Fellow performing a facelift - do they have the necessary experience?

Full disclosure: as a fellow I performed facelifts. Are my facelifts now better due to 21 years of experience, of course. Can a well trained, surgically gifted Fellow perform a facelift competently? Absolutely. This is a great opportunity for patients with a more limited budget.

Hello and thank your for your question! You are correct. The fellow does not have the same level of experience or knowledge that his/her mentor has. That is the reason they are in the fellowship to begin with: to obtain new and/or more advanced skillset. However, that does not mean you won't receive excellent care. The level of care you receive will depend upon skill of the fellow and the degree of oversight provided by the senior surgeon. I was an aesthetic surgery fellow once and had all the technical skill to perform a well planned operation. The key is formulating the correct plan and avoiding potential pitfalls during the operation! If your fellow is making the plan and performing the operation under the direct oversight of his/her experienced mentor, you will likely have a positive experience.

Thank you for your question. A fellow is in their final year of training before being out on their own. Most fellowship directors would not allow their fellow to perform a facelift procedure unless they thought they were competent and ready to do so. Facial plastic surgery fellowships are usually from July to July, so a fellow towards the end of their training should be competent to perform the procedure. Best of luck!

A fellow cannot have the same expertise as the attending who has been doing it for years. However, if she/he performs a facelift under close supervision of the attending surgeon, then it is ok.
Regards
Dr. J

When it comes to your face, do not use a financial incentive to make your decision. Do you want to use an experienced or discount neurosurgeon? How about a discounted parachute? Absolutely, a fellow does not have enough experience to perform a detailed excellent facelift on a regular basis. There are so many board certified qualified and experienced plastic surgeons who can do your procedure.

Hello again Pamengland,
Not all fellows are created equally!
If it's an option in your area, consulting with a fellow, or someone in their last years of sub specialized training can offer many great benefits. The most obvious is a lower cost of surgery.
But how can you know if the fellow has the experience required to give you a good result. This is the more challenging question. Each training program is unique in terms of the fellows experience. The program I attended for fellowship at New York University had a great reputation. As a fellow, I performed several face and neck lifts on patients and had terrific outcomes for all of my cases. When performing the surgeries, I had mentors in the room with me, guiding and providing assistance when needed.
The things you can do to tease out more answers is the following:Ask to see their before and aftersAsk about their numbers - how many cases have they performed? Have they had any complications? Ask if you can speak to one of their patients as a referralFind out who their fellowship mentor is and look them up. Fellows are emulating their mentors, so often the results can be similar to what is found on their mentors profile.Ask if they will have a more senior surgeon accompanying them in the OR that day.
If all of these answers prove sufficient, having your surgery performed by a well trained and talented fellow can be a great option!
I hope this helps!
All the best,
Dr. GadaletaFacial Plastic SurgeonPalo Alto, CA

Facelift is a very technically fine procedure which requires adept hands and mind to obtain consistent results. A fellow by definition is in training to do certain procedures they plan on performing as an independent surgeon. You get what you pay for. good luck

A fellow is a fully qualified surgeon in the final years of their training. He/she has been trained by the attending surgeon to achieve the results promoted by the attending. So you’re in good hands. Should any problems arise, they collectively would be on hand to provide solutions. I wish you the best.

Every fellow has to start with their first patient usually under the supervision of a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon. The Plastic Surgeon should explain the risks involved with going to a fellow who has not had experience yet & his participation in the case & from there you make the judgment based on the facts given if you feel comfortable or not.

Thank you for your questions. In general surgeons gain expertise with time and practice. My suggestion would be to have a consultation with a board certified Plastic Surgeon who has plenty of before and after photos of patients they have operated on. In our office we offer 3D imaging to give our patients an accurate idea of what their final result will look like. Good luck!