Plastic Surgeons Reaching Patients with Social Media – What’s in it for You?
If you’ve already connected with me on Facebook and Twitter, then the recent article from the American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons about plastic surgery patients benefitting from social media networks based on a social media study by the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business probably comes as no surprise. Patient education is one of my top priorities as a plastic surgeon, so I use social media, my blog, and monthly e-newsletter to do so. Whether the information I provide benefits my patients or other surgeons’ patients, I believe that disseminating accurate information is vital to plastic surgery patient safety and allows individuals to make educated choices regarding their health.
With so much information about cosmetic surgery available online, both good and bad, I feel that it’s my job as a board certified plastic surgeon to distribute good, reliable information about plastic surgery. There are so many horror stories about botched plastic surgery and bargain botox, and while I do not want to scare perspective patients away, the possible risks associated with plastic surgery increase dramatically with inexperienced surgeons and fake injectable products that haven’t been approved by the FDA.