Great Result Septo/rhinoplasty. Skilled Surgeon, Attentive to Patient's Goals

I had a septo-rhinoplasty with Dr. Emre Günbey in October 2023 in Istanbul, Turkey. He is a phenomenal doctor - knowledgeable, meticulous in attention to detail, very kind and attentive to the desire of the patient. I'm very happy with the result of the operation. I recommend him very, very highly.

I consulted in person with 9 doctors: 6 in Turkey, 3 in Western Europe. Additionally, I spoke online with several other doctors. I chose Dr. Günbey for several reasons:

- He is extremely attentive to detail. I was impressed that even in consultation, Dr. Günbey was precise about every simulated image; every millimeter about the nose matters enormously to him. His meticulous attention to detail was critical during the surgery: he spent much more time on the operation than other doctors had estimated it would take, all so that he could achieve each of the goals with extreme precision and high probability of success.

- He is very realistic and honest. I spoke to a few surgeons who promised the moon and guaranteed no risk. I liked Dr. Günbey because he explained in detail how realistic (or unrealistic) was each step which I wanted to achieve and where the risks were. There is no guarantee of perfection, but I saw that he was extremely conscious to revise the plan several times in order to maximize the chance of success and minimize the risks.

- Very focused on natural-appearing improvements. He warned me several times of where my idea would appear un-natural. I appreciated that very much.

- He listens very, very closely to understand the patient and the patient's individual goals and desires. I found that many surgeons have a pre-defined opinion of how they will perform a surgery. They accommodate the view of the patient to some extent, but not much. In contrast, Dr. Günbey spent a lot of time to understand what exactly I wanted and then create a plan to achieve my goals realistically. He spent enormous time listening to me, asking questions, showing example photos and asking my opinion about different ideas. My experience is that he is very talented at creating a rapport between the patient and himself where he provides the knowledge and the skill in order to achieve the patient's goals in a way which is medically safe and realistic.

- He is technically skilled because of his experience of 2000+ successful rhinoplasty operations. My procedure had a technically difficult requirement. Other surgeons wanted to solve the challenge in ways which are easier for the surgeon, but create more difficulties for the patient and higher risk. Dr. Günbey spent a lot of time analyzing the issue in examination, and he created a plan which allowed him to avoid the risks other doctors wanted to take. I work in scientific research in Europe; I'm practical, very focused on details, and much of my job in my own field is planning about minimizing risks. So I was impressed by Dr. Günbey's meticulous process to planning. As for the result, the surgery was ideal. It worked perfectly, and I'm very happy with the result.

- He is open and transparent about his work. Several doctors I consulted with were hand-wavy about what they would do, did not want to answer questions about details, made only quick rough sketches of simulated results, refused to give me the simulated images they created, and do not allow photography during the surgery. In contrast, Dr. Günbey was extremely open with me about his work and his ideas, explaining to me every detail and answering every question I had, often by showing me examples of his own previous surgeries. Before the surgery, I had all the simulated images which he and I had discussed, so I felt very comfortable going into the operation. During the operation, he took dozens of photos and videos to use as an aid in analysis during the surgery to achieve the best result. After surgery, he gave me those pictures and videos of the operation so I could see what had been done. His openness and transparency made me feel comfortable to trust him entirely.

- I never felt rushed. Other surgeons have very tight consultation schedules of 20-40 minutes where they conduct an examination and then present their quickly-created plan. It's not a lot of actual consulting; they just tell me what they will do. In contrast, Dr. Günbey listened to me very patiently, took notes on what I said, answered all my questions in extreme detail, made extra time for me because I then had follow-up questions, etc. By the time we reached surgery, I trusted him entirely because I felt that he understood me very well and knew all the details of what I wanted and didn't want. I didn't expect any surprises, and none occurred fortunately.

- Great follow-up after the surgery. I had his personal number, and texted him a few times with questions. He responded very quickly with both knowledge and kindness (mostly, it was kindness that was needed to just tell me that everything will be fine haha!).

- Huge experience. Over 2000 rhinoplasty/septoplasty operations. Diverse range of patients: men, women, young, old.

- He started the ENT surgery department at the hospital where the surgery occurred, and was head surgeon for 6 years. This is the hospital where he performs operations now as a private-practice doctor.

- Strong academic background. I looked through several of his ENT research papers before meeting him.

- He follows developments in the field, he incorporates new ideas, technique and academic research into his own practice. That seems like it should be normal, but I was surprised that several doctors I met do not pay attention to new developments.

- He is not focused on marketing. I met a few doctors who have a very strong focus on self-promotion, opulent offices decorated with many pictures and magazine articles about the doctor, fancy internet sites, etc. I understand that style is important for some patients. However, for me, those aspects don't matter to me. I appreciate that Dr. Günbey is a real person without pretense or marketing: a highly knowledgeable doctor, an excellent surgeon, and a kind person who is extremely focused on the patient.

- In contrast to some Turkish surgeons, his practice is not focused on foreign patients. So he has no international patient coordinator, he does not work with agencies, etc. When I was dealing with him, I was dealing with *him*. The money I paid went to him and the hospital, rather than to marketing agencies and patient coordinators. Personally, I find that refreshing. On the other hand, it means that there is very little information in English about him posted online by the marketers, so it seems to an English-speaker that he is unknown. That's fine for me. I met several of the "internet famous" surgeons in Turkey in person; I felt that Dr. Günbey has just as much skill and knowledge as the most "internet famous" of them. In fact, he is so good that I doubt he will stay unknown in the English-speaking world for long. But based on my experience with him, I think that having even more foreign patients will not change his approach, and he will remain a very skilled surgeon and kind-hearted man interested in helping each patient.



Dr. Emre Günbey is extremely meticulous, attentive to the needs of patients, and a highly skilled surgeon. He treated me like a member of the family. I have already recommended him to my family, and I recommend him here on realself with no hesitation.