Fake Plastic Surgeons

There has been a media frenzy during the last month, related to the topic of "fake" plastic surgeons. Recent newspaper articles (The Star, 16 Nov 2009 - Read Here) have highlighted some of these unfortunate incidents. During my discussions with patients, friends and colleagues, it has become apparent that, in general, the public are unaware of who may call themselves a Plastic Surgeon and who may perform cosmetic surgery procedures. This post will answer some of those questions.

Who may call themselves a Plastic Surgeon?
In many countries, any qualified doctor may call themselves a plastic surgeon. However, in South Africa, only medical practitioners who have been registered with the Health Profressions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) for independent practice as a Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeon may use this title. As the HPCSA is a statutory body, it is illegal for any other practitioner to use this title. The HPCSA will only register a doctor (and provide them with the necessary certificate) as a Plastic Surgeon once the doctor has provided the following documentation:

• Proof of completion of a minimum of 4 years of approved specialist training in an academic unit. This is provided by annual renewal of the doctor's "W-number" (a unique, registered and approved training post number).
• An original signed letter from the head of the academic unit stating that the doctor has duly completed their training to the satisfaction of the department.
• Proof of independent examination of the doctor, in all aspects of plastic surgery, at the completion of their training (exit examination). The HPCSA currently accepts 2 forms of examination : The national College of Medicine of South Africa (CMSA) fellowship examination in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, or the Master of Medicine in Plastic Surgery degree awarded by an approved university.

An official certificate from the HPCSA provides proof of registration.


How can you tell if your surgeon is registered?
A copy of the above HPCSA certificate can be requested from the doctor. In addition, all medical professionals require a "practice number" (PCNS) which is obtained from the Board of Healthcare Funders of Southern Africa (BHF). Each practice number is unique and has (in the long format) a 3 digit code at the start which identifies the area of practice of that doctor. For instance, 010 is the identifier for specialist anaesthetists, 014 for general practitioners and 036 for plastic surgeons. All medical aid companies have access to this data.

Who can perform cosmetic surgery?
In the past cosmetic surgery was performed by many doctors, some of whom were not plastic surgeons. The Medical Protection Society (MPS), which provides doctors with professional insurance, differentiated between trained plastic surgeons (as above) and other practitioners with regard to the fees payable. The practitioners undertaking cosmetic surgery without the formal training described above were required to pay an annual fee 5 times higher than trained plastic surgeons. This is a direct reflection of the actuarial risk of complications in untrained hands. Currently MPS no longer covers these practitioners if they perform cosmetic surgery as the risk is now deemed unacceptable. This should alert the public to the risks involved in consulting untrained surgeons.

In addition, the HPCSA has released a statement on who may perform cosmetic surgery (13 Oct 2009). The statement follows here (italics) :

COSMETIC PROCEDURES
a. “Cosmetic Surgery” be defined as an operative procedure in which the principal purpose is to
improve the appearance, usually with the connotation that the improvement sought is beyond
the normal appearance, and its acceptable variations, for the age and the ethnic origin of the
patient – Steadman’s Dictionary for Health Professions and Nursing File, 2004;
b. cosmetic surgery was always an elective procedure;
c. cosmetic surgery was performed in the main by specialists in plastic and reconstructive
surgery, but may also be performed by other specialists which have formal structured
training, assessment and ongoing professional development in certain aspects of
cosmetic surgery relevant to those particular specialties;
d. assessment of competence of any such registered specialist in any particular cosmetic
surgical procedure which has not formed part of specialist training shall be by a
training/examination body accredited by the Board for such training;
e. reconstructive surgery shall not be deemed to be synonymous with cosmetic surgery;
f. cosmetic medicine was the field that dealt with any non-surgical cosmetic procedures;
g. cosmetic medicine was not confined to any specialty or discipline;
h. registered practitioners should always act within the Medicine Control Council
recommendations and in accordance with Rule 19 of the generic ethical rules of the HPCSA
as appended:
“19. A practitioner shall in the conduct and scope of his or her practice, use only –
(a) a form of treatment, apparatus or health technology which is not secret and
which is not claimed to be secret; and
(b) an apparatus or health technology which proves upon investigation to be
capable of fulfilling the claims made in regard to it”
i. any practitioner performing cosmetic medicine procedures which result in permanent
anatomical and/or physiological changes shall be appropriately trained as for cosmetic
surgery.

How are Plastic Surgeons Trained?
There have been a numerous letters and comments regarding the newspaper articles described above. I feel that it is important to describe the training that a doctor must undergo to become a registered plastic surgeon. Here is the process :

• Undergraduate medical degrees take 6 years to complete. After completion of the undergraduate training, the title Dr may be used, but the doctor may not undertake independent practice.
• A period of internship must be completed (previously 1 year, now 2 years)
• A period of community service must be completed (previously 1 year, now 2 years)
• A period of medical officer training in specialist surgical disciples must be completed (usually 1 year)
• Specialist surgical training in general surgery is required, completing at least 2 years (but often more)
• Specialist plastic surgery training for a minimum of 4 years is required.

This means that the "fastest" possible route was previously 15 years of training, but is currently 17 years.

During the specialist training period both academic knowledge and surgical skills are required. This is true for all aspects of reconstructive surgery, as well as for cosmetic surgery, which forms an integral part of our training. The skills required for cosmetic surgery are composite skills and can NOT be obtained in isolation, but are built on the foundations of other skills obtained in general surgery and reconstructive surgery. It is naive to believe that general practitioners, who have not undertaken this rigorous basic training can obtain comparable skill levels.

With regard to the academic knowledge that is required for the safe practice of plastic surgery, many people assume that this is less than other specialists. Each discipline has a "standard" text book - Plastic Surgery, 2nd Ed, 2006, ISBN0-7216-8811-X is ours. This is the largest medical text every published (on any medical subject). In addition to the largest medical text, numerous articles and specialized texts are also required to build the knowledge base that is essential to the practice of plastic surgery. Clearly, it is impossible to duplicate such experience outside a formal training program.

I hope that this post will enlighten not only the public, but also our medical colleagues, on the personal and professional efforts that must be may to become a plastic surgeon and why we guard our title so fastidiously.

Best Regards

Marshall