Board certification legitimacy concerns

Question

Disclaimer: this did not occurred not in the state of California. Is this borderline unethical/ potentially false advertising for a surgeon to advertise themselves a triple bird certified when the other two "boards" are American Board of Cosmetic Surgery and member of American Society of Cosmetic Breast Surgery ? The only "legit" board certification that they have is for General Surgery.

Gerald Minniti, MD, FACS · Answer

The unfortunate answer is no, it's legal (and they wholeheartedly believe, ethical) to advertise state board certification with non-ABMS recognized boards. But that's just the tip of the iceberg. Someone can perform virtually any procedure or treatment of any sort without having been formally been trained, e.g. California dentists can perform facelifts after weekend course, and any MD can perform the array of cosmetic surgical procedures in any state. Why? Because the forces of capitalism (lobbyists' money) are at work in both state and federal governments, preventing any lawmaker from passing sensible legislation to protect people.

Camille Cash, MD · Answer

This is a great question and highlights why we encourage our patients to do research just as you have. There is a vast difference between a plastic surgeon and a cosmetic surgeon. A board certified plastic surgeon has extensive training that includes at least six years of surgical residency focusing on cosmetic and reconstructive procedures.  This helps ensure quality and safety for your procedure.

Connie Hiers, MD, FACS · Answer

These two cosmetic "Boards" were established for those who wished to do plastic surgery and were not trained as plastic surgeons. They cannot legally call themselves plastic surgeons, so they call themselves cosmetic surgeons. Many in the public do not understand the differences. The American Board of Plastic Surgery has tried fighting this in the past. Plastic surgeons always call themselves plastic surgeons and not cosmetic surgeons.

Eric Chang, MD · Answer

Hi Versatile598128
this is a very good question and a hot topic of discussion for plastic surgeons! There are unfortunately many "cosmetic" surgeons that operate outside of their original training (general surgeons, OBGYNs etc). 
When looking for a plastic surgeon its critical to ensure they are a "Board Certified Plastic Surgeon" certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgeons. These surgeons have completed a plastic surgery residency in the USA and are trained to perform plastic surgery safely.

Darryl J. Blinski, MD · Answer

This is a great topic and question to have discussed and inform potential patients. The American Board of medical specialties is the only recognize legitimate board certifying agency in the United States. If the board is not under the hospices of the American Board of medical specialties, it shall be labeled as a sham board. The only cosmetic or aesthetic that is recognized is the American board of Plastic surgery . No other board is recognized as being board certified in cosmetic and Plastic surgery . To discuss or address with your states medical board on their website there is always a question and answer section. In the state of Florida, there is a strict rule past in the late 1990s about truth and advertising, and it was reaffirmed recently this year . The physician, doctor or surgeon must specify the legitimate boards that he is board-certified in specific terms. If you have any other questions, I’m more than happy to do a virtual consult. Good luck.

Karol A. Gutowski, MD, FACS · Answer

Yes, there are legitimate "boards" and then there are those that can form just by 2 people setting up a website and paying a fee. I suggest staying away from anyone using this type of marketing and self promotion.

Mats Hagstrom, MD (license on probation) · Answer

Unfortunately, the field of cosmetic surgery includes all types and what is legal, ethical or appropriate varies based on each person’s interpretation.
This is very much something that falls under the concept of caveat emptor or buyer beware.
Illegal or necessarily unethical to claim board certification in medical boards that are not recognized by the American Board of medical specialties.
Anyone is free to make an association in the United States and there’s no law against calling your association a board.
Ultimately patients are responsible for making decisions regarding what provider they choose.
Choosing a board-certified plastic surgeon is no guarantee that they have sufficient skills or experience with anyone plastic surgery procedure.
It doesn’t mean that they have met the criteria for board certification, which includes graduating from an accredited plastic surgery residency.
 it also means that they passed both a written and oral examination. Though These examinations really have little to do with clinical competence. Delivering consistent quality liposuction results is more difficult than most people realize.
The number of plastic surgeons who approach mastery of this procedure is in reality quite small.
Plastic surgeons are not the only doctors who perform liposuction as part of the residency.
This procedure is also performed as part of the educational teaching in dermatology And to some degree in ENT or ear nose and throat.
Personally, I believe being board-certified in plastic surgery should be a bare minimum.
I see no reason why someone would even consider surgeons who are not.
Being board-certified in plastic surgery is however, insufficient to maximize the chance of having an overall positive experience and quality outcome.
Finding the right plastic surgeon is far more difficult than most people realize.
If patients can’t even differentiate the appropriate certification, then they’re probably pretty far from finding the right provider.
In the end skill and experience is probably much more important than certifications, but starting the search process with those who have proper training is probably good advice.
To find the right provider, I suggest patients start by having a complete set of pictures of the areas they’re interested in treating.
Look at how plastic surgeons take before and after pictures to get an idea.
Bring these pictures with you to you as a reference during the consultation.
 Next make a list of plastic surgeons in your community who seem to have extensive Liposuction experience or preferably those who focus on Liposuction exclusively.
Next schedule in person consultations with each of the providers on your list.
I recommend patients avoid virtual consultations whenever possible.
During each consultation, ask each provider to open up their portfolio and show you their entire collection of before and after pictures of previous patients who had similar body characteristics to your own.
 Liposuction results are based on two variables.
The first patient candidacy and the second is the skill of the provider.
Not everybody seeking Liposuction is a good candidate for the procedure.
Understanding your own candidacy is an important part of understanding what the procedure can and cannot accomplish.
In a nutshell, the ideal candidate for Liposuction is generally young, has tight skin with thick layers of subcutaneous fat.The opposite is also true.
Older individuals, those with skin laxity, and those who have thin layers of subcutaneous fat are not necessarily good candidates for Liposuction.
Experienced providers should have access to hundreds or even thousands of before, and after pictures to choose from.
As sufficiently experienced provider should have more before and after pictures then you have time to look at during your consultation.
By seeing lots and lots of before, and after pictures of previous patients whose candidacy for surgery equals your own, you’ll have a good understanding of what your results are likely to look like.
 Seeing results of patients who have different tissue characteristics than your own is not at all representative of what your results are going to look like. providers who don’t have quality collections of before and after pictures should probably be avoided.
The biggest mistake I see patients make is having only one consultation and then scheduling surgery.
Having only one consultation, more or less eliminates the ability to choose a better provider.
I do not believe patients Can adequately select providers using their computer or cell phone.
There’s no correct number of consultations needed to find the right provider.
The more consultations you scheduled the more likely you are to find the better provider for your needs.
When in doubt, slow down and schedule more consultations.
Best,
Mats Hagstrom MD

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