Review Your Options Before Plastic Surgery
By Yodle Local | Published on August 9, 2010 | 0 Comments
Deciding to undergo a plastic surgery procedure is a personal choice that is rarely made in haste. However, as the popularity of these surgeries continues to mount and with countless doctors advertising their services more now than ever before, it can be difficult to determine that you’re putting your safety in the hands of a worthy surgeon.
As part of Yodle’s marketing services for plastic surgeons, we often interview doctors on topics in which they have expertise. We’ve reviewed some of the best information and put together this guide to how you can locate an experienced plastic surgeon in your area, as well as a list of various websites where you can gain even more information on a particular doctor and read reviews from former patients.
According to Dr. Miguel Yanez, M.D., a board-certified cosmetic surgeon in North Carolina, the first step to ensuring that you’ve found a worthy plastic surgeon is to check out his credentials. However, he warns, it’s not enough to simply read the information that the surgeon has posted on his website, because there are numerous agencies, which are not actually recognized by authoritative organizations, that provide physicians with meaningless certificates. Instead, Yanez explains, there are three very reliable sources that you can easily contact to find out further information about your potential doctor. The first of these is the American Board of Plastic Surgery, which allows you to confirm the certification of any surgeon through a database on its website. T he American Society of Plastic Surgeons is another useful and dependable organization, as well as the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery.
Once you’ve confirmed that the surgeon you are interested in is properly certified, it’s time to set up a consultation. While some may assume that a meeting with a potential surgeon should be more about the procedure you have in mind and your desired results, David Bottger M.D., a plastic surgeon in Cleveland, says that a large portion of the consultation should be spent asking the doctor a number of necessary questions. It’s important, he advises, to find out how experienced a particular surgeon is with the procedure you will be receiving. While you may not be the first patient, you probably don’t want to be the third or fourth either. As with any medical procedure, you want a doctor who has a lot of background, Bottger says. If possible, also find out where and how long his training took place for doing this procedure. In addition to discussing his familiarity with a certain operation, you should also ask to see photos of actual patients as well. Make sure that the pictures being shown to you are pictures of your surgeon’s actual clients, he explains, because you want to see what a person looks like after going through this particular doctor’s procedure.
Lastly, you should never negate the importance of a good recommendation. Having plastic surgery is no longer as taboo as it once was, and chances are that there are numerous people that you encounter everyday who have been through it before. Even if you feel odd asking an acquaintance bluntly for the name of her surgeon, explain that you have been researching doctors in the area and ask if she knows the name of a surgeon that a friend or colleague of hers has used in the past. And if you’d like to read a plethora of reviews from people who have had experience with plastic surgeons in your area before, there are a number of websites that cater specifically to reviewing doctors’ credentials:
- Plasticsurgery.org is the website for the American Society of Plastic Surgeons which allows you to search for doctors in your area who are ASPS certified (meaning that they have received at least three years of medical training specifically in plastic surgery).
- Makemeheal.com allows patients to read important information and real patient reviews of plastic surgeons in their areas.
- In addition to providing you with patient testimonials, realself.com also provides visitors with explanations of common plastic surgery procedures and allows you to ask doctors’ opinions on your initial questions about a possible surgery.
*Disclaimer: The information on this website is not intended to substitute for the medical expertise and advice of your healthcare provider. We encourage you to discuss any decisions about treatment or care with an appropriate healthcare provider.