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On October 27, 2015 I traded in my bulbous Roman...
On October 27, 2015 I traded in my bulbous Roman nose for a cuter, smaller model. After researching this for several years, I decided to trust Carlos Castañeda, MD at CosMed clinic in Tijuana, MX.
I went with Dr. Castañeda for several reasons:
- CosMed clinic is the only facility in the Americas to be accredited by The American Association for Accreditation of Ambulatory Surgery Facilities International
- Dr. C creates beautiful, natural-looking noses. (No Barbie/piggie/ski slopes here)
- There was no hard-sell sales pitch. They understand that this is a big decision that can only come from the patient.
For this review, I am separating out the 3 components of the entire process: (1) Dr. Castañeda himself, (2) the surrounding medical staff and process and (3) the onsite Recovery Boutique.
(1) Dr. Castañeda: If he were not a plastic surgeon, I think he would be an engineer. He is precise and methodical but not without a sense of humor. In total, I only spent 45 minutes with the man (while conscious), but he knows what he is doing so I didn't sweat it.
(2) The surrounding medical staff and process: Ana, Dr. C's patient coordinator, always returned my calls and followed up with email. She comes off as a tad [RS bleep], but once you get to know her she is great. Once I arrived in San Diego, a Cosmed driver picked me up from the airport and got me checked into the hotel in Tijuana on the 26th.
I was a little confused the next morning, because I didn't know the timeline for surgery. I poked my head out of my hotel room ~8am to see if I was allowed to drink black coffee (I wasn't) and from there I was whisked up to consult with the doctor and off we went. I remember looking at the clock, just as I was going under; it was 9:30 am.
After I woke up from the anesthesia, I was wheeled into a private recovery room with a nurse assigned to me. I was there overnight and was wheeled to the Recovery Boutique hotel at noon-ish.
(3) The Recovery Boutique hotel: This place reminded me of a Holiday Inn Express, but with a medical twist. The staff there are AMAZING. They treated me like royalty. A special shout out to Alex and Perla who are sweet as can be.
With regards to security and access, I had to keep reminding myself that this is a medical facility; as at any hospital you don't get a key to your room and you can't come and go as you please until the Dr. gives the green light. The surrounding neighborhood is very high-end and safe. I had no issues or worries walking to the shopping mall 2 blocks away, even after dark.
The meals weren't exciting, but they were packed with protein and fiber to aid in recovery. At any time of day or night you can get coffee, tea, water, fruit and light snack items. It would have been nice to have access to an ice machine, but they will give you ice if you ask. I also wished there was a mini fridge in the room so I could have kept my own stash of snacks.
Overall, I wholeheartedly recommend Cosmed clinic, Dr. Castañeda and the Recovery Boutique. It was a great experience.
Sidenote: I read another review of Cosmed where the supposed patient claimed that they pressure you to write a review coming out of anesthesia. That is absurd. The entire time I was there there was not even a peep about RealSelf, reviews or anything of the sort.
I hope the world finds this helpful!
I went with Dr. Castañeda for several reasons:
- CosMed clinic is the only facility in the Americas to be accredited by The American Association for Accreditation of Ambulatory Surgery Facilities International
- Dr. C creates beautiful, natural-looking noses. (No Barbie/piggie/ski slopes here)
- There was no hard-sell sales pitch. They understand that this is a big decision that can only come from the patient.
For this review, I am separating out the 3 components of the entire process: (1) Dr. Castañeda himself, (2) the surrounding medical staff and process and (3) the onsite Recovery Boutique.
(1) Dr. Castañeda: If he were not a plastic surgeon, I think he would be an engineer. He is precise and methodical but not without a sense of humor. In total, I only spent 45 minutes with the man (while conscious), but he knows what he is doing so I didn't sweat it.
(2) The surrounding medical staff and process: Ana, Dr. C's patient coordinator, always returned my calls and followed up with email. She comes off as a tad [RS bleep], but once you get to know her she is great. Once I arrived in San Diego, a Cosmed driver picked me up from the airport and got me checked into the hotel in Tijuana on the 26th.
I was a little confused the next morning, because I didn't know the timeline for surgery. I poked my head out of my hotel room ~8am to see if I was allowed to drink black coffee (I wasn't) and from there I was whisked up to consult with the doctor and off we went. I remember looking at the clock, just as I was going under; it was 9:30 am.
After I woke up from the anesthesia, I was wheeled into a private recovery room with a nurse assigned to me. I was there overnight and was wheeled to the Recovery Boutique hotel at noon-ish.
(3) The Recovery Boutique hotel: This place reminded me of a Holiday Inn Express, but with a medical twist. The staff there are AMAZING. They treated me like royalty. A special shout out to Alex and Perla who are sweet as can be.
With regards to security and access, I had to keep reminding myself that this is a medical facility; as at any hospital you don't get a key to your room and you can't come and go as you please until the Dr. gives the green light. The surrounding neighborhood is very high-end and safe. I had no issues or worries walking to the shopping mall 2 blocks away, even after dark.
The meals weren't exciting, but they were packed with protein and fiber to aid in recovery. At any time of day or night you can get coffee, tea, water, fruit and light snack items. It would have been nice to have access to an ice machine, but they will give you ice if you ask. I also wished there was a mini fridge in the room so I could have kept my own stash of snacks.
Overall, I wholeheartedly recommend Cosmed clinic, Dr. Castañeda and the Recovery Boutique. It was a great experience.
Sidenote: I read another review of Cosmed where the supposed patient claimed that they pressure you to write a review coming out of anesthesia. That is absurd. The entire time I was there there was not even a peep about RealSelf, reviews or anything of the sort.
I hope the world finds this helpful!
Provider Review
Dr. Castañeda: If he were not a plastic surgeon, I think he would be an engineer. He is precise and methodical but not without a sense of humor. In total, I only spent 45 minutes with the man (while conscious), but he knows what he is doing so I didn't sweat it. He creates beautiful, natural-looking noses. (No Barbie/piggie/ski slopes here)