Dr. Semenić-Rutko, through her strong dedication, has transformed Vukovar into a flourishing center for healing and rejuvenation. In this special conversation, she opens up about her inspiring path and unwavering determination to offer top-notch medical aesthetics and intimate health services in eastern Croatia.

Can you tell us what inspired you to start the development of health tourism in Vukovar and establish the Vu Life Center?

Traveling has always been my big passion, and whenever I have the opportunity, I explore new places. As Vukovar continues to develop, we've noticed a growing number of people coming to discover the history of this region, from the Vučedol culture to more recent events. The development of cultural and memorial tourism is undoubtedly leading us towards new horizons. We still have clean air, water, and land, allowing us to offer quality relaxation and food to all our guests. By improving healthcare and experiencing significant growth in the private sector, we can make significant contributions in the realm of health tourism. When I entered the world of medical aesthetics, one thing led to another. Now, in addition to its tourist, culinary, and historical charms, Vukovar offers non-invasive medical aesthetic services, becoming one of the important destinations while significantly expanding our offerings. We all want to feel comfortable, relax, and rejuvenate, and if we can improve our health in the process, that's a big win.

Vukovar is a small town in eastern Croatia, but thanks to you, it now offers state-of-the-art technology for facial and body skin rejuvenation. What led you to bring such technology to your town?

Vukovar is a small town, but that doesn't mean there's a reason not to have the latest and highest quality services. The fact is, any beauty salon offers facial skincare, which is certainly important. However, what sets us apart is our focus on medical aesthetics. Our mission is to heal and nurture the body and skin. Working on the health of the body from the inside out is a comprehensive approach. Our technology has won prestigious first places at various medical aesthetic exhibitions - we didn't want to lag behind. Our town, and we ourselves, deserve the best. Just like anywhere else, our fellow citizens want to be healthy and beautiful. Why not provide that for them? We never doubted what we wanted. We want quality and modernity, and we have it.

Can you describe the services offered by Vu Life Center? We're particularly interested in how EXILIS and REVIDERM technologies contribute to the health and beauty of clients.

Vu Life Center has evolved into a facility offering the latest and most advanced treatments for facial and body skincare, as well as intimate care.

EXILIS BTL allows us to remodel the entire body. With its attachments, it works on facial wrinkles, areas around the eyes, eyelids, eliminates dark circles, tightens the neck and décolleté, and promotes the renewal of your own tissue, completely painless and with no recovery time. Using its other attachments, we can reshape the body, melt fat, and get rid of cellulite, all while tightening the skin. If you're considering weight correction, the EXILIS BTL treatment is ideal as it melts fat cells and tightens loose skin. You reduce waist circumference by 15 centimeters in 6 treatments. With intimate area attachment, the skin and mucous membrane of a woman's external genitalia are renewed, along with vaginal tissue, restoring the appearance and function that existed before childbirth. By combining REVIDERM dermo-cosmetics and dermo care, we determine the individual treatment based on skin analysis. Our motto is to BE NATURAL AND BE YOURSELF, and our technologies enable just that. Each of us is unique and special, and we want to emphasize our beauty.

Intimate health is often neglected, so we decided to make a difference with the latest EXILIS and EMSELLA BTL technologies, offering painless treatment for incontinence and repairing damage, significantly improving life quality.

How would you describe the advantages of your radiofrequency-based treatments compared to more aggressive procedures? How are the desired results achieved without pain?

My approach came out of a negative attitude towards gynecology, my primary field. Almost every other patient tells me how uncomfortable gynecological examinations and procedures can be. This motivated me to introduce painless, comfortable, and quick recovery technology. All our treatments are completely painless, without injections or bleeding. During the treatment, you'll feel warmth, and after the treatment, all you need to do is wash your face, remove the gel or oil, apply your usual makeup, and head out. No need to stay in the dark or experience pain or bruising. Radiofrequency treatments stimulate the body's own tissue to regenerate. Capillaries renew, and connective tissue cells are encouraged to produce connective fibers, improving blood circulation while also stimulating muscle and nerve tissue recovery. This is how we achieve excellent results without any pain. For those who want to enhance their beauty and individuality without undergoing painful procedures, this is the number one choice.

In addition to these treatments, the center offers women's intimate area shaping with the possibility of regaining urination control. How do these treatments differ from other options, and why are they important for women's health and confidence?

Intimate health is a significant part of our lives, from the first menstruation, childbirth, to menopause. Each stage is unique. Gynecology is typically a surgical field, and problems are usually resolved through sometimes painful surgery. The first encounter with completely painless treatment left me in disbelief. However, after we had the chance to try and witness the effectiveness of these treatments, we decided to take a new approach to intimate health.

Initially, we focused on woman's external genitalia, which appearance is significantly affected after childbirth and sometimes leads to an unsatisfying intimate life. We received feedback from patients whose urinary control has improved, as well as sensitivity during intimate moments. We redirected the treatment to focus not only on appearance but also on function. We achieved significant improvement in nearly 80% of patients. With such results, it motivates you to expand the possibilities. So, in addition to EXILIS, we introduced EMSELLA - a therapeutic chair with built-in focused high-frequency energy directed at the pelvic floor muscles. In just 30min treatment, you get muscle stimulation equivalent to 21,000 pelvic floor exercises. EMSELLA is a therapy for both genders. Nearly every third woman and every tenth man experience urinary issues. This isn't discussed enough, but it significantly affects the quality of life. It hinders travel, exercise, and intimate life. By combining radiofrequency and EMSELLA treatments, we achieve excellent results by not only rejuvenating the tissue but also strengthening it. Until now, these issues were addressed through surgery, often with only partial success, medications, and, unfortunately, sometimes, the only solution were pads or diapers. These treatments offer a chance to regain a quality intimate life. We aim to provide an opportunity for a new, better quality of life.

How do you see the future of Vukovar's health tourism? Are there plans to enhance or expand the offerings of the Vu Life Center?

When you're a pioneer in something, there are many obstacles and steps to overcome. Vukovar is developing. Numerous private healthcare facilities with state-of-the-art equipment are emerging, and they can cater to both local and tourist markets. We've also established the Vu Life Journey tourism agency to organize trips and showcase our region. People can experience our local cuisine, sample top-quality wines, and, of course, with our medical aesthetics treatments, they can have a significantly beneficial vacation. We are also developing counseling for weight management as well as Exilis treatments. We offer dietary supplements counseling with a test for omega-3 fatty acids so you can take what you truly need. I see the future of Vu Life Center in our work with people, where we give them back the quality of life and enable them to truly live happily.