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Safe Plastic Surgery
Plastic surgery is a regulated medical specialty, not a commodity. Know your surgeon, know the procedure, know the risks.
Safe plastic surgery
What to check before you agree to an operation, and what a good surgeon will do for you.
Plastic surgery is real surgery. Done by a properly qualified surgeon, in a properly equipped facility, after an honest conversation about what is possible, it is safe and it works. The risk comes from cutting corners on any one of those three things.
Before you agree to any procedure, you are entitled to know who is operating and what they are qualified in, where the operation will take place, what the recovery involves, what it will cost in total, and what happens if something goes wrong. A surgeon who is reluctant to answer those questions is telling you something.
Check these before you consent
- The surgeon holds a current NHRA licence in plastic surgery
- The facility is licensed for the procedure planned
- You have been told the risks, not only the benefits
- The total cost, including any revision, is in writing
- You know who to call, day or night, if you are worried
Questions worth asking
Who is operating?
Ask for the surgeon’s qualification in plastic surgery and their licence status.
Where, and with whom?
Ask about the facility, the anaesthetist and what happens if you need to stay overnight.
What if it goes wrong?
Ask what the plan is for complications, and who pays for putting things right.
Find a qualified surgeon
Every surgeon in the Association’s directory holds a current licence and has been reviewed by the Executive Committee.