Board Certified???

The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) represents 94% of all board-certified plastic surgeons in the U.S. You may confirm board-certification with the American Board of Medical Specialties. Not all boards are recognized by ABMS. Some "boards" have little regard for training or patient safety.

Confirm that the MD you are trusting with your appearance and well being is ABPS certified, & that they have hospital privileges to perform the surgery you will be undergoing. Confirm that surgery will take place in a facility accredited by The Joint Commission AAAASF, or both & that anesthesia will be administered by a board-certified MD anesthesiologist.

Look at many, many B&A images of work performed by your surgeon. Look for close-up images of incisions and scars

A lower facelift, expertly performed should be very tolerable. Lasers can be great, but not often with surgery. Ask about recovery and post-operative protocols including appointments and who will be providing care

As Dr. Law mentioned, The American Society of Plastic Surgeons represents the vast majority of board-certified plastic surgeons in the United States. If you want to make sure your surgeon is certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, go to www.abplasticsurgery.org and see if your doctor is listed. However, many doctors call themselves "plastic surgeons" but may have no formal training. Outpatient surgery is poorly regulated, unfortunately. There are also other "Boards" that sound important but are not part of the American Board of Medical Specialties member boards. Many of these "Boards" have been set up to give members the "appearance" of board certification. It really pays to Do Your Homework" and only trust your face to a board-certified plastic surgeon.

Dear Fisher,

Hello and thank you for your excellent question. I agree withe the comments above. You can check if your surgeon is board certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery at www.abplasticsurgery.org. In addition, unless your procedure is performed under local anesthesia, be sure it is being performed at an accredited facility. If you have any questions, call our office for assistance. Good luck!

A plastic surgeon can be board-certified and not a member of ASPS. You can check with the American Board of plastic surgery to see if he is board certified. I will say that the majority of board-certified plastic surgeons are members of ASPS.

One way to find out is to simply ask the office, check the ASPS site, ABPS site. Look for the logo on the website for ABPS and ASPS.

Mini facelift, neck and laser work can be done under local and or Local anesthesia and IV sedation. The discomfort can be well managed with a good peri operative pain management strategy.

You can go to www.certificationmatters.org to check board-certification status. ONLY fully-accredited ABMS boards are listed on that site, so you can rest assured you have a truly board-certified plastic surgeon if you find them on that site and confirm that they are certified by the American Board of PLASTIC SURGERY.

Some physicians are trained in other specialties such as ENT, and may have board certification, but not in Plastic Surgery. This doesn't necessarily mean that they are not competent to do the job, however you know that an American Board of Plastic Surgery certified surgeon HAS done his homework. I would check www.certificationmatters.org to find their qualifications. Also reviews on RealSelf can be helpful. Best of luck!

My answers are the same. Most Board Certified Plastic Surgeons will wisely promote their well earned certification and many belong the the Aesthetic Society as well ASAPS. www.certificationmatters.org is the organization to ultimately check on board certification.

If the doctor is not truthful... they should be reported as this is illegal in most states.

Dr. H