Plastic surgeons perform surgical interventions, eliminating defects on the human body, restoring the functions of internal organs, increasing the aesthetic appeal of the chest, lips, and other parts of the body. The profession is suitable for those who are interested in chemistry and biology.
Short description
Plastic surgeons are doctors who give and restore beauty to their patients. They are engaged in the operations necessary to correct the patient’s appearance: lifting, plastic surgery of the eyelids, lips and abdomen, mammoplasty, platysmaplasty and others. There are the following areas of this type of surgery:
- aesthetic – necessary for the correction of defects in appearance, which do not reduce the quality of life and do not take away a threat to health. This includes gluteoplasty and other types of surgical intervention;
- reconstructive – helps to eliminate the acquired and congenital defects of tissues, internal organs, the body as a whole, which reduce the quality of life of the patient. People resort to this type of surgery forcibly, most often receiving a referral from the attending physician.
One must remember that plastic surgery effectively helps women and men who have suffered during car accidents, underwent a subcutaneous mastectomy, etc. It is necessary to eliminate congenital defects that were almost impossible to cure 20-25 years ago: cleft palate and others.
A doctor performing all types of the above surgical interventions must meet a number of requirements, the first of which is a good vision. He or she must have sensitive hands, excellent endurance. If the future doctor suffers from nervous disorders, tremors, joint diseases, then it is better for him/her to choose another field of activity.
Features of the profession
The direction of medicine is promising because more than 1.5 million operations are performed within 1 year in the United States, most patients contact doctors as they want to enlarge the bust and remove excess fat. This is not the limit because there is not a single person in the world who would not want to change something in his/her appearance. And plastic surgeons give their patients the opportunity to start life anew – with a transformed appearance.
The doctor performs a large amount of work:
- consultations, study of anamnesis, diagnostics;
- assessment of the risks that a specific surgical intervention carries;
- implementation of surgical interventions of varying complexity;
- drawing up a treatment plan, which includes medications, massage, training and other procedures;
- use of the latest technologies required to perform operations;
- analysis of the work performed;
- issuance of assignments to nursing staff;
- advisory support of the patient during recovery.
Physicians have been engaged in training and practical work for more than 8 years. They must correctly assess the level of their responsibility because one wrong move can lead to disastrous consequences.
Experienced plastic surgeons start small and are primarily specialized doctors. They are involved in operations to remove appendicitis, amputation, suturing and work with all types of wounds.
Pros and cons of the profession
Pros:
- Popular and demanded direction of medicine;
- Narrow specialization;
- Decent salary, which is due to the complexity of the work and high demand in the labor market;
- Useful work, because this doctor brings patients back to normal life;
- Modern technologies facilitate the work, preventing complications during surgery;
- Opportunity to undergo an internship abroad, which will increase the value of the surgeon.
Cons:
- Great responsibility;
- Complications may arise after surgery;
- Not all patients are satisfied with the result of the surgeon’s work;
- Frequent stressful situations;
- Many hours of operations and irregular working hours;
- Great competition in universities;
- You must spend at least 8 years on training.
Important personal qualities
The doctor who has chosen this direction should not be squeamish and overly compassionate. Excellent motor skills, the absence of tremors and chronic diseases, excellent vision are very important because the hands and eyes are the main working tools of this doctor. Every day he/she encounters different people who can be overly sensitive, rude, indecisive, so politeness and good upbringing are important.
The doctor should be distinguished by restraint, the ability to persuade and listen. Other character traits play an important role:
- increased accuracy;
- love for sports, taking care of your own health;
- ability to persuade;
- confidence in your strength;
- self-control;
- discipline;
- good memory.
Training of a plastic surgeon
This is the highest-paid and promising branch of medicine, which is why many students want to get a specialized education. From-initially it is necessary to submit documents to a medical university, where the student will receive general knowledge about medicine and specialization (the faculties of “General Medicine”, “Pediatrics” are suitable).
A doctor who has completed the entire training course can enter the Plastic Surgery residency, where it is necessary to study for another 2 years. The rules are changing, universities put forward different requirements for applicants, so be sure to check the information before submitting documents. Note that after completing the training, the plastic surgeon must confirm his/her qualifications every 5 years.
Examples of world-renowned plastic surgeons are Andrew Jacono, Paul Nassif, Steve Dayan, Neil Gordon, Julius Few, Benedict Olusola and Leonard Rubinstein.
Place of work
A doctor can become a teacher at a university, open his/her own clinic like Alouf Aesthetics, work with young specialists, work in commercial and government medical institutions. It all depends on experience, hard work and talent, as well as the time he/she is ready to devote to work and his education. You can find a job as an assistant in order to gain experience, to be able to observe the work of a practicing surgeon.
Best colleges for plastic surgery
- Harvard University.
- Yale University.
- Stanford University.
- Duke University.
- Johns Hopkins University.
- Dartmouth College.
- University of Miami.
- Pennsylvania State University.
What is the average plastic surgeon salary?
The average private practice plastic surgeon salary is about $500,000 while the average employed plastic surgeon earns about $490,000.
Professional skills
- Techniques for performing all types of plastic surgery;
- General provisions of plastic surgery;
- Modern methods of surgery (use of radio waves, laparoscopy and others);
- Record keeping;
- Fundamentals of psychology required to communicate with patients;
- Working with the tool (clamps, markers for marking, tweezers, scalpels and others);
- Knowledge about cosmetology.