Know Your Physician

With the growing popularity of cosmetic surgery, it is now more important than ever to have the utmost confidence in your plastic surgeon. It is wise to spend five minutes looking at your physician's qualifications because you will spend a lifetime staring at his or her results in the mirror. At a minimum, you should be sure to research the doctor's qualifications and medical record with the American Board of Plastic Surgery, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, and the Oklahoma Medical Board. The American Society of Plastic Surgeons is a great resource for finding more information on general plastic surgery as well as procedural information and statistics.

In addition, understand that there is a significant difference between a cosmetic surgeon and a plastic surgeon. Any physician can claim to be a cosmetic surgeon - regardless of their actual training. In fact, most physicians who advertise as cosmetic surgeons trained in fields other than plastic surgery. Only those physicians who have been trained in an accredited plastic surgery residency program can claim to be plastic surgeons. The title plastic surgeon represents the highest degree of professional certification. Always choose a board-certified plastic surgeon.

The American Board of Medical Specialists (ABMS) is the agency that oversees sub-specialty boards. More than 100 "boards" have been submitted to the ABMS for formal approval, but only 24 have met their strict educational and examination criteria.

The American Board of Plastic Surgery is the only ABMS-approved board that has traditionally overseen the training and certification of cosmetic and reconstructive surgeons. Although several other specialties have now incorporated cosmetic surgery of the face training such as Otolaryngologists and Opthalmologists, Plastic Surgery remains the only recognized surgical training program for cosmetic surgery of the breast and body. To become board-certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, a physician must complete five to seven years of surgical training. At least two of those years must be specifically devoted to the field of plastic surgery at an accredited plastic surgery residency program. A physician must then pass both a written and oral examination administered by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. You may call the ABMS at 1-800-776-2378 to see if your surgeon is certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery.

Other boards have less strict criteria for certification, and some require only a fee without proof of adequate training. Please be careful when you see "Board Certified" after a MD's name. A few of the boards which have NOT been approved by the American Board of Medical Specialties are as follows:

• American Board of Cosmetic Surgery
• American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery
• American Board of Facial Cosmetic Surgery
• Aesthetic Plastic Surgery/ Plastic Esthetic Surgery

The single most important action a patient can take to insure the adequacy of their physician's training is to make sure he or she has operating and admitting privileges at a nearby major metropolitan hospital. Beware of physicians who only perform procedures in their office-based surgery center and not in a major metropolitan hospital. This is important for two reasons. First, hospitals have already thoroughly researched a doctor's qualifications. They require more stringent qualifications and training for a physician to be able to operate at their facilities. If a physician only operates in an office-based facility and does not have privileges at a nearby hospital to perform the proposed procedure, his or her training is probably less than adequate. Secondly, remember that cosmetic surgery is still surgery, and complications can occur. A physician's lack of hospital admitting privileges for those procedures invites the question for a patient, "If a rare but serious complication arises after my operation, how will I be admitted to the hospital, and who will care for me?" If your physician does not have admitting privileges at a nearby hospital, he or she cannot care for you either in the emergency room or the hospital. In the case of a complication, you would therefore have to go to the nearest emergency room and be seen by a physician who actually does have privileges there.

Ask your physician in what hospital they have privileges. Call that hospital yourself and ask if your physician has operating privileges specifically for the procedure you are planning to have. Remember: a physician may have privileges at a nearby hospital for various procedures, but not for the one you are planning on having.

Do your research. It's your body, and you're worth it.