"For some, the KPI is revenue; for us, the KPI is minus several years of biological age"

“We must deliver higher service and create a truly human-centric atmosphere”

– Looking at 2025, what would you start with, what important conclusion have you drawn as a manager?

– I’ll say this: there’s no limit to perfection. Each time we dive into processes and day-to-day operations, meeting with guests, we discover new directions for growth and ways of connecting with people. Last year we kept the conversation going with guests, and this proved to be an incredibly valuable and useful experience. We didn’t limit ourselves to standard questionnaires about hotel service or general satisfaction. We were interested in deeper motivations: why do people come for wellness at all, why undergo check-ups, what personal story is behind it?

Medicine is an industry where there’s a great deal of drama and emotion, it’s a socially responsible sphere. Here, things touch people very deeply. And they far more often speak not about themselves but about the health of their loved ones, family.

We see 100% that our guests are becoming more educated specifically on health and personal wellness. In my view, this is a sign of a very high level of awareness. And this elevates the entire industry to a new level, but simultaneously creates a serious challenge for the whole wellness industry.

It’s not only about medicine as such, and not only about the responsibility of physicians managing our guest-patients. This concerns the entire ecosystem: we must deliver higher service, create a truly human-centric atmosphere. This also applies to our partners who offer new technologies: they too must sensitively understand guests’ real needs.

For example, I’m currently wearing a continuous glucose monitor myself – we test everything on ourselves first. I’ve been measuring glucose levels for 16 days now. Not in blood, but in interstitial fluid, but it’s a very interesting experiment. The fitness trainer, the physician, and the general director have all installed sensors. You eat something, and immediately see how the numbers change. The technology is genuinely engaging.

We constantly try to track such innovations, find them, and bring them here. First, because we can offer guests something genuinely new and useful. Second, because it’s important for us to understand what’s happening in the market: what makes sense to purchase, what’s worth bringing in from outside and testing. 

Speaking more broadly about processes, today’s guests aren’t so much more demanding as they are more attentive, thoughtful, and aware. These are people with time constraints, typically 35–40 years old and older, at an age when they seriously begin thinking about longevity, how to live life with quality and remain high-functioning. People who carry two phones and several more gadgets. They track everything, ask our experts very thoughtful questions, and want to understand. We respond to this demand: we conduct lectures, expert brunches, and invite professors. We have a Scientific Council that provides us with a serious evidence-based foundation.

For such guests, marketing is no longer interesting. They need scientifically validated methods. They say: “Show me before and after.” And preferably in a fairly short timeframe, because almost no one has 21 days for vacation anymore. Therefore, classical spa and resort treatment, in my opinion, is definitely changing. That classical sanatorium model where you have 21 days for water therapy and baths, the doctor meets with you once and then simply sends a program – that no longer works.

Added to this is another important factor – adaptation. Moving from one region to another in a short time is in itself serious stress for the body, and we often underestimate its impact. A flight, for example, from Tyumen to a different time zone, to Crimea, to a different climate and humidity – that’s a heavy load.

Usually people travel with family. Family is also considerable stress: everyone needs to feel good and comfortable. They arrive in large groups, with parents, the older generation. And everyone needs attention, time, and the opportunity to join in the shared experience while maintaining family harmony.

This, first of all, dramatically accelerates the technology component. Lab work needs to be done faster to see the current picture. It’s necessary to deliver a quick, measurable effect that’s tangible to the person – both in subjective sensations and by objective indicators. And everything must happen as seamlessly as possible for the guest, using high technology.

– Looking at 2025–2026, what new trends in people’s health would you highlight?

– There’s a trend that will only intensify – adolescent health. They simultaneously bear the burden of classic teenage development and very strong virtual pressure. Formally these are all the same eternal teenage issues, but the form, speed, and intensity have changed.

Our sports psychologist works extensively with teenagers – parents bring them to us. And the most common, almost universal request from teens sounds paradoxical against the backdrop of overflowing chats and social media – loneliness. With an enormous number of virtual contacts, they feel very lonely in real life, and we can no longer ignore this.

Why do we call this a trend rather than isolated cases? Because parents are changing too. Everything still begins in the family, but parents are becoming much more aware: they see what pressure the child lives under and understand that supporting their health is important. They themselves invest in their own health, exercise, reconsider habits, and want the same for their children. In my view, this is a very healthy, mature demand from society.

“If the task used to be ‘treat the disease,’ today the focus is shifting toward ‘care for the person’”

– Is the “acceleration” tendency a story specific to recent years? Can we say it only showed up in 2025?

– Rather, in 2025 it simply stepped into the spotlight. That’s when we clearly saw a surge in wellness visits: people began coming not just to relax by the sea but with a clear request for health and results.

Of course, our own agenda influenced this: we declared that the resort is betting on wellness, that we want to be a leader in this direction and are consciously developing it. But it’s not only about us. There’s also a broader context: a presidential decree setting the goal of increasing life expectancy.

We already see how the industry is transforming: a new profession is emerging – the longevity physician. Behind it, the entire educational system will inevitably follow: institutes, universities, physician training programs. These aren’t cosmetic changes but serious restructuring.

And this, of course, changes healthcare as a whole. Physicians will study differently, see patients differently, invest differently in the wellness process itself. If the task used to be “treat the disease,” today the focus is shifting toward “care for the person.” Now a person is studied 360 degrees: how they eat, sleep, what and how they consume, and no less importantly, what they don’t eat. What matters is not only what you consume but also what deficiencies you’re accumulating.

No less significant is one’s environment: who you communicate with, what communities you live in, what support you receive. This is already a proven factor: community and connections strongly influence health.

Therefore, when we say a person needs to change their lifestyle and we want to help, we understand: this is enormous work not only for them personally but also for their family, work partners, assistants who help organize daily life and schedules. This is truly a comprehensive story.

When we write “my track” – a wellness strategy – we deliberately make it in the simplest, most accessible language so that any person who interacts with the guest can read it, understand it, and support it.

At our resort we have a sports psychologist who works with such requests. And if we divide the audience into men and women, men today have a powerful need – to remain highly effective for as long as possible. The pressure from business and work is enormous, and they acutely feel this.

“Our principle is simple: not person for program, but program for person”

– Do men’s and women’s requests differ?

– With women we see primarily a request for harmonious, vibrant relationships with a partner. This includes sexual wellbeing – today people speak about it much more openly, and this is correct because it’s natural.

No less important is preserving reproductive health, because it directly affects both wellbeing, appearance, and a sense of security for the future. Women now work on equal footing with men, and in my field these are typically very strong, vibrant individuals.

Often these are women over 40 who clearly state: “It’s important for me to be with my children and family as long as possible.” Translated into the language of meaning, the deep motive sounds like this: I want not to be a burden but to remain active, travel, build my career, and be part of family life. Given that women have begun having children later, this request is only intensifying.

Speaking of men, in some ways they genuinely turn out to be the “weaker sex” – in terms of anxiety levels. Pressure comes from several directions simultaneously: work, business, responsibility for family. And they very honestly state: “I have many personal and family goals, which means I must remain maximally active.”

Hence the next step: understanding that health must be attended to not only through one’s spouse, though often wives are the initial catalyst. We see a sharp increase in requests for check-ups and diagnostics – almost always with emphasis on speed and efficiency. Here the experience of Asian countries is close to us, where a check-up takes four hours. This is a completely different world compared to a two- or three-day medical examination where half the time goes to waiting rooms and travel. There you simply arrive – and everything happens in one place.

We’ve built a similar model. The resort has an equipped high-tech office: the guest enters, sits down, and then everything revolves around them. Blood draw, ECG, ultrasound, functional diagnostics – all in one space. We timed it: 40 minutes – and the person is free. In three weeks they receive a health strategy – essentially a personal “book” in paper or electronic form with a full breakdown of test results that can be shown to their doctor, and a clear strategy reflecting biological age, vascular age, cognitive age. These are objective benchmarks. Plus, clear recommendations on nutrition, routine, sleep and wake times. The person receives their personal health roadmap.

At the same time, we understand our guests’ profile very well. I can’t tell a person: “Go to bed at 9:30 PM.” They’ll respond: “Thank you, but I have a night life. I’m productive at night, write books, make music, wake up at 11 – that’s how my reality is structured.” And if I insist on waking at five in the morning and “catching photons,” trust will disappear instantly.

Therefore our principle is simple: not person for program, but program for person. Here the medical concierge – the guest support service – plays a huge role. It engages before arrival, during, and after the stay. Before arrival we thoroughly collect medical history: what medications the person takes, what goal they’re setting, by what signs they’ll know they’ve achieved it, how much time they have, how they train, what they eat and drink, whether they smoke. For this there’s a detailed questionnaire, then an online meeting with a physician. And already at the resort – an in-person consultation, after which, without losing a single day, the program starts: this can be a check-up or a chosen wellness trajectory.

“Mriya is visited annually by about 55,000 guests – we have an enormous database not only to conceive but also to test hypotheses”

– How is the scientific component of your wellness programs structured?

– For us the scientific approach is fundamental: the resort operates a Center for Scientific Research under the direction of Professor Arseny Trukhanov. We come to colleagues with applied requests: “Give us methodology, tools, and equipment that will allow measuring effect: reduction in metabolic age, weight, change in body composition, sleep quality.”

Dietitians, a functional and personalized nutrition restaurant join in, and on this basis a program is assembled that can be relied upon not intuitively but with evidence. Since Mriya is visited annually by about 55,000 guests, we have an enormous database not only to conceive but also to test hypotheses.

And this story isn’t only about “pure” medicine. For example, about winemaking. We have a wine park and our own wine. The beverage contains polyphenols – powerful antioxidants and liver protectors. The higher their content, the stronger the wine’s potential healing properties. Together with partners we conducted research, and here our key scientific partner is Vernadsky Crimean Federal University and other authoritative Russian scientific centers. 

We discuss results and new ideas at the Scientific Council, which convenes approximately once every two months. For each session we invite professors and PhDs. If you look at the list of experts, this is genuinely the scientific elite examining the longevity phenomenon from different angles.

– How do you decide which new methods are worth implementing versus leaving in experimental status?

– We have a clear filter: scientific validity, safety, and guest demand. At the resort, new methods are simultaneously tracked by the scientific center, expert physicians, and the management team: we review equipment, gadgets, technologies, including through partnerships like Skolkovo, and first test them under controlled conditions.

Previously the physician made the decision; today responsibility for health is shared, and it’s important for us to understand not only what research shows but also what the guest themselves expects from the method.

In practice this means two things. First, systematic fact-checking: before purchasing equipment or implementing technology, we bring the question to the Scientific Council and request an independent opinion. The market has an enormous number of solutions, and we consciously filter out a significant portion due to insufficient evidence base.

Second, respect for individual boundaries. There are guests open to integrative approaches: Ayurveda, acupuncture, breathing practices. These methods have both centuries of application experience and a modern evidence base, and our physicians comfortably include them in programs if this corresponds to the person’s request and condition. There are guests who firmly stand on the position of “only classical medicine” – and then we rely exclusively on methods with strict clinical data.

Essentially, the decision is always born at the intersection of science, clinical judgment, and the person’s own readiness. Only what passes through all three “filters” stops being an experiment and becomes part of our practice.

“As soon as aging is recognized as a disease with its own code, the entire industry will inevitably begin restructuring around it”

– What indicators do you consider honest and applicable for a sanatorium? How to understand that a person has genuinely achieved their goal: recovered from burnout, is ready to return to work, successfully completed rehabilitation?

– For us, honest result assessment always consists of two blocks – subjective and objective.

From the subjective side, we work through questionnaires and live dialogue. When a person enters a program, we directly ask: “What do you expect? How will you know this worked for you?” In stories about stress, answers are almost always about state: “I tire less,” “I sleep better,” “I wake up at night less often,” “it’s easier to get up in the morning.” This can’t be measured by a blood test, but for the person themselves these are key success markers.

From the objective side, we rely on measurements. The basic layer is lab work and functional assessments; the next is biological age models. We currently work with at least three:

• PhenoAge – blood analysis by nine parameters, giving a snapshot here and now and a prognosis for several weeks;
• Cognitive age – tests for memory, reaction speed, quality of cognitive functions before and after the program;
• CardioAge – heart and vascular age, calculated from blood data, ultrasound, functional tests, and vascular wall characteristics.

Together this provides a clear picture: what state the person arrived in, what state they left in, and what’s happening between stays. But this isn’t enough if the person doesn’t know how to live with these results going forward.

Therefore the next layer is support. We help integrate new habits into real life: we remind about follow-up tests, taking prescribed supplements, visits to specialists, and when necessary we coordinate with their fitness trainer.

A separate tool is genetic testing. These aren’t about tomorrow’s diagnoses but about the foundation: what sport you’re predisposed to, how you react to stress, how your reward system works, what diet you tolerate better, how quickly certain substances are eliminated. But the “book of genes” itself says little, so we always conduct an in-depth consultation and translate the language of genes into concrete decisions: what you should do and what you definitely shouldn’t do.

Ultimately the criterion is very simple: we consider the goal achieved when three parameters align: the person subjectively feels better, this is confirmed by objective indicators, and they have a clear, realistic plan for maintaining this state after leaving the sanatorium.

– Why do your programs pay so much attention specifically to biological age?

– We genuinely rely on biological age as one of the key benchmarks. Unlike chronological age, it can be precisely measured, tracked dynamically, and you can see how real risks and the body’s resources change. For us this is an honest indicator of whether we’re bringing a person closer to longevity or not.

Looking more broadly, at the level of the healthcare system and government policy, the logic is this: as soon as aging is recognized as a disease with its own code – for example, accelerated or abnormal aging – the entire industry will inevitably begin restructuring around it.

At minimum, primary care and diagnostics will change, but essentially the transformation will affect everything: the mandatory health insurance system, the structure of medical institutions, physician training programs, priorities for scientific research. I think we’ll get there eventually. At the moment when aging formally becomes an object of treatment and prevention, the healthcare focus will shift from reacting to diseases toward systematic work with longevity – not as an afterthought but as a core mission.

“We are not obligated to offer everything on the market if it doesn’t align with the resort’s spirit and our guests’ lifestyle”

– What management decisions are critical so that medicine isn’t “swallowed up” by hotel logic?

– Every time we ask ourselves: “What to change? How can I make it better?” the next question is: “How will it be better for the guest?” Our environment itself is attractive: mountains, warm sea, sunshine, developed infrastructure. All this easily shifts focus from wellness to leisure. At the same time, we have two large groups: those who come for wellness, and those who want to integrate wellness into vacation. Our task is to make the transition between rest and treatment as seamless as possible.

Hence the first management decision – flexibility, but not at medicine’s expense. Procedures have a clear medical protocol, but when composing schedules we look at how a person actually lives these days. In summer at 1 PM everyone’s at the beach – and that’s normal – so we structure diagnostic and procedure windows so they don’t compete with the obvious vacation logic.

Second, integrating medicine into the familiar guest scenario, not a parallel “hospital on the grounds.” We bring fitness to the beach so it’s visible and audible – even if a person hadn’t planned to exercise, they get a chance to become interested and try. On the buffet line we’ve reworked 55% of the menu toward a healthy diet: desserts are still delicious but now sugar-free, and most guests don’t even notice this.

Third, an expertise point “in the field.” We have a healthy eating station where a nutrition specialist works – essentially several roles in one person: nutritionist, dietitian, neurologist, sleep specialist. They can suggest right at the line what to put on your plate and what to avoid today.

Fourth, education as a constant presence. We not only treat but show by example: how employees themselves care for health, how their programs are structured. Plus lectures, expert brunches, coaching sessions – formats where you can ask tough questions about health and get a human, not formal, answer.

And fifth, a dual management model. I, as department director, am not a physician and look at everything through the guest’s eyes: route, convenience, service interfaces. My partner, the chief physician, is responsible for medical strategy: how to implement new approaches, what and how to teach physicians, how not to lose medical quality in a beautiful hotel setting.

When we discuss new equipment or methodology, we always have two filters: “evidence-based and effective?” and “comfortable for the guest?” There are procedures that work brilliantly but are subjectively very difficult. And here is precisely where the management position shows up: we are not obligated to offer everything that exists on the market if it doesn’t align with the resort’s spirit and our guests’ lifestyle.

– What mistakes do sanatoriums most often make when trying to “attach” medicine to an already operating resort?

– You can’t take a finished resort and attach medicine to it. There must be a medical core originally built into the architecture: into logistics, buildings, the guest’s journey, the nutrition system, into that very healing environment that already heals by itself.

For example, we have special rooms for the healthy sleep program. Everything there – light, scent, books on the shelf, sound, light activation scenarios – is focused on one task: restore sleep. The guest can control lighting with voice, and the entire space works toward the goal they came for.

Or the nutrition and sports connection. Sensors are installed on the guest, we collect data, and the physician looks: when are their peaks, when are dips, at what time is it better for them to go meditate in the Japanese garden versus when to take a daytime nap. At what time is it more beneficial to go running versus when a calm walk through the wine park is sufficient.

This is the healing environment, and it certainly isn’t limited to my department. I go to the Director of the Recreation and Theme Parks Department and say: “Let’s place a fitness zone or cardio zone on the beach with such a view that people want to come there at sunrise and run – if they don’t want to run through the wine park where paths are already laid out.” Or I approach the head of the children’s park and say: “Let’s teach children how to eat properly. Let’s replace snacks, remove some fast food, let ice cream be sugar-free.” That is, this story isn’t only about the wellness department and purely the medical component. It concerns the entire resort.

At the resort every person can find what inspires them toward a new lifestyle. Because when a person sees beauty, exercises, and spends time with children – this isn’t only about physical activity. It’s about new neural connections, a new mental state. The resort is family-oriented, and we give the whole family a chance to be here so that everyone gets what they specifically need.

“Partial inclusion of spa and resort treatment in the mandatory health insurance system is an investment in prevention and active longevity, not an ‘add-on’”

– How do you formulate the resort’s mission regarding wellness and longevity?

– Our task is to create scientifically validated programs that genuinely extend the period of healthy active life, not simply provide a beautiful picture of seaside rest. A person should leave not only with pleasant impressions but with tangible changes in wellbeing and habits.

One of the key programs where this philosophy is fully realized is “Code of Youth.” It includes over a hundred parameters: from biomarkers and genetics to functional diagnostics and physical activity recommendations. When the guest arrives, we measure biological age according to several models and repeat measurements afterward. The program starts from seven days: we too would like to speed things up, but the body doesn’t change qualitatively in two to three days; honest shifts require time. At the same time, each case is highly personalized: people have different baseline states, habits, lifestyles.

An illustrative example – a New Year’s guest who honestly said: “I want champagne, Olivier salad, and my usual New Year’s, not waking at seven in the morning and going running.” Somewhere we accommodated him, and somewhere we engaged a more directive approach and negotiated steps toward the result. We share responsibility. “For some, the KPI is revenue; for us, the KPI is minus several years of biological age.”

The second block is specialized programs. Besides “Code of Youth,” there’s, for example, “Territory of Sleep” for those who come wanting “teach me to sleep and take the skill home.” We use sleep monitors, analyze sleep architecture, and apnea episodes. The Detox program responds to demand for gentle, European-style detoxification: we work with the lymphatic system, liver, microbiome, biorhythms. This is visible in external appearance, but most importantly, deep changes in the body.

– What must change at the industry level for sanatorium treatment to genuinely be perceived as part of the healthcare system and not luxury leisure?

– I’m convinced that without serious government participation, the spa and resort industry will remain somewhere between tourism and healthcare. First of all, regulatory framework correction is needed. One key question is the seniority credit of physicians working in spa and resort institutions: today it’s not counted the same way as in classical medical organizations. This is unfair to specialists and discourages young physicians from entering the industry. The question must be resolved at the legislative level, and we raise it at all public platforms.

The second fundamental step is at least partial inclusion of spa and resort treatment in the mandatory health insurance system. Essentially, this is an investment in prevention and active longevity, not an add-on.

If you look at who mainly comes to sanatoriums across the country today, it’s primarily people 65+: they have time, sometimes subsidies, and understanding of the value of this format. In parallel, new sanatoriums are actively appearing in Russia, and we closely follow statistics: demand is growing, supply is also changing.

I’m confident that the industry’s future lies in personalization, digitalization, and deep integration of science, medicine, and wellness. Plus, in a qualitatively different level of service. Once a person has been to a sanatorium where they have a pillow menu – with eucalyptus, lavender, buckwheat – next time they’ll come to another health resort and naturally ask: “Where’s your pillow menu?” Those very ripples that gradually raise the bar for everyone.

Global demographic trends are also obvious: according to WHO data, by 2030 every sixth person on the planet will be over 60. In Russian forecasts, the share of people 65+ by mid-century approaches a quarter of the population. This isn’t an abstraction but an audience for whom the spa and resort format will be especially relevant.

Given restrictions on outbound tourism, more and more wellness requests are concentrated within the country, and sanatoriums must inevitably restructure. Those who manage to build a model not only around the medical core but as a complete package of services – service, wellness, and at the same time measurable results – will be in an advantageous position.

And finally, science. Without it, the industry cannot become a full-fledged part of healthcare. Science must bring new methods, tools, and approaches to evaluating results. Then spa and resort treatment will stop being perceived as beautiful seaside rest and become a natural link in the chain of prevention and extending active life.