Surfing the web today I found some advertisements that were a laugh! The experience reminded me that it has been a while since we revisited the subject of how someone might screen a prospective plastic surgeon. This is a matter of opinion of course. I use the standard of whether or not a surgeon would be offered privileges by a hospital credentialing committee to do your surgery. Try a few simple online checks:

(1) Look to see that your surgeon is qualified to do your operation:

-Did he or she complete a plastic surgery residency?
-Is he or she board certified in plastic surgery by a board that is itself accredited?

There are doctors out practicing plastic surgery with little or no formal training in plastic surgery.

-> Check the American Board of Medical Specialists Web Site and run a search to see if your doctor has an approved Board Certification and in what specialty. If it is not in Plastic Surgery, you need more information.

(2) Look to see that your surgeon has not been disciplined by the state medical board or lost or settled lawsuits involving large numbers. Many state medical boards have web sites that offer searches.

-> Example for California

My surfing today revealed a surgeon who is board certified in radiology (that means he is trained to read x-rays) and an “Institute” site with a number of surgeons most of whom had no certification information listed. Be careful.

Best Regards,

John Di Saia MD

* More on surgeon credentialing on my web site.