Cosmetic Doctors vs Plastic Surgeons: What Every Patient Needs to Know


Cosmetic Doctors vs Plastic Surgeons: What Every Patient Needs to Know

Aesthetic enhancement, both surgical and non-surgical, is very big business in Australia. The number of medispa’s and cosmetic surgery centres grows daily. Unfortunately, the wide range of titles and different types of practitioners in the field of cosmetic surgery can make selecting the best provider difficult.

Patients that visit Form and Face for body contouring, including breast augmentation, are pleased to learn that Dr Ben Norris is an experienced and well-trained plastic and reconstructive surgeon who specialises in cosmetic surgery. With unsurpassed medical credentials and standing as a fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons in the Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Dr Norris represents, both literally and figuratively, the best of both worlds in physical rejuvenation.

Fact: Not All Surgeons are as Well-Trained as Dr Norris

Plastic surgery encompasses both cosmetic and reconstructive surgery. Members of the Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons like Dr Norris are highly respected because they are Specialist Plastic Surgeons. That means they are trained, experienced, and qualified to perform both cosmetic and reconstructive procedures.

Furthermore, because many cosmetic procedures are rooted in reconstructive plastic surgery, specialist plastic surgeons like Dr Norris are uniquely suited to handle the demands and risks attached to various cosmetic surgery procedures.

Fact: There’s More to Plastic Surgery Than Cosmetic Results

Plastic surgery is divided into two branches

  • Cosmetic Surgery – designed to improve a person’s aesthetic appearance by altering or reshaping a bodily feature.
  • Reconstructive surgery – concerned with improving bodily function, and performed on abnormal structures of the body due to birth defects, trauma, disease, etc.

In Australia, it is legal for a medical practitioner (GP) to perform surgery. Only ASAPS members like Dr Norris, however, are Specialist Plastic Surgeons with extensive training in all aspects of cosmetic and reconstructive surgery. That training is the difference between an optimal outcome and a plastic surgery disaster.

Fact: Not All Advertising (or Surgeons) Can Be Trusted

The ACCC has developed advertising guidelines for doctors, but the guidelines are not being enforced. As a result, says the Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) in their media resource folder:

“…there is an increase in irresponsible advertising by medical practitioners who describe themselves as surgeons or imply that they have formal surgical qualifications when they do not. Unethical advertising is often driven by commercial factors. There’s a danger that unethical advertising inflates patient expectations while ignoring or trivialising the risks of surgical procedures.”

According to ASPS,

“The best way for prospective patients to reduce their risk is to make sure they consult a Specialist Plastic Surgeon that has received AMC accreditation to perform cosmetic and reconstructive surgery.”

Would You Like to Know More?

If you would like to know more about the training, and experience of Dr Ben Norris and Dr Benjamin Norris, and discover how they use their skills to help men and women look and feel their personal best, please contact Form and Face on 02 9387 3800 to schedule a consultation.

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