Difference Between Board Certified and Just Licensed?

You only have one face.  There are plenty of surgeons in your area certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery (ABPS).  My advice is to see one or more of them, and choose an ABPS certified surgeon for your procedure.  Lifestyle Lift is a procedure trademarked by a company that is NOT a licensed physician or surgeon, NOT subject to State of California Business and Professions Code (including provisions for ethical advertising), and although the company contracts with physicians who are licensed, Lifestyle Lift is unlikely to have the quality control standards of the American Board of Plastic Surgery and the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.  Again, you only have one face.  Protect it.  If your surgeon doesn't have the highest standards for his or her own training and certification, what type of standards do you believe he or she will have for your facelift??

1. To have a medical license in most states, a doctor needs to have graduated from an accredited medical school and completed just 2 years of residency training,  but not necessarily have actually finished his or her residency training. Once licensed, a doctor can perform any type of medicine or surgery that a hospital or office will allow, so a doctor can perform cosmetic surgery with very little real training.

2. Board Certification means that a physician has completed an accredited residency, passed an exam, and fulfilled other requirements. Go to ABMS.org to see a list of the true, recognized medical boards in the U.S. Boards like the American Board of Plastic Surgery or the American Board of Otolaryngology are ABMS member boards. However, non-ABMS boards may require no special training or examination. So alway ask the doctor in WHAT field he or she is certified.

3. If the doctor you met is not board certified, then they likely did not complete a residency in plastic surgery or have not completed the examination process. Be careful.

4. As far as the Lifestyle Lift, the overall satisfaction rate on Real Self is very low.

Board-certification is the least you should expect of your aesthetic practitioner.

I would not see anyone who is not board-certified in plastic surgery, or ENT with a subspecialty in facial plastic.

Beyond that you must search out people who are experienced and compassionate, who have good judgement, and for whom you can uncover good reviews. Try to speak with someone who works in the medical field.

Regarding the Lifestyle Lift, you can absolutely ignore all newly introduced procedures or products for at least 3 years. By then they will all have disappeared, with very few exceptions, because either they don't work, they're actually dangerous, or both.

Good luck.