Plastic Surgery - Finding a Qualified Surgeon

How to find a qualified cosmetic surgeon and how to know your doctor is qualified. Find out more in this article.

There are a lot of good reasons to consider plastic surgery. The end results can make you happier with your overall appearance and it can give you a much needed mental lift. Before you move forward with plastic surgery though you need to realize that at the end of the day it is surgery and you should only undertake it with serious consideration of the risk and benefits involved. 

One of the most important steps you can take is to find a plastic surgeon who is board certified through the American Board of Plastic Surgery. Certification will ensure that your surgeon has at least two to three years of experience as a plastic surgeon and at least three to five years of experience as a surgeon. To remain board certified a doctor must continue with ongoing education to stay current and they must pass the oral and written test every ten years. Any doctor including a psychiatrist can claim to be a plastic surgeon and without that board certification there is no way for you to know until something goes wrong that your surgeon was not skilled in plastics.

During your initial consultation with your doctor you should find out about his training and education. How long has your doctor been in practice and what area does he or she specialize in? If you are looking for a doctor to do liposuction you should find a doctor who has done a fair amount recently. You don’t want to be the patient your doctor is refreshing his or her memory on.

You can also check with the medical board web site in your state to check on your doctor’s history of malpractice suits. Often if a doctor has an ongoing malpractice case you won’t hear about it from their end so you need to be proactive and ensure your doctor is qualified and competent to treat you. 

Finally ask if your doctor has hospital privileges. Even if they are working out of their own clinic they should have hospital privileges and if they don’t you might want to find someone who does. If the procedure will be done in the doctors own clinic make sure the clinic is certified through the American Association for Accreditation of Ambulatory Surgery Facilities. This is a voluntary program to help ensure facilities are safe and offer high quality patient care.

In the end, remember there are no stupid questions when it comes to your health and finding the best doctor for your elective cosmetic procedure. You must be willing to ask questions and look for answers until you are satisfied that you are in competent medical hands. 

Article Tags: Plastic Surgery, Plastic Surgeon

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