The ugly side of cosmetic surgery
By MARY-JANE BOLAND
Taxpayers are footing the bill for New Zealanders suffering health complications after overseas cosmetic surgery trips.
One woman spent a fortnight in Auckland's Middlemore Hospital after a tummy tuck operation performed in Malaysia led to a serious infection.
Surgery trips to Thailand, India, Malaysia and South Africa are increasingly popular among New Zealanders wanting to improve their physical appearance. But low-cost procedures abroad are adding a new financial burden to the New Zealand health sector.
Tristan de Chalain, president of the NZ Foundation for Cosmetic Plastic Surgery, said foundation members are dealing with about one patient every couple of months who needs treatment following complications after surgery abroad.
While conceding that his comments could be viewed as protecting the patch of local surgeons, de Chalain said the problem was that people who had surgery overseas did not allow for anything going wrong and any surgery carries a risk of complications. "People who are providing the service don't allow for that. If it blows up back home, someone else will have to take care of it."
De Chalain advised people to ask plenty of questions of their surgeon; get before and after photos; and toget recommendations before deciding to proceed with an operation. He said a recent study indicated people did more research before buying whiteware than they did before having cosmetic surgery.
Auckland plastic and reconstructive surgeon Stephen Mills said he knew of one patient who had an infection after a facelift operation abroad. Inquiries later revealed her doctor was a neurosurgeon, not a plastic surgeon, and he had made incisions in incorrect parts of her face.
Medical Council chairman Professor John Campbell said people could not complain to the health and disability commissioner or Medical Council here if they had complications from surgery carried out overseas.
But the council is monitoring whether some foreign doctors who practise cosmetic surgery are offering consultations here illegally as part of their customer sales drive. Doctors must have a New Zealand practising certificate before carrying out consultations in this country.
The council was aware of a Thai doctor, Witoon Wisutherlwong, who gave 15-minute consultations to potential patients in Auckland in June.
Campbell said the council had not taken any action against Wisutherlwong because he had come and gone too quickly. However, he said the council took the issue seriously and would have no hesitation contacting the Health Ministry, which can prosecute, if it had concerns.
The New South Wales Medical Board has threatened legal action against Gorgeous Getaways, operating in Australia and New Zealand, after it had allegedly allowed foreign doctors to conduct illegal consultations at Australian hotels.