Before choosing a cosmetic or plastic surgeon in Boston, read more in our cosmetic surgery blogs on how to prepare for your consultation.
Dr. Moss provides very lengthy and complete consultations. Therefore it is in everyone’s (both patient and doctor) best interest that the patient is properly prepared for this consultation. Keep in mind that for most surgeries outside of cosmetic surgery, patients have already met with their primary care physician and discussed the proposed surgery or at least the potential need for surgery. The primary care physician to some extent has already assessed the patient as to whether she/he is appropriate for the surgery, before referring her/him to the surgeon. The Primary Care Physician (PCP) has often ordered all the necessary laboratory and radiological tests, before referring the patient to the surgeon.
An example of this would be that the PCP would make sure that any patient 40 years or older has a current mammogram before referring a patient to a surgeon for breast surgery.
Beth Bark, Mammography technologist from Tobey HospitalCosmetic surgery is very different in that most referrals are either from friends or family, the internet or even the yellow pages. This means that in a well run cosmetic surgery office, the staff will want to have a conversation with you, before giving you an appointment. Besides taking the usual name, address, and phone number, Dr. Moss has directed his staff to elicit from the caller what her goals are. The staff will also want to determine “just what bothers you.” This is because many patients call up to schedule an appointment for one type of surgery when they need a different surgery. A typical example of this is that many patients call for an appointment for liposuction of the abdomen when they actually need an abdominoplasty.
This patient received an excellent result from an abdominoplasty. Liposuction would not have provided an adequate correction of the overhanging skin. Dr. Moss likes patients like this to have an understanding of the scar involved and the fact that this surgery requires an overnight stay in the hospital.Dr. Moss wants a patient to be scheduling a consultation for the correct cosmetic procedure because he wants the patient to get the most from the consultation. This requires that patients are sent the correct brochures as well as being given the correct recuperative times. It also is helpful if the patient has been provided as accurate a cost as possible for the surgery. All of this will provide the patient with the best chance of a productive consultation. The following is what Dr. Moss would like potential patients to have thought about before coming in.
• What cosmetic surgery procedure(s) are you interested in. At the very least, what bothers you? It is also important that a patient doesn’t call in with a “laundry list” of procedures to be discussed in one consultation. Putting it bluntly, cosmetic surgery with Dr. Moss is real; it is not a television reality show. Serious patients are able to prioritize what cosmetic improvements they want to achieve for themselves. It is sometimes possible to have two procedures performed simultaneously.• Have you read about the surgery that you are interested in? Dr. Moss recommends that all patients visit his website
Boston Abdominoplasty Surgeon and read the page(s) that he has written about the particular surgery they are interested in. In addition, his staff will usually include information, on the procedure in the packet they send you. Dr. Moss recommends that you read all of this information before you come in for your consultation. A little understanding of the procedure you are interested in will go a long way in making your consultation with Dr. Moss more productive.• Are you happy with your weight? All patients, considering cosmetic procedures of the breast or body will receive their best results when they are at their ideal weight. If you want to lose weight before your surgery, you should do so before your consultation. Part of your consultation involves an examination by Dr. Moss, and the goals of the surgery are based on a patient’s body as she presents for the examination. Many facial cosmetic procedures such as rhinoplasty or eyelid surgery are not affected by a patient’s weight.• How much time can you take off to recover? Most cosmetic procedures with Dr. Moss require 10-14 days off to recover. Dr. Moss’ staff can provide you with the usual time off that Dr. Moss requires for each individual procedure. It is important that patients have the capability to take the necessary time off before scheduling a consultation.• Do you have the financial means to pay for the procedure(s) you are interested in? Dr. Moss accepts cash, checks, and credit cards and offers a finance plan through Capital One. It is important that you have determined how you are going to pay for this surgery before you come in for a consultation. This way your consultation can be fairly close in time to your surgery, and you can make the decision to have surgery, with all the necessary information, fresh in your mind.
• Is there anyone else helping you make this decision? Is he/she supportive of your having this surgery? Dr. Moss feels strongly that patients should be having cosmetic surgery because they want to have it, not because someone else feels they should have it. However, if there is someone else helping the patient make this decision, it is helpful if this person is supportive of the patient’s decision. For example; if a woman would like to have breast augmentation surgery and she needs her husband to help pay for the surgery, if he is not supportive, this needs to be resolved before the patient comes in for a consultation. Basically, if a woman needs her husband’s approval or financial support for surgery to proceed, he should at least be willing to attend the consultation, if he has any doubts about the surgery.• Are there any medical problems that might preclude your having cosmetic surgery. Dr. Moss will always ask for written medical clearance for patients, before he performs surgery, when he feels it is necessary. However, if you are aware of any major medical issues you should discuss this with your primary care physician before, scheduling an appointment with Dr. Moss. Patients should feel free to bring up any questions concerning potential medical issues with Dr. Moss’ staff. Sometimes, they assist patients in obtaining a medical clearance even before the consultation, so that the patient can schedule surgery as soon as they have had their consultation.Some patients might feel that they would prefer to just “come in for a consultation with Dr. Moss,” before thinking about the above issues. However, Dr. Moss feels that by providing patients with general information in advance, and having had them address issues such as finances and time off from work, they will be better prepared for their consultation. Patients will then be able to bring a list of questions to their consultation, so that they leave will all the information necessary to make their decision. While many patients do want to start the scheduling process immediately after their consultation, it certainly is acceptable to go home and “think things over” before scheduling cosmetic surgery with Dr. Moss.
Learn More About Plastic Surgery in Boston
