Consultation over the phone

[raymon]

Well, I live quite far from my surgeon so he suggested to have the consultation over the phone, and emailed me the forms and told me to send the forms back with several pictures taken.  Has anybody else had to have a consultation over the phone?  I'm just wondering if me not physically being there will take away from the results at all.

[Tired]

I didn't exactly do the consultation over the phone, but i did send them my pictures and the reference i got from my doctor. She said that it looked ok and then she scheduled my OP As long as the surgeon sees good pictures of your condition, i don't think it will change the outcome of the operation.

They have seen thousands of different gyne conditions, im sure it's all a big formality and to give him a general idea of how he will have to perform the OP.

[nmb232]

I also lived far away from my surgeon. I emailed the doctor a few pictures, and had several phone conversations about the procedure and its specifics.

However, I also had a half-hour consultation in person two days before surgery. This was just so the doctor could get a better look, poke around, take some more photos, and make some markings and notes. He said that despite the original photos and conversations, it should be very important that we both understand the situation and have as much information as possible. He also said that the initial pictures I sent were moreso to verify that I  was a canidate for surgery than for file purposes.

A similar procedure was repeated the day of surgery (taking some notes, marking my chest with a marker, comparing to his previous notes, etc.).

I'm not a doctor, but I would imagine that it's possible to do everything necessary on the day of surgery. I guess the repeated actions are to minimize any mistakes that might occur, so not requesting a personal consultation first may come down to how much you trust your doctor

[DrBermant]

Well, I live quite far from my surgeon so he suggested to have the consultation over the phone, and emailed me the forms and told me to send the forms back with several pictures taken.  Has anybody else had to have a consultation over the phone?  I'm just wondering if me not physically being there will take away from the results at all.

Yes, it is possible to start the process with images and additional information.  

Here is a thread on gynecomastia.org about the process.

and another link here:
http://www.gynecomastia.org/cgi-bin/gyne_yabb/YaBB.cgi?board=14;action=display;num=1074290558;start=0#0

Gynecomastia presents in many different forms.  I prefer to design my surgical sculpture for each individual patient.  The more I understand about a problem the better I am able to give advice.  

For patients who must travel a distance to see us, we have a preliminary remote package.This preliminary remote evaluation permits me to learn more about a patient: his concerns, medical issues, and prior treatment (if any).  Our patients answer several pages of questions and send pictures (using standardized views).  We then set up a time for a telephone discussion where I can continue the education patients have started by reviewing my website.  For patients with prior surgery, operative reports and details of prior male chest surgery are pieces of the puzzle that can help explain what has happened.

Each patient still needs an in office examination before surgery can be offered.  To minimize travel, our patients can have a tentative operative date reserved the day after the in office confirmatory consultation.

This process permits a remote mutual exploration and learning experience to see what my sculpture techniques may have to offer.


Hope this helps,

Michael Bermant, MD
Learn More About Gynecomastia and Chest Sculpture