Surgeons Report

With the burgeoning popularity and accessibility of cosmetic surgery there has been an increase in providers to meet the demand. All these are doctors but not all have surgical, let alone plastic, surgical training.

A plastic surgeon has had at least five years specialist training in plastic surgery after medical school and junior hospital jobs and this usually includes a Fellowship overseas in a prestigious unit – in all fourteen years after entering medical school.

Experience gained during years of training in complex reconstructive surgery provides plastic surgeons with outstanding technical skills. Their continuous attention to form as well as function provides these specialists with a finely tuned sense of aesthetics – a unique qualification that is essential to the success of cosmetic surgery where judgements of balance and proportion are called for. Plastic surgeons have the training to offer their patients the entire range of treatment modalities. We also emphasise patient safety using experienced anaesthetists and we all have operating rights at accredited hospitals as well as day surgery facilities.

How do you select a plastic surgeon in New Zealand who has a commitment to cosmetic surgery? The New Zealand Institute of Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery is a good place to start. Membership of this organisation guarantees that the surgeon is registered by the New Zealand Medical Council as a specialist plastic surgeon and has a Fellowship in Plastic Surgery from the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, FRACS (Plastic). You may also call the New Zealand Medical Council, Freephone 0800 286 801 or www.mcnz.org.nz