Questions to Ask Your Plastic Surgeon
Posted May 20, 2015 in Practice News
Searching for a plastic surgeon in Reno or in the surrounding areas is easy; a quick search on Google will yield numerous results. You check out their websites and wade your way through so much information. After some more research, you think you’ve finally found the plastic surgeon for you. You schedule a consultation and are left thinking, “What kind of questions should I ask?”
The consultation is a crucial part of the process; it’s the perfect time to know more about your plastic surgeon. It sounds like such an obvious advice – “Get to know your plastic surgeon” – but it’s surprisingly overlooked. In our practice, we find that some patients are too intimidated, hesitant, or embarrassed to ask questions.
With more and more people considering plastic surgery in Reno, it’s an absolute must for would-be patients to know the right questions before undergoing any procedure. We recommend would-be patients to ask these six questions:
- Are you certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery?
There are several certifying boards or organizations in the field of plastic surgery, but look for a surgeon that’s certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery (ABPS). There are doctors who claim they’re “Board-certified”, but certified by which board? If a doctor is certified by ABPS, it means he or she has gone through extensive training specifically in plastic surgery and operates in accredited medical facilities. So don’t forget to ask this question and then verify it on the ABPS website.
- Have you done this procedure before? If yes, how many times?
It’s important to know how many times your plastic surgeon has performed the procedure that you want done. Ideally, he or she has done it more than a hundred times over the span of their career. Would-be patients sometimes feel it’s rude to ask, but if your plastic surgeon is a legitimate practitioner with the track record to back up his or her experience, they would be more than willing to answer this question.
- What are the risks and potential complications associated with the procedure?
If your plastic surgeon confidently says “zero risks”, that’s a huge red flag and you should consider finding another one. Every surgery, however minor, carries some associated risk. The most common risks in plastic surgery include infection, scarring, and bleeding. Your plastic surgeon should be able to help you manage any risks or side effects with good post-operative care.
- How long is the recovery period?
Recovery time depends on the type of plastic surgery procedure. Once you’ve decided which procedure to get, your plastic surgeon should be able tell you how long it will take you for you to heal and how soon you can resume your normal routine.
- Where will the plastic surgery procedure take place?
Ask if your procedure will take place in a hospital or at an outpatient clinic (ambulatory care clinic). The location of your surgery depends on the complexities of the procedure, not to mention the health issues your plastic surgeon has identified beforehand.
- Do you have before and after photos for this procedure?
If you plastic surgeon is as good as he or she claims to be, they won’t hesitate to show you visual proofs of their work. Most plastic surgeons have Before and After photos, which you can ask to see. It’s important you check out how these surgeries turned out and if you, personally, like the results.
Deciding to have plastic surgery done is a huge life event that should be seriously thought through. The more you know about the procedure and the plastic surgeon performing it, the better and more at peace you’ll feel going in.
