THOSE savvy about the pros and pitfalls of plastic surgery agree: The best way to prevent a cosmetic-surgery disaster is by doing your homework.
Start by checking a doctor’s accreditation with http://www.aaaasf.org or http://www.aaahc.org.
“Anyone with an M.D. after his or her name can perform surgery,” warns Chad Erickson of ienhance.com, a Salt Lake City-based online plastic-surgery consultancy that lists 1,300 plastic surgeons along with photos of their handiwork, plus the risks and possible side effects of various procedures.
“Over the past year, we’ve turned away at least 20 doctors who wanted to be listed,” he says, including a pathologist who dabbled in cosmetic work.
“He may be good at what he does,” Erickson says, “but he didn’t have the accreditation.”
An estimated 60 percent of elective surgery is performed outside a hospital, but it’s important that your doctor has hospital privileges for the particular procedure you’re undergoing, says Dr. Z. Paul Lorenc, a Manhattan surgeon and assistant professor at NYU-Mount Sinai Medical Center.
Hospitals require peer review and that guarantees more checks and balances, Lorenc says.
“If someone has privileges, obviously, they’ve met certain standards. Also, in case something goes wrong, they should have the ability to bring patients to the hospital.”
Lorenc is also wary of doctors who advertise.
“Call me old-fashioned,” he says, “but the best way to build a practice is with patient and doctor referral. Advertising is inappropriate, though it’s OK’d by the AMA.”
Even if you’re not interested in comparing prices, experts say, it’s vital to shop around to find a surgeon with exactly the expertise and bedside manner you seek.
“You want a doctor who has time for you; who listens to what you want,” says Barbara Rhea, a registered nurse who’s had her own face and eyes done and was pleased with the results. “You don’t want to be a number.”
Beauty consultant Wendy Lewis, who writes a quarterly on the subject, says inept doctors give themselves away – if you listen carefully. Here are some statements that should set off warning bells:
* “I fix everyone’s mistakes.” The doctors who do, Lewis says, don’t boast about it.
* “We don’t need an anesthesiologist,” one doctor told a woman contemplating a facelift. “I do my own.” That kind of cost-cutting can be downright dangerous.
* “I’m the only one doing this procedure.” Says Lewis: “Either he’s lying or [the procedure] is unsafe.”
* “I’ve never had complications.” Even good doctors have complications, Lewis says.
* “Your scars will disappear in a few days.” Lewis says most physicians will tell you that “how you heal is between you and God, and they’re right.” Scars may fade with time, but it takes considerably more than a few days.