How to avoid being a victim of the Doctor Switch?

W

wishingstar

O.G.
Apr 22, 2008
368
50
#1
I keep hearing of horror stories where clinics pull a "doctor" switch (ie: you end up with a rookie doctor or someone other than the surgeon you agreed to get surgery with after you're knocked out). I'd love to hear from you all regarding:

1. What are the clinics that are known to do the switch?

2. Does anyone know if JW, Dream, April 31, Banobagi, and Item do this? (thinking of consulting with them)

3. What's the best way to avoid the switch (other than going to a small clinic)? ie: If you're set on going with a dr at a large clinic because you like that surgeon's aesthetic..... what's the best way to ensure you don't get switched on?

Any advice or info would be much appreciated. :smile: Looking forward to discussing with you all!
 
#2
I can't be sure because really no one can.

But I know that Banobagi has quite a bad rep here from a few forumers and has been called the "assembly line style" clinic for a long time due to sheer size. I've read a few horror stories of patients being "kicked out" and unwelcomed after their surgery as well. The rest I'm not too sure... but Dream is one clinic that's on my consult list. On their website, they have a whole list of ethics statements that mention they are against "assembly line" style of large clinics. If you trust it? I obviously have some faith that's why theyre still quite high on my consult clinics.

Also, I know Dr Park of ID has been notoriously known for not being the operating doctor. He's always in the consultation room yet his clinic has bustling and busy - the maths doesn't seem to add up... Read the thread "ID patient experience" on this forum - the thread starter mentioned this.

I would also like other people's tips if there are any floating around.
 
#3
vanitygirl09 said:
I can't be sure because really no one can.

But I know that Banobagi has quite a bad rep here from a few forumers and has been called the "assembly line style" clinic for a long time due to sheer size.
Click to expand...

Banobagi has a bad rep here? I've read that BK, ID, and Grand have the factory style clinics, but not Banobagi. I'll have to look back and check--but I don't recall anything negative towards Banobagi besides their prices.

I did read in this forum that a girl actually had the doctor video tape her whole procedure so she can rewatch the video tapes and make sure the doctors weren't switched. It may sound a little extreme, but that's one way you can make sure you're not a victim of the doctor switch.
 
#6
Well this is what I did for my surgery and it was pretty effective. Before the operation i made sure to ask: This is not a teaching hospital right? So no interns will practice on me? No doctor swapping here right? No one died here right? Who is my anesthesiologist? Will there be any other surgeons assisting on the procedures? (important question!)

for some procedures like fat grafts, a 2nd surgeon may come in to perform the harvesting of the fat, since the process for preparing the graft to be usable takes nearly an hour and your actual surgeon may be in surgery. So for efficiency purposes, a 2nd surgeon may assist at this stage. Its actually common practice to have another surgeon assist on the harvesting aspect of some procedures since its not the part which requires extensive skill and expertise. Anyways I was made aware of this so I asked the credentials and also requested to meet with the assisting surgeon so i'm aware who would be involved in my surgery. But in the end dr park ended up having the time to do the harvesting so even better for me.

I also suggest, if you are asked if general or sedation is preferred, you request sedation. Not only is it less stressful on the body and you don't have to fast for that long, you can actually know for a fact who is operating on you since you will be semi awake then consciously awake at various points. When i was semi awake i made sure to listen to the voices in the background. Some surgeons are especially talkative lol....but then when i was less groggy but still sedated, i could actually see the team operating on me. I recognized the surgeon, the nurses, the anesthesiologist etc. So yeah, sedation i believe no one will try to be dodgey and do a surgeon swap because the patient would be aware. For those undergoing GA because its essential, i dunno what to suggest :S
 
#8
Isn't going through surgery under sedation extremely scary? Hahaha I mean like you are still concious when they are performing the surgery. I think I will have my friend wait outside the operating room!
 
#9
Will they have a lift in the ot room or sometime the dr may stand near the replaced dr and monitor the procrdure. so the dr want to train their student, my korea friend said it is quite common
 
#11
Rinnon said:
Isn't going through surgery under sedation extremely scary? Hahaha I mean like you are still concious when they are performing the surgery. I think I will have my friend wait outside the operating room!
Click to expand...

Rinnon, it's not really scary, more like trippy. You will fade in and out of consciousness. But hey, having a friend wait outside works too!
 
#13
K....I'm in half minds about whether I enjoyed sedation!

On one hand, the scariest part was getting the IV drip in my arm (ugh! I always hate that!), so it's not a scary experience in general.

On the other hand, the psychedelic lights and roller coaster feeling was quite cool. But I woke up to a pile of drool on my face -I am so not glamorous! I'm sure your sedation experience was fabulous, what with your coherent dialogue and all!
 
#14
Susaki said:
i agree!!! what about asking our friends to wait in front of the operation room???!
Click to expand...
Hmm are there places for a friend to actually wait just outside the operating room at most clinics?

I've had eyelid surgery at Wonjin (under sedation), and I don't think there was any sitting area immediately outside the operating room... in fact, the waiting area was pretty far removed (and the operating areas were down another hallway)
 
#15
Lanvinfiend said:
K....I'm in half minds about whether I enjoyed sedation!

On one hand, the scariest part was getting the IV drip in my arm (ugh! I always hate that!), so it's not a scary experience in general.

On the other hand, the psychedelic lights and roller coaster feeling was quite cool. But I woke up to a pile of drool on my face -I am so not glamorous! I'm sure your sedation experience was fabulous, what with your coherent dialogue and all!
Click to expand...
i was in and out actually. My acculift i was high as a kite for 10 mins then they took my kite away from me and i was perfectly conscious cos they wanted me to pee before the fat graft. Actually i was out of it for the fg then i was completely coherent for the rhino. Im assuming they deliberately controlled the dosage depending on what part of the procedure they are performing.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top
Back