Not so good results in esthetic surgery

[Wolfgang]

Hi:

a few days ago a local newspaper ( "Madonna" )has invited me to a round table discussion on bad results in esthetic surgery. They showed stars with deplorable results. And asked how that may come.

As in every bad result, the reason may be a surgical mistake, a patient mistake in post op care or fate.

But what in stars at general ?

I was not able to answer the question, as every result will have it´s own history. But
I suspect a certain pattern.

In some stars I have observed the following: first, a secretary to the great A comes to the office. Great A wants such and such procedure done - but without paying, of course. Suggesting to make the surgeon kind of famous in the community as an exchange for the free operation.
If you agree, quite soon they will remind you that a star has the same right as everybody that the physician keeps them discreet. And at the end, you do your work for free, and you do not have the benefit of publicity. They even will follow their own rules in post op care whatever you may say ( because they know how the world ticks, not you )

Since I am a seasoned esthetic surgeon, I will not do that anymore, telling that secretary: " If I want Big A for publicity I will pay her well, if she wants good surgery I want her to pay me well " Regularly, they disappear. And I have learned they find some unexperienced esthetic surgeon who hopes for a good deal.

And so the avaricious star ends up with an unexperienced surgeon which also ends up in unfavorable post op care - sometimes with not so good a result.

Is this a typical pattern ? Please, whoever has any experience with this, please tell me. Or do you think that this story may be rare and has happened to me only at the time of my opening office some 25 years ago?

Is this behavior a reason for one or the other unfavorable result in esthetic surgery?

Wolfgang, esthetic surgeon in Vienna, Austria ( Europe )

[pjt]

No, I think that experience is very common and you point out the correct course of action. The celebrity patient should be treated like every other patient. You may be more discrete with the celebrity but you should not do the surgery for free or do it in exchange for a promise of publicity. You should discuss what your instruction are for preop and postop care and document everything in the chart. And of course do the surgery as you would for any other patient.

[Wolfgang]

Dear pjt :

thank you for taking your time and confirming my thinking. I have learned it the hard way.

Wolfgang