A Pioneer in Heath, Happiness, and Beauty.

“He had a single deep stab wound to the back of his chest,” said Doctor Lodze Steckman describing a recent patient in the ER. “He was young, big, autistic and had been here before.”

Dr. Lodze Steckman is a double board-certified general surgeon with special expertise in cardiothoracic and a fellow of the American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery.

Steckman is a double board-certified general surgeon with special expertise in cosmetic and cardiothoracic surgery. Most of us are familiar with cosmetic surgery. It’s the tummy tuck, or the BBL (Brazilian Butt Lift) that makes movie stars and ordinary people look spectacular. But a cardiothoracic surgeon? For those who don’t know, I for one had to look it up, a cardiothoracic surgeon is one who specializes in surgical procedures of the heart, lungs, esophagus, and other organs in the chest.

New Yorkers benefit from living in a city with some of the world’s best medical professionals. Unlike other places, safety here is rarely a concern. After all, here you get a tummy tuck from a cosmetic surgeon, that is also a double board-certified and with expertise in cardiothoracic surgery. Credentials like this alleviate the need to worry about safety, allowing patients to focus on fitting into clothes they haven’t worn for a decade or never dreamed of wearing.

Steckman operates Jouvence Aesthetics and Wellness, a cosmetic and stem cell-based regenerative medical practice. Her expertise in cardiothoracic surgery provides comfort to those concerned about the safety of a procedure. Those who know Dr. Steckman are very familiar with her dedication to patients. Those who are only now learning will be pleasantly surprised.

From Humble Beginnings

It’s easy to envy an overachiever who comes to the U.S., completes fellowship in cardiac surgery, followed by a general surgery residency at Harlem Hospital, working, simultaneously, as a Columbia University research fellow, developing injury reduction programs for the elderly while also working as a member of Harlem Hospital’s Disaster Emergency Preparedness Committee charged with protecting New York City from natural and man-made disasters, including terrorist attacks using nuclear or biological weapons.

Dr. Steckman and her husband volunteered in Haiti after the earthquake.

Think it can’t get any more impressive? Wait. Dr. Steckman was raised by a single mother in Haiti, the poorest country in the Western hemisphere, in a home with no running water. From an early age, she was told there were limited career paths for her, and education was the only means by which she could thrive.  So, she studied hard.

She graduated high school early and by 17 was excelling in medical school. By age 30 she was Chief Surgeon at two major hospitals and the Chair of the HealthCare Reform Committee. She went on to serve as Coordinator for Disaster Relief for the Red Cross and Haiti’s Commissioner of Disaster Management.

After being kidnapped at gun point and threatened with death, she moved to the United States. Here she continued to excel.

Dedicated ER Surgeon

Steckman still works at area hospitals as far flung as Harlem in NYC to Upstate New York. It was during a shift in the ER that the terrified autistic young man showed up with a stab wound, bleeding, short of breath and with an increased heart rate. He was big, violent and foul-mouthed. Steckman had taken care of him before.

“He was a troubled young man,” she said. “His family could no longer care for him due to his size and violent outbursts.

That night was challenging. After placing a tube in his chest, Steckman was forced to sedate and intubate him so he would not hurt himself by removing the tube that was keeping him alive. After a long night, the young man’s mother thanked Steckman, “I’m so grateful you were on tonight. I don’t like the fact that my son had to go through this, but I know that he was in good hands.”

On the Front lines of Covid

During the height of Covid-19, when hospitals were straining to meet demand, Steckman was there, caring of Covid-19 patients in Emergency Rooms and Intensive Care Units.

Dr. Steckman dressed in full PPE gear, looking like a storm trooper from the Star Wars movie franchise.

At the epicenter, while consoling scared patients, she and her staff concealed their own fear. Dressed in full PPE gear, looking like a storm trooper from the Star Wars movie franchise, she knew that alongside medical treatment, providing patients emotional comfort was even more critical. Steckman remembered one man. He was terrified and alone as many covid patients were. His anxiety was making his symptoms worse. Steckman saw he was a religious man and offered to say a quick prayer with him. He calmed down, and she could care of his medical needs.

Months later he came back to the ER with a sick daughter. He smiled when he saw Steckman and told her he remembers what she did for him. He was grateful.

A Premiere Aesthetic Surgeon

Dr. Steckman received advanced training in her specialties in France, Israel, and the U.S.  Making people feel beautiful goes together with keeping them healthy. Her motto, “Look Better, Feel Better, Live Better,” says it all. With Covid-19 causing so much anxiety, her focus on health and happiness has found welcome reception among her patients.

“It’s not enough to look great,” she tells us from her Park Ave offices. “True happiness comes from being healthy enough to enjoy the blessing we were given.” This approach is unique among aesthetic and cosmetic practices and is also why Steckman has incorporated regenerative medicine into her practice. Many of the same components of a vampire facial, for example, are the same that help sore joints regenerate tissue and reduce pain. These plasma-rich platelets, or PRP, rejuvenate skin and arthritic joints, and make us look and feel younger. It’s why her lipo patients often leave healthier than when they arrived.

Steckman, fluent in French, Creole, English and Spanish, broke free from the constraints of poverty, and overcame the challenges associated with being a woman and a person of color in such a competitive field. Now she is focused on using her surgical skills to deliver the best customized care to her patients, in a unique and individualized manner, linking heath, happiness, peace and beauty.

Visit Jouvence Aesthetics and Wellness at Jouvence-ny.com.