Those thinking about getting plastic surgery must make sure they’re taking the steps necessary to protect themselves from a botched operation. The doctor overseeing the procedure must be capable of safely conducting it, and patients themselves should take an active role in choosing the right facility. A new report out of San Francisco outlines some of the steps as provided by a California plastic surgery coach that persons considering plastic surgery can take to ensure safety.
Much of a person’s precautions hinge on conducting thorough research before they even go in for an operation. Ultimately, it’s going to be up to the patient to figure out whether the facility they’re going to and the doctor who’s going to conduct the operation are up to par with certain standards.
Careful research begins with determining whether or not your plastic surgeon has received certification from the American Board of Plastic Surgery. Without this certification, it’s impossible to verify the veracity of their claims or their abilities as a whole.
That should only be the start of your research efforts. In addition to deducing whether or not your doctor has the proper credentials, the hospital or surgical center you’re visiting should also have the appropriate accreditation. The author recommends the American College of Surgeons website for a database of what facilities have the necessary credentials.
Those two things are perhaps the most important metrics to take into consideration, but they’re far from the only ones. Look online to see what kind of reviews the facility or the doctor have received, but also be dubious of any reviews that are overly glowing or even overly negative. A cloak of anonymity can sometimes betray a reviewer’s true intentions and experiences.
Once you’re done with your online research, don’t be afraid to ask questions in person. Ask your surgeon about their venue of study and years practicing, what kind of record they have (particularly with the procedure you’re opting to get), and anything else you can think of. If their answers cause alarm bells to go off in your head, you might go elsewhere.
You’re going to want a surgeon who has successfully completed your kind of procedure multiple times. You don’t want to be a guinea pig for a surgeon who is trying to branch out into a different procedure. It’s perfectly acceptable to ask them how many operations they’ve conducted in the area you’ve approached them about.
By the same token, patients might avoid newfangled procedures with kinks still being worked out. New techniques and operations may go through growing pains as surgeons get used to the procedure and the procedure itself is improved and perfected over time.
As you can see, the more experience, the better. And at the end of the day, trust your instincts. If you’re not comfortable with a given doctor, you have many more options to consider.