TRACK RECORD

A good track record needs to be maintained

Friends and family can give first hand testimonies, but it's crucial that you check the doctor's track record beyond that before making any decisions

Each state in the U.S. has a medical board that keeps record of disciplinary actions, malpractice judgments, and much more for each doctor. We take these records seriously.

Disciplinary actions are typically actions filed against the doctor by the state board itself. There are many possible reasons for these disciplinary actions from poor patient care to negligence. Sometimes the state board will issue a public reprimand or go as far as completely revoking the doctor's license.

Digging deeper

Unlike diplomas and certificates, when you go for your plastic surgery visit, you won't be seeing actions by the board hanging on the doctor's walls. And no office would voluntarily tell you the doctor had been disciplined by the state medical board. So it's your duty to make sure you dig a little deeper.

How do you do it? For each plastic surgeon you are interested in, you can visit the appropriate state medical board to access the doctor's records. Examination of those records would reveal the track record of that doctor.

Conclusion

A good track record is one of the most often missed criteria when looking for a surgeon. It takes time and energy to search the doctor's state files to find out if there are any records that taint the doctor's reputation. This may also be an embarrassing question to ask the doctor. And if you do ask, you may get vague responses from those who have bad records.

You can take the confusion and guesswork out of it by searching the Trusted Surgeons Network. We've done the work for you. Any surgeon who is found to have any state board action against him or her is immediately removed from the network.