If you spend much time looking for information about Los Angeles cosmetic plastic surgery, you’ll often see various surgeons offering a “consultation.” Some charge and some don’t.
So what’s it for?
A surgical consult is for the cosmetic surgeon to hear what procedure you want. He or she must decide if your procedure can be done and if you are healthy enough for plastic surgery.
You, in turn, should learn about many areas, including:
- If the surgeon has good before and after plastic surgery pictures
- His or her level of training and experience
- Required pre-surgery tests, including a physical exam
- Time away from work for surgery and recovery
- Total charges for surgery
Say you’re interested in a rhinoplasty –you find if the surgery can be done, how you might look after healing, if it’s within your budget and if the consultation fee can be applied to the total costs of it all. Some Los Angeles cosmetic surgeons apply that fee to the surgery, others don’t.
If no fee is involved? Think about it: Any Beverly Hills board-certified plastic surgeon has spent somewhere around four to seven years taking extra surgical training after receiving the M.D. degree.
If no consultation is involved you must wonder:
- Is the surgeon only eager for patients?
- Is he or she fully qualified?
- Will I get an objective evaluation or a sales pitch?
One writer penning a guide to Los Angeles and Beverly Hills plastic surgery went to six free and one paid consultations. He came away thinking:
- No-fee consultation visits were basically sales tools
- Surgeons who do charge rely more on their reputations
The thought is not too cynical: if you don’t pay anything, you may receive nothing of value.
Some years ago, we wrote two books, Secrets of a Beverly Hills Cosmetic Surgeon and The Essential Cosmetic Surgery Companion.
For people who read one book, we reduce the price of the consultation by $25 (for a total of $175) because we spend less time explaining surgery during consultations.
Plus, those readers really know how to select the right Los Angeles cosmetic surgeon – or a surgeon anywhere else!
Learn more about plastic surgery consultations
Or, look at some before and after cosmetic plastic surgery pictures.