The Perfect Plastic Surgeon

The Perfect Plastic Surgeon...

...does not exist!

We have high standards as to what we expect to find in a plastic surgeon, but everyone has to remember that while no one is perfect, there also is no such thing as the "perfect" plastic surgeon. The very best surgeon in the world is not going to have the time to be everything to us every time we have an appointment.

Breast surgery patients need more support before and after surgery than just about any plastic surgery patients, it seems.  We have so many emotions wrapped into these surgeries that sometimes we expect our plastic surgeon to be a clinician, surgeon, therapist, and friend 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  This is not a realistic expectation.

We are also so sensitive during these times that things become very magnified for us. Remember this and try to relax a little. Don't make it harder on yourself or on your doctor. 

Your plastic surgeon should have very good bedside manners, but we can't expect to get all the emotional support we need in a twenty-minute appointment.  You also can't expect to see your plastic surgeon every time you visit the office.  There are pre-op and post-op visits that do not require the care of a surgeon, and their highly skilled nurses and office staff are very capable of doing what needs to be done on those occasions.

It's entirely possible that you may feel you didn't get enough time, information, or support at an appointment with any doctor.  Don't let an instance like this color your whole view and opinion of your plastic surgeon and your experience with them.  What is important is that you have a good surgeon and good results in the end.  That's the bottom line.  Yes, there are appointments that are not ideal sometimes - we may have to wait in the waiting room longer than we'd like, or we may not get the encouragement at every turn that we might feel we need - but a year from now none of that will matter, because what you will have left is the good end results that you wanted all along.  That's really what you paid for and what you want a good plastic surgeon to do. 

A great many things go on in any doctor's office that we aren't aware of as patients. An emergency may well be the reason you had to wait to see your doctor. A patient, or several patients, who needed more work done than originally anticipated can quickly put the entire day behind. Sometimes we "think" things should work a certain way but they don't. Sometimes we arrive and can hear the doctor and think we are being ignored, when in fact the nurses are readying things for us. Try to relax and not create hard feelings by being impatient with the staff or your doctor. You're either about to have surgery or have already had it, and this is a very vulnerable time. You do not want to start off on the wrong foot and damage your relationship with the people that are going to be caring for you.