Seeking Advice - Finding a Surgeon

The British Association of Cosmetic Surgeons (BACS) suggests that patients can find a surgeon by:

1.Contacting the British Association of Cosmetic Surgeons directly.

2.Seeking a referral from their General Practitioner.

3.Getting a recommendation from another patient.

4.Contacting a clinic that advertises to the public.

Contacting the British Association of Cosmetic Surgeons

A list of recommended cosmetic surgeons can be found on the BACS website: www.b-a-c-s.co.uk. These surgeons will all be members or associate members of the BACS.

Most surgeons also have their own websites, which can be accessed from the Association's website. Prospective patients are thus able to find out more about a particular surgeon and/or procedure before making contact.

The General Practitioner

This is the system of referral advocated by the General Medical Council (GMC). It dates back from well before the inception of the NHS, when it was considered unethical for a consultant to accept private patients unless they were directly referred by their GE This was designed to stop unscrupulous consultants touting for patients and treating them inappropriately. However, many patients wishing to undergo cosmetic surgery prefer that their GP is not informed or aware of their intentions. There are many reasons for this.

Many patients are simply too shy or embarrassed to approach their GP for fear of being ridiculed or discouraged from treatment. Some do not wish to burden their overworked GP with a problem involving an element of vanity when he is already so busy with more essential medical problems. Same patients may have already seen their GP, who told them not to have any treatment, and so they would like a second opinion. Others may have been referred by their GP to a surgeon with whom they did not have a rapport and they would like to see someone else.

Many fear that their intentions will be made public because of the nature of the referral system. This necessarily involves the GP's staff who they fear may divulge their secret to others in their community.

Some patients admit to not knowing their GP and would prefer to bypass him altogether. Others are not registered with a GP. Some have openly admitted that they have little trust or faith in their GP and would not contemplate approaching him with such a delicate, personal and private problem.

Although more and more GPs are aware of the benefits that cosmetic surgery can offer and are entirely sympathetic and helpful, there are still a number who are less enthusiastic and who strongly try to dissuade any prospective patients.

Most cosmetic surgeons get very few referrals from GPs.

Recommendation from Another Patient

This is arguably the best and surest way of being referred to a surgeon who has at least proved that he/she is competent at performing the procedure. Most surgeons who do not advertise get the majority of their new patients by referrals from their old patients.

The drawback here is that most patients will not openly or freely admit to undergoing cosmetic surgery, so a prospective patient may not know whether any of their friends and acquaintances has had any surgery.

Clinics that Advertise to the Public

In recent years there has been a huge increase in the number of clinics, establishments and so-called advisory centres offering cosmetic surgery to the public. Many such places are run by non-medically qualified persons who regard it as a quick way of making easy money.

The reason why these establishments have increased in number over the years is that, until quite recently, it was an offence for medical practitioners to advertise their services and expertise to the general public. This could result in the practitioner being struck off the medical register.

It was, however, perfectly legal for a non-medically qualified person to set up a limited company offering cosmetic surgery services. This company could employ the services of a surgeon and anaesthetist as long as their names were not made public.

Thankfully, with the changes in GMC guidelines, the public is now able to get direct access to the surgeons, and therefore have a greater choice in selecting the one they wish to perform their surgery or treatment.

The BACS advises anyone approaching a clinic that advertises to the public to make sure they see the operating surgeon at a pre-operative consultation well in advance of the day of surgery. If the surgeon is not a BACS member, they should make sure they are treated according to, or along similar lines to, the BACS Code of Practice. In addition, it is important to find out about the surgeon's experience, qualifications, and proof of previous procedures performed (eg. pre and post-operative photographs of the surgeon's work, although it would be extremely difficult to prove beyond doubt that these were in fact photographs of his/her work), and to see as many testimonials from previous patients as possible.

It should be recommended that patients only be seen by the operating surgeon and not by any other party. Many clinics employ so-called 'counsellors' — often non-medically qualified sales people — to entice people into undergoing surgery. We strongly feel that such a practice is dangerous and can easily lead to patients being given misleading information, which can cause problems later on. Cosmetic surgery is a very personal and private undertaking and depends on a good patient-doctor relationship, without the involvement of any other party. Some commercial clinics are indeed well run and employ competent surgeons who successfully carry out a large number of cosmetic operations.