Last week a letter from California lawmakers to the State's Medical Board implored the agency to do a better job of monitoring doctors and the quality of care they provide. According to an article in the Los Angeles Times, the Board was even threatened with dissolution unless "significant progress" was demonstrated in terms of protecting patients from dangerous doctors.

 In spite of the media attention given to plastic surgery nightmares, many patients are still not doing their homework before selecting a cosmetic surgeon.  Unfortunately, because performing cosmetic procedures is a lucrative area of practice, many unqualified and poorly trained physicians are attracting patients who want to improve their appearance.  The results produced by these surgeons are often unappealing and occasionally even life-threatening.  To lessen the risk of a bad outcome a patient seeking plastic surgery should do at least some research into the practice history and qualifications of their surgeon.

When selecting a surgeon you should first ensure they are licensed to practice medicine in California and have at least a few years in practice under their belt.  You can do this by simply researching the doctor's name on the California Medical Board website.   This will also let you know if the doctor has a history of discipline by the Board and whether they have any reportable verdicts/settlements.  Since not every lawsuit or settlement is disclosed on the Medical Board's website, you should also look to the Orange County Superior Court's website to see if the doctor has a substantial history of lawsuits filed against them for malpractice.   One or two lawsuits filed in the course of a long career may not be a concern.  However, wouldn't you want to know if your doctor had ten lawsuits filed against them in the last five years?  Of course you would.  Finally, it is almost always a good idea to go to a plastic surgeon who has completed at least the minimum requirements to be board certified by The American Board of Plastic Surgery.   While board certification is no guarantee the doctor will comply with the standard of care in any particular case, it may bring some level of assurance to the patient that the doctor is competent.

The list above is certainly not an exhaustive one in terms of best ensuring you select a good plastic surgeon.  You can also speak to the surgeon directly about their level of experience with a particular procedure.  Also, a good number of surgeons, if not the majority, will have photo galleries of their work for you to review either in their office or online.  With all of the resources available, finding a competent doctor is much easier now than it was 15 years ago.  Despite this, victims of medical malpractice often learn for the first time their doctor was unqualified only after their lives have been turned upside down.

Compensation for victims of medical malpractice committed by plastic and cosmetic surgeons should be an important concern for all Californians.  When a physician negligently harms a patient, they should be held accountable.  An Orange County medical malpractice attorney with experience at handling such cases can make a fair assessment of these claims.  Mr. Ralph has over 20 years of experience handling personal injury and medical negligence cases, including just this type.   He can be reached at 714-919-4415 for a FREE CONSULTATION.

Have you or a loved one been the victim of plastic surgery malpractice?

This posting should not be construed as legal advice or an opinion on the merit of any particular matter. A consultation is the best way to obtain an assessment of your potential case.

 

.  

An Orange County plastic surgeon, Mark Anthony Knight, is being sued by a woman who claims he gave her enormous breast implants, even though she had consulted with him about a breast lift surgery.  Knight, who surrendered his medical license amid allegations of sexual misconduct, reportedly performed the breast augmentation surgery just days before losing his license.  The patient, Elisa Geraci, alleges she wanted a breast lift after losing a large amount of weight, but Knight recommended a $3,500.00 augmentation procedure instead.  After the surgery two weeks later, Geraci claims she awoke to find enormous implants and a body that made her feel like a "monster."   She eventually went to another plastic surgeon who removed the implants and performed a breast lift.

See the KTLA story and photograph HERE.

Patients looking for plastic surgery should keep in mind that cosmetic surgeons are not always looking out for their best interests.  Unscrupulous doctors will sometimes make promises that cannot be kept and will lead a patient to believe unrealistic results or changes in their appearance can actually be achieved.  They sometimes do this in order to keep the patient happy and ensure the doctor will make money from the surgery performed.  When confronted with unrealistic patient expectations, the standard of care requires a plastic surgeon to so inform the patient and make clear what can be done via a particular surgery, even though the patient may then opt to see another surgeon.   In the case above, while it is possible to give the appearance of "lifted" breasts by way of an augmentation, the implants themselves can contribute to drooping because of their weight.  The augmentation procedure itself is simpler than a breast lift and perhaps Knight recommended a procedure he found easier.  It is also interesting to note the cost of the augmentation appears to be well below the community norm for such a surgery, perhaps an indicator of the quality of service.

Compensation for victims of medical malpractice committed by plastic and cosmetic surgeons should be an important concern for all Californians.   When a physician carelessly harms a patient, they should be held accountable. An Orange County medical malpractice lawyer with experience at handling such cases can make a fair assessment of these claims.   Mr. Ralph has over 20 years of experience handling personal injury and medical malpractice cases, including just this type.  He can be reached at 714-919-4415 for a FREE CONSULTATION.

Have you or a loved one been the victim of a botched cosmetic procedure?

Nothing in this post is intended to suggest the Law Offices of Paul W. Ralph currently represents anyone involved in the news story above.This posting should not be construed as legal advice or an opinion on the merit of any particular matter. A consultation is the best way to obtain an assessment of your potential case.

An incredible story of malpractice has been reported out of Miami, Florida.  A number of alleged victims have come forward alleging a woman posing as a doctor and promising buttocks enhancement pumped their behinds with a toxic concoction of cement, superglue and flat-tire sealant.  According to a report by the Associated Press, the "doctor", identified as Oneal Ron Morris (who police say was born a man and identifies as a woman) was arrested last week after nearly a year of being sought and charged with practicing medicine without a license, causing serious bodily injury.  One victim, who was reportedly looking to get a job at a nightclub and wanted a curvier figure, paid Morris $700 for the injections in 2010. Morris allegedly used some type of tubing and inserted the toxic chemicals into her backside during a painful procedure.  This resulted in hospitalization and extensive home health care, according to the AP report.  Other alleged victims have also suffered serious injuries.

See the Yahoo news/Assoiated Press story HERE.

What the story above demonstrates is that many people looking to have cosmetic surgery turn to those health care providers offering the least expensive treatment.  Not only can this prove embarrassing but also potentially deadly.  A patient looking to have any type of cosmetic procedure should first at least do some investigation regarding the qualifications of the doctor selected.  One of the easiest ways to do this in California is to check with the Medical Board to see if the doctor is licensed and/or board certified in a relevant specialty, such as plastic surgery.  Also, the Board's website contains information regarding any prior discipline.  Second, in some counties (such as the County of Orange) anyone can examine the Superior Court website to see if the doctor has been sued and, if so, for what reason and when.  It should be remembered that the filing of a lawsuit in and of itself does not prove anything as some malpractice suits are filed by the patient simply because they have experienced a less than optimal result.  In addition to this, a potential patient can simply "Google" the doctor's name to see what reviews, if any, have been given by former patients.  Doing all of these things may spare a potential patient embarrassment, serious injuries or even death.

Compensation for victims of medical malpractice committed by unqualified cosmetic surgeons should be an important concern for all Californians.  When a physician without the necessary credentials and training harms a patient, they should be held accountable.  An Orange County medical malpractice attorney with experience at handling such cases can make a fair assessment of these claims.  Mr. Ralph has over 20 years of experience handling personal injury and medical malpractice cases, including just this type.  He can be reached at 714-919-4415 for a FREE CONSULTATION.

Have you or a loved one been the victim of a cosmetic surgery nightmare?

• Nothing in this post is intended to suggest the Law Offices of Paul W. Ralph currently represents anyone involved in the news story above.This posting should not be construed as legal advice or an opinion on the merit of any particular matter.  A consultation is the best way to obtain an assessment of your potential case.

 

 

The number of people having plastic surgery each year has grown steadily since statistics for these procedures were first compiled.  For example, almost 9.5 million cosmetic surgical and nonsurgical procedures were performed in the United States in 2010.  The most frequently performed surgical procedure was breast augmentation and the most popular nonsurgical procedure was injections of Botulinum Toxin Type A (including Botox and Dysport).  The top five surgical procedures were:

• Breast Augmentation (318,123)
• Liposuction (289,016)
• Eyelid surgery (152,123)
• Abdominoplasty (144,929)
• Breast Reduction (138,152)

See the full list of surgical and non-surgical procedures at cosmeticsurgerystatistics.com. 

Not too surprisingly, many physicians performing cosmetic procedures are not especially qualified and often perform surgery outside their area of expertise.  In the simplest of terms, the demand for these procedures is high and a great deal of money can be made by a single physician.  Consequently, it is not uncommon for a physician to perform cosmetic surgical procedures even though the doctor is not a board certified plastic surgeon with the requisite training and experience.  Doctors who don't possess the necessary training and experience (and even some who do) can leave their patients with unacceptable and sometimes horrific results.  So, how do you know when you have been a victim of plastic surgery malpractice?

The first thing to keep in mind as a patient who has undergone a cosmetic procedure is that a sub-optimal result is not always a product of malpractice.  Sometimes the poor results obtained, even though unexpected, would have occurred even in the best of surgical hands.  What generally determines whether the result was the product of medical malpractice is the opinion of a second, neutral physician.  If you have had a cosmetic procedure, and the result is unacceptable to you, seek consultation with a board certified plastic surgeon.  While it is true that physicians do not relish the idea of criticizing another doctor's work, sometimes a consulting physician will offer to repair or revise the earlier work, which is generally a sign something may have occurred that reflects poor medical practice.  If you then suspect you have been a victim of plastic surgery malpractice, you should consult a medical malpractice lawyer to discuss your options and the potential for compensation.

When a physician without the necessary credentials and training commits plastic surgery malpractice, they should be held accountable.   An Orange County medical malpractice lawyer with experience at handling such cases can make a fair assessment of these claims. Mr. Ralph has more than 20 years of experience handling personal injury and medical malpractice cases, including just this type.  He can be reached at 714-919-4415 for a FREE CONSULTATION.

Have you or a loved one been the victim of plastic surgery malpractice?

This posting should not be construed as legal advice or an opinion on the merit of any particular matter.  A consultation is the best way to obtain an assessment of your potential case.
 

 

The Orange County Register recently reported another fatality related to buttocks-boosting shots, which have become one of the most conspicuously dangerous of cosmetic procedures.  The most recent fatality was a British woman who traveled from London to get buttocks-enhancement injections of silicone in a hotel room at a Hampton Inn near the Philadelphia airport.  Police said Claudia Aderotimi, 20, apparently arranged for the procedure over the Internet.   Autopsy results have apparently not yet been released, but if the incident followed the pattern of similar butt-injection deaths, the silicone entered her bloodstream and caused a fatal pulmonary embolism, a blockage in the main artery in the lungs.

See the full story HERE.

Unfortunately, cosmetic procedures are often performed by poorly trained and unqualified health care professionals.  It is not uncommon to find physicians performing cosmetic procedures, either by open surgery or injection, who are not board certified in plastic surgery.  Instead, these doctors (who undergo little to no relevant training) are board certified in unrelated specialties such as internal medicine or obstetrics/gynecology, if they are board certified at all.  While not all physicians lacking a plastic surgery certification practice medicine in that field below the applicable standard of care, it is not uncommon to find such doctors committing some of the most egregious errors in medicine.  In a recent case, a doctor who claims board certification by the International Board of Cosmetic Surgery (not the American Board of Plastic Surgery) performed a buttock augmentation on a young, female patient that lead to an infection, multiple follow up procedures and finally removal of the implants.  Once contacted by the patient's attorney, the doctor claimed the patient's chart had been stolen.  This same physician has a history of substantial discipline by the California Medical Board for, among other reasons, allowing unqualified personnel to perform cosmetic procedures. Compensation for victims of medical neglect committed by unqualified cosmetic surgeons, should be an important concern for all Californians.  When a physician without the necessary credentials and training commits malpractice, they should be held accountable.  An Orange County medical malpractice attorney with experience at handling such cases can make a fair assessment of these claims.  Mr. Ralph has 20 years of experience handling personal injury and medical malpractice cases, including just this type.  He can be reached at 714-919-4415 for a FREE CONSULTATION.

Have you or a loved one been the victim of a cosmetic surgery nightmare?

• Nothing in this post is intended to suggest the Law Offices of Paul W. Ralph currently represents anyone involved in the news story above. This posting should not be construed as legal advice or an opinion on the merit of any particular matter.  A consultation is the best way to obtain an assessment of your potential case.