Breast surgery such as Augmentation is a day case procedure.  More complex surgery that involves moving the position of the nipple, typically requires an overnight say.  Body contouring procedures start from a minimum of two nights or longer depending on the complexity.  If there are any complications, you may need to stay in hospital longer. It is best to plan for a longer stay than you may need. You can always discharge early if you are recovering well.

An Australian plastic surgeon generally completes around 12 years of training. The standard path is 6-8 years of university to become a newly qualified doctor. A further 2-5 years of work as an intern, resident, then registrar is required.  Many persue further university qualifications to improve chances in getting accepted into the plastic surgery training program. This specialised plastic surgery training is 5 years. Once they pass their final exams, they are awarded a Fellowship of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (FRACS) in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. Many will then complete another 1-2 years of fellowship training either in Australia or overseas.  Despite claims to the contrary from cosmetic surgeons, a dedicated component of this time is devoted to cosmetic surgery.

What is a cosmetic surgeon? Any doctor that has finished their internship may call themselves a cosmetic surgeon. There are no regulations in Australia to prohibit a doctor from calling themselves a surgeon, despite having minimal to no surgical training and no formal qualifications.   If unsure of your surgeons qualifications, check out AHPRA, our regulatory body for all doctors.  If they do not have FRACS (PLAS) behind their name, they are not plastic surgeon.

Your health insurance, depending on your level of cover, will cover any procedure for which you are eligible for a medicare item number.  They often contribute to the costs of hospital stay, theatre costs and anaesthetic costs, although typically don’t cover much of the surgical fee.  My secretary can give you an indication of the fees you can expect.