Campaign gears up against fake plastic surgeons

By Dr. Ananya Mandal, MDSep 27 2011

A public safety campaign called, “White Coat Deception,” by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons is moving against doctors who provide care beyond their specialties.

Dr. Mark Wells, a board certified plastic surgeon said, “There is no national law in the United States that says you have to work within the purview of your own specialty.” Four states require "truth in advertising" about board certification; Ohio is not one of them. That leaves Ohio doctors free to offer plastic surgery services that they are not qualified to perform. Wells said, “A lot of other practitioners are being squeezed with cuts in insurance payments and Medicare reimbursement… Cosmetic surgery looks that much more attractive to their practice.”

Wells said that the possibility exists that some patients could be left deformed. He added that the problem is getting worse because of the downturn in the economy- cosmetic treatments are a cash business.

The campaign is spearheaded by the new president of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS), Dr. Malcolm Roth.

In 48 states it is currently legal in the United States for doctors who are not certified by the board of plastic surgeons to practice cosmetic and plastic surgery. “This means that we have other physicians creeping in who have taken a course and think they can do plastic surgery,” said Roth. “It's not the same as going through six years in training specifically in plastic surgery, plus the continual training and code of ethics that are required for those who are board-certified,” he said.

As the economy continues to be unstable, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons hopes to get patients to ask questions before they choose a doctor, so they won't have to live with expensive mistakes.

“People spend months or years making a decision on which care they're going to purchase – it's no different when having a procedure performed. Plastic surgery is elective, there's plenty of time to do your homework and that's really all we're asking: do your homework,” Roth said.