Is Getting Cosmetic Surgery Overseas Dangerous?
All types of surgery have associated risks. But what are the risks when travelling to a foreign country to have a cosmetic surgery done?
Year after year, more and more people are electing for cosmetic surgery overseas. Whether it is breast augmentation or a quick nip-and-tuck, many Australians are opting for surgery in a number of Asian countries; particularly Thailand, India, Borneo and Malaysia.
A possible explanation for this is the latest medical tourism phenomenon. Australians can visit a number of different countries to have a cosmetic procedure performed and make a holiday of the recovery period. On the surface level, Ashbury Cosmetics agree that this may sound quite alluring. However, there are some significant underlying risks many Australians should know.
Overseas Standards
Different countries have different regulations as to what is required to perform particular surgeries. The standard at which Australian surgeons perform cosmetic procedures is at world class level of quality.
Some overseas hospitals can be very confronting if you do not know what to expect. Being given a ticket to wait in line with 60 odd other people for major surgery is general practice. If you are going to a non-English speaking country, it’s quite possible your ‘surgeon’ will speak very little English too. Can you imagine trying to communicate with someone about major surgery that cannot fully understand what you are saying?
Provided you get to speak with your surgeon prior to surgery, it’s likely that he or she will see you as a walking dollar sign with the ‘sooner we get you in, the sooner we get you out’ mentality. Can you imagine taking a ticket, as you would at a supermarket deli, waiting for hours to see an unqualified surgeon that can’t understand you then trying to communicate what you want in the space of approximately 5 minutes?
We’ve even heard of stories where name tags have been swapped by mistake and receiving the wrong procedure. That’s right – in 2007, a Victorian lady booked a nip-tuck holiday to have some excess fat removed from her thighs but woke up with a facelift. What’s worse is that the facelift was poorly executed, leaving her with large visible scarring in front of her ears and ear lobes that were sewn to the side of her face.
Because the idea of being on a holiday while having a treatment sounds so appealing, a large demand is forming for services that provide exactly this. Companies are constantly appearing that offer these packages that include flights, accommodation, the treatment, tours, transfers etc.
The last thing you should be doing after having surgery is going on tours, shopping, swimming and lying by the pool. A wound that is exposed to tropical temperatures, moisture and stress can lead to severe problems such as serious life threatening infections.
At the end of the whole ordeal, you can be left more out of pocket by having to have reconstructive surgery to all the botched work done outside of Australia. Saving $5000 on a breast implant can in fact set you back around $50,000 if the procedure isn’t done correctly.
It’s important to know if you are considering cosmetic surgery, who your doctor is and what qualifications they have. Dr Robert Boyle is a member of the Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons, click here view his listing.
Ashbury Cosmetic Surgery recommends staying within the Australian shores where your health and well-being is the first priority. Ashbury Cosmetics have performed over 60,000 procedures for Australians with an unmatched level of quality.