Tummy Tuck Review After Being Botched Up Overseas ! - Sydney, AU

My journey began on the 27th August 2013 , i went overseas and had a Tummy Tuck . I had waited to have this procedure for 30 yrs , there was always something more important than my TT and i also felt quite selfish spending so much money on myself . I was made aware of Agents who liased with Surgeon's and hospital's overseas . These agent's made all the arrangements for you , starting from medical acceptance form's , to surgical dates , hospital accodomation and Hotel accomodation . These agents even offered outing's and shopping expedition's ... they even visit you in hospital and state that they are with you all the way .
This particular agent was highly recommended by a medical practitioner who was also a friend of mine ..... this is the only reason i even considered going overseas . To cut a long story short ... this was a huge mistake . From the moment i had my blood taken everything started to go downhill , my blood was too thick and they couldnt get a catheter in .... several attempts later and different hand and i was done .
I then went to see the surgeon , we were interrupted by a cardiologist who said " you cant have surgery today " he had realised that i was on HRT and i needed blood thinning meds . This also meant that i had no time with the surgeon to discuss my surgery .
Surgery was postponed for 24hrs , i was upset that no one had taken the time to go through my medical forms .... they had them in their possession for 2 months . I had surgery the following day and woke up to find myself in ICU , language was a huge barrier and no one could tell me why i was there . I had asked the agent to inform my husband once i was out of theatre , they didnt do this and my family were very concerned . Once my husband found out i was in ICU he flew straight over to make sure i was being cared for . After 3 nights in hospital , i was discharged and made to go to my hotel accomodation . My legs were starting to get very swollen , no amount of elevation , ice packs and rest made any difference . I went along to my first post op check up and was told that i was fine . I was given meds for the swelling and a fit to fly certificate . My swelling got to the point that i couldnt distinguish my knees from my legs , i was now swollen all the way up to my breast's and felt very unwell . My agent told me to get a massage to clear the swelling , i did this to no avail . Second post op check up and again i was told i was fine and had my stitches removed and was given another fit to fly certificate . I felt lucky that i had surgery and i was doing well , after months of anxiety , it was all over .... i thought . Just before my pick up , i was called by the cardiologist , he wanted see how surgery had gone . As soon as he noticed the swelling , he called for ultrasounds on my legs .... all of a sudden there was huge panic by nurses and doctors . Ultrasound revealed that i had 2 blood clots , one behind each knee and slow blood flow to the groin . I was told that i cant leave the hospital and was being readmitted .... i started to cry and felt great anxiety . I was told by the cardiologist that i was facing sudden death and that i had to go straight to ICU . I did receive great care by the chief cardiologist , he took every precaution and made sure that my safety came first .... i had to stay in hospital for another 9 days ... at my own cost . My husband flew back to stay with me and arranged to fly me home when i was released from the hospital .
Arrived home and went straight to my GP , bloods were taken every day for a few weeks to establish the correct dose of blood thinning meds .
All was going well , i felt lucky to be alive and looked forward to finally having a flat tummy ... but it was not to be ! A huge bulge appeared on my left side , it was far worse than my pre op tummy , i was shattered to say the least . I went to a prominent sydney surgeon but i was turned away , he didnt want to know me because i had surgery overseas , i felt embarrassed and offended . I tried another well know surgeon and was told the same thing . I had almost given up and decided to put up with my appearance until , my GP told me that it wasnt a choice .... i needed to have a CT to determine the cause of the huge bulge that was now looking like a football . The CT showed that i had Divarication Recti , the abdominal muscle had come apart .
I wrote to the hospital , i sent all the reports and reults from various test's and after many , many emails , the hospital agreed that i should have my money back . I was told that i could travel back and have surgery for free but i told them that this would never be an option for me .
I stumbled on to Realself and searched for surgeons in sydney , i made several appointments and mentioned the fact that i had a TT overseas . Two surgeons accepted my appointment and i went along to the first one . The first surgeon was Dr Kevin Ho . I was met by Jackie , Dr Ho's assistant , and from this moment i felt that i was in the right place . Jackie is a warm , compassionate person with a ton of patience . I was assured that i was welcome and that Dr Ho woud look after me and help me . I felt that Jackie was a very genuine person and i was completely at ease . Dr Ho called me in to his room and i couldnt help but feel relief , he asked me to tell him my story , he listened intently and made notes of everything that i said . Dr Ho ordered more tests and said that he would look after me , i was now under his care . I cancelled the other surgeon , i was sure that i had come to the right place , Dr Ho was going to repair me .
I had surgery on 12th March 2014 , every precaution was taken so that i had minimal risk of coming away with a blood clot . Dr Ho came in to see me and told me that surgery was a challenge but was very confident that my repair would be successful . My hospital stay was 5 days , i had 2 drains and hardly any pain . Dr Ho has been a caring , compassionate person since day one , he is genuine and very approachable and a complete professional . I would highly recommend Dr Ho to anyone . How many surgeons would give you their own mobile phone number ? Dr Ho gave me his number and even called me to check on me and saw me in his room's on the weekend . I also highly recommend the Prince of Wales Private Hospital , wonderful hard working staff and always with a smile on their face ..... nothing was too much to ask for .
I would never recommend surgery overseas to anyone , it has many risk's that far outweigh the so called savings . There is no after care if you have surgery overseas , no check up's and if any complications arise , you are on your own . Do your research well , there are many surgeons here in Australia that dont charge the earth . Have your surgery close to home , it is possible to have a wonderful outcome without jeapordising your health or your life savings .
I would never have surgery overseas again .
Savings i made ? No savings were made , we spent over $25,000

It is now 7 months since my surgery with Dr Kevin Ho . I am happy with my results and for the first time in over 30 yrs , i can wear anything i want . The pictures that Dr Ho took are very confronting for me and it reminds me how unhappy i was after my first TT , i had almost forgotten just how bad i looked and felt . Pleased to say that Dr Ho performed a completely successful TT revision .

In March it will be 12 months since i had surgery with Dr Ho to revise a botched up TT . I am finally comfortable in my own skin and even confident enough to wear a bikini . I havent been able to do this since i had my last child 31 yrs ago . I am far from perfect , even far from having a nice body ... but i do have a nice tummy :) I am posting this pic to give other's hope ... dont give up , you can achieve good results at any age , even at 57 and even after being botched up overseas .