How Do I Know if my Doctor is Board Certified?

Your physician or surgeon should always be Board Certified in a specialty recognized by the American Board of Medical Specialites, (the ABMS). There are a number of 'specialities' operating in the world of medicine who create their own 'board certification' in ares that are not recognized by the ABMS. There is a *BIG difference* and, unfortunately, the general public is not aware of the difference.

Specialties that are officially recognized by the ABMS have comprehensive residency programs with very strict criteria. Strong residency programs ensure that your physician is prepared to deal with complications, should they arise. Check the ABMS.org web site to find out if your doctor's specialty is listed! Learn more about this little known fact by watching the video and/or reading about it in my blog post (listed in the web reference).

Thank you for your question. My recommendation to select a surgeon research the experience, the reviews and the results. I would suggest to be treated by board certified plastic surgeon with experience in this procedure, to get the best desired results.
Respectfully,Dr. Emmanuel Mallol Cotes.-

Thank you for the important question. Unfortunately, differentiating the credentials of the variety of physicians who wish to provide "cosmetic surgery" services, can be very confusing to patients. Also unfortunately, there is no strict regulation set up to protect the consumer by state or national medical regulatory organizations. Therefore, patients must take the responsibility to ask the question: what are you board-certified in?The American Board of Plastic Surgery is the only board recognized by the American Board of medical specialties. Confirming that your surgeon is certified by the American Board of plastic surgeon is very important; this will assure you that your surgeon's undergone rigorous training, testing, and continued medical education necessary to become and remain board certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. Plastic surgeons who are certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery are then potential candidates to join the American Society of Plastic Surgery and/or the Aesthetic Society of Plastic Surgery. These societies will have lists of their plastic surgeon members; these lists may be helpful when patients are seeking a board-certified plastic surgeon. in the process of selecting a plastic surgery I also encourage patients to ask to SEE lots of examples of their work AND preferably speak/see patients who have had similar procedures done.Be very careful with your decision-making. You will find, while doing your due diligence, that there are many different “specialties” who will offer their services to you; again, I strongly recommend you concentrate on surgeons certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. Be very careful with your decision-making. You will find, while doing your due diligence, that there are many different “specialties” who will offer their services to you; again, I strongly recommend you concentrate on surgeons certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery.Again, I cannot overemphasize the importance of careful selection of plastic surgeon when it comes to concerns such as safety, achievement of the desired outcome, and ability to manage complications that may arise (even in the best of hands). Keep in mind that revisionary surgery may be more costly in many ways. I hope this, and the attached link, helps. Best wishes.