The decision to have plastic surgery can have far reaching medical and emotional ramifications. The most important caveat to this, therefore is consulting a plastic surgeon that is best suited for your needs.
Since it is not prudent to pick a surgeon by trial and error, the only logical recourse is to check your surgeon’s credentials and qualifications. Also, your comfort level with the surgeon during a consultation is of paramount importance.
So how do you know if your plastic surgeon is certified?
All State Medical Boards have a registry of doctors, and also provide information about board certification, education and license verification. This database is available to you on demand, and is a veritable treasure trove of information that you need in order to arrive at a decision.
When you set out to check if your surgeon is certified, it is also imperative that the bonafide of the accreditation agency be ascertained: a nationally or state-recognized accrediting agency, or a state licensed or Medicare certified agency, all of these usually have very stringent criteria, thus ensuring both, optimal results as well as your safety.
The most important accreditation for a plastic/ reconstructive surgeon in the USA is the certification of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS). ASPS Member Surgeons are certified by ASPS as well as the American Board of Plastic Surgery or the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. The ASPS has very stringent membership criteria: it is only open to those doctors who have had more than six years of surgical training and experience, at least three of which must be in plastic surgery. Also, these doctors have to fulfill continuing medical education requirements, which means they have to keep abreast with the latest developments in terms of new surgical procedures, as well as safety precautions.
The American Board of Plastic Surgery and the American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (ASPRS) are other significant accreditation agencies. Information regarding their members is available feely. The ABPS can be contacted at http://www.abms.org or at the phone numbers provided at the official website. The Official ABMS Directory of Board Certified Medical Specialists also carries all the necessary information. The ASPRS provides information regarding the credentials of its members as well. The American Medical Association (AMA) also provides biographical information about its members and publishes the American Medical Directory which lists their affiliations and details.
Checking if your doctor has operating privileges in an accredited hospital for the procedure that you will be undergoing is always a good idea. This is because hospital review committees evaluate a surgeon's competency for specific procedures very thoroughly before granting them operating privileges in their premises. Also, accredited hospital based facilities are known to have a better safety profile than ambulatory surgical procedures.
A little research in terms of checking the credentials of your surgeon and his area of expertise can help you achieve the body you’ve always wanted, and the easiest way to ensure this is to make sure that your plastic surgeon is certified.
Margaret White is based in Beverly Hills and covers cosmetic surgery in celebrities. In the above article she covers risks and complications associated with Rhinoplasty. Her article is based on an interview with Dr John Diaz a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon in Beverly Hills who has a specific
Nose Jobs Beverly Hills website. To know more about Rhinoplasty, to view before an after pictures; click on this link
Beverly Hills Rhinoplasty Surgery.
