Cosmetic Surgery Hard Sell Attacked by Top Surgeon

Created on 01st October 2009

A leading plastic surgeon has accused a number of cosmetic surgery clinics of using 'aggressive marketing' in order to encourage people to have major operations at their surgeries.

Mr Awf Quaba, a plastic surgeon who works in Edinburgh, has warned that some clinics who overly encourage their clients to have cosmetic surgery are cajoling potential patients into undergoing procedures without having time to think about the possible consequences and without giving them the full information that such surgery can involve.

Mr Quaba went on to urge potential plastic surgery patients to think very long and carefully before they have any procedures. He claims that too many people these days are overly influenced by the media coverage of celebrities who have had cosmetic surgery. This increased coverage can lead people to believe that having plastic surgery is always simple and straightforward.

A recent poll of over 2,000 people across the UK showed that over two-thirds who were asked thought that celebrities increased the acceptability of cosmetic surgery. The poll also revealed that a fifth didn't think that plastic surgery procedures held any risk.

Dr Quaba who practises at the Spire Murrayfield Hospital in Scotland, said "commercial clinics with aggressive marketing" could encourage people to have operations without considering the full consequences, and give them false hope about what the surgeon can achieve.

"They target certain niches and market aggressively to try to get these individuals. Until recently, we have been immune from these but the clinics are proliferating in Scotland.

"There are quite a number of clinics which are advertising aggressively to the public. I am aware of one clinic offering 50 per cent reductions on cosmetic surgery treatments for individuals who are prepared to promote or model for them."

"Patients should make up their mind if they really need the procedure. They should not be encouraged or discouraged." 

People who are considering cosmetic surgery should always check the qualifications and experience of their surgeon rather than pay attention to expensive advertising and celebrity endorsements.