their skin that seem out of keeping with the person they know themselves to be.
They are not asking to become someone else. They want to look well and still recognise themselves, with make-up becoming a choice rather than something they rely on to conceal their skin.
Our work respects individuality and is guided by restraint. The best result does not announce what you have had done. It leaves people thinking you look exceptionally well.
Skin longevity is not about preventing ageing. It means understanding and supporting your skin as its needs change throughout life.
Healthy skin is rarely created by one product or dramatic intervention. It develops through consistent care, with prevention and treatment used where each can add genuine value.
Hormonal change and general health can influence how the skin functions. Medication and daily habits may also have a role. We take these connections into account without expecting perfection or suggesting that every concern can be resolved through lifestyle alone.
Our role is to help you distinguish evidence from noise and build an approach you can sustain.
Over time, you should become more knowledgeable about your skin and more confident in the choices you make for it. Success is not dependence on increasingly dramatic intervention. It is skin that has been understood and cared for well, reflected in someone who looks entirely themselves.
Ten years from now, success will not mean looking as though you have spent a decade trying not to age. It will mean looking as though you have had a good ten years.
A small clinic by design
Noaem Skin is located at 193 Portland Road in Hove, close to central Brighton.
The clinic has one treatment room by design. We see a small number of patients each day, allowing appointments to be completed by the same two clinicians without creating the pace or anonymity of a larger clinic.
Our way of working is built around:
- Longer appointments where detailed assessment is required
- Continuity with Iki and Dr Chris throughout your care
- Clinical imaging and standardised photography where appropriate
- Time to explain recommendations and answer your questions
Our clinic room is the Skin & Laser Suite. Consultation, Observ520x imaging and treatment take place within the same private clinical setting.
Noaem is also part of our own community. We live locally and established the clinic to provide the standard of skin care we would want available to the people around us.
Why Patients Choose Noaem Skin
4.8/5 on Google
Here’s what real patients say:
“Iki and Chris are amazing. I wouldn’t trust anyone else with my temperamental dry skin. They have completely transformed my life.”
“From the first consultation I have felt at ease and totally invested in the treatments and products Iki recommends. Time, attention and detail is very thorough and tailored to my skin’s needs. The results I have received are incredible.”
“Dr Chris is also an absolute master with the needle. Again, very honest and thorough in assessing your skins needs with absolutely no pressure to have any treatments unless really needed. Highly recommend.”
“I had the retinol treatment with Iki and also bought some skincare products to use at home. Iki was wonderful throughout! She was extremely attentive to what I wanted to achieve at our initial consultation, very accommodating with appointments, and always super careful when applying the treatment.”
Begin with The Noaem Skin Consultation
The Noaem Skin Consultation is a 90-minute appointment with Iki Rhode. It includes detailed discussion and examination together with Observ520x clinical skin imaging.
The purpose is to understand what is happening within your skin before treatment or skincare recommendations are made.