Seeing Surgeon (NHS)

[RobotChicken83]

Hello all,

I'm 25 and used to be a rather large (26 stone to be exact) and have a lot of left over flesh that I can not shift in my chest region.

I have my appointment with the surgeon with the NHS on monday and I'm not sure what to expect?

I was wondering what does he do exactly, how does the examination go? 

Thanks

[Aperture]

He'll touch your chest for a few seconds and tell you what you have. In my case, i had very little fat but excess tissue.  He explained how he would go about removing the tissue, what the complications might be and the realistic outcome. So he'll talk to you about it and do a quick examination. Make sure you ask questions! It's easy to forget some things, so maybe write a list of things you want to ask.

[kingboob]

I have been in a similar situation mate, I didn't have much success with the NHS and had the op done privately...... Many people on here are anti-NHS, but give them a fair shot because you could get a good result and save a few quid.

The consultant will almost certainly be running late  , The actual consultation will probably last about 15 - 20 mins, it may be with the top guy or a junior on his team.    They have seen it all before, so no worries on that front.       

They will want to see the problem and probably have a poke and prod around at your chest, there may or may not be a nurse present, the actual embarrassing part probably only lasts a couple of mins, then you can get dressed again.

You will get asked loads of questions about how this effects your life (exaggerate if you need too..), because this is how they figure out if they will do the operation or not..... they can only justify 'cosmetic' surgery if it has a big impact on your life.

If you have serious left over skin from massive weight loss, (what are you now btw?, as they will be reluctant to help if your BMI is not optimal), then you are looking probably at skin excision, which is going to leave big scars however and by whoever the operation is performed.    If you just have left over fat and gland then you are looking at the more usual methods of gynaecomastia correction / lipo surgery and the scars should be minimal.

Depends on how extreme your problem is and what your body shape is like really, they will be very keen to stress the possible risks....... such as bleeding, infections, poor healing, poor scaring, poor results etc etc etc, listen and understand but don't let them scare you out of having it done if that is what you want.

They will also be very keen to find out if you have realistic expectations and if you are mentally sound to have surgery.

Write down any questions you have as you are bound to forget them when the big moment comes!

Good luck.

[outertrial]

Bear in mind that the surgeon may not have the final say over whether you get the op. You need to be prepared to be patient if you go the nhs route, especially if approval has to come from your PCT not the hospital you will be treated at.

My only real advice is to make sure you ask a lot of questions and get a feel for whether the surgeon is competent and you trust him / her. A good surgeon whether private or nhs will be happy to tell you as much as they can about the procedure and possible complications.

In hindsight the first nhs consultant I saw was an absolute joke. Even the nurse was trying to hint to me that he didnt know what he was talking about - but all I was worried about was trying to convince him to give me the green light so he could get his scalpel out on me. The second one I saw some months later was much better, but by then the funding had dried up.

Theyre being paid the full rate to work on you so make sure you interview them too. 

[RobotChicken83]

So the appointment went really well and the Doctor was a decent guy and listened to all my questions and concerns he has had to refer me to the board but he is more than happy to do it.

I'm about 6'6 and weigh roughly 14 stone although I try to keep below that. It is just excess flesh and it never shrinks when I lose weight it just lowers the fat but it never shifts. 

I'm just concerned at how long it's going to take now as he couludn't give me a specific time frame. Does anybody have an idea how long it may take and how long I could be on the waiting list?   

[kingboob]

So the appointment went really well and the Doctor was a decent guy and listened to all my questions and concerns he has had to refer me to the board but he is more than happy to do it.

I'm about 6'6 and weigh roughly 14 stone although I try to keep below that. It is just excess flesh and it never shrinks when I lose weight it just lowers the fat but it never shifts. 

I'm just concerned at how long it's going to take now as he couludn't give me a specific time frame. Does anybody have an idea how long it may take and how long I could be on the waiting list?   

Time frame is going to vary from area to area....... I don't know if there are any government targets for this type of surgery either...

I would imagine it would be less than 6 months.     My experience was of being offered a date within that time frame, although by the time I was offered the date I had already booked and paid for private treatment, but in my case I wasn't even sure the NHS was going to fund for everything I needed and they had already jerked me around for nearly a year by refusing me even a consult, causing me to get very depressed.

I can say I had day surgery recently (not plastic / cosmetic though), and the wait was less than 3 months, I'm having more and my consultant told me last week I would get treated before easter.... but again that is just my experience and again it isn't for plastic surgery.

6'6 and 14st is thin IMO (unless you have bones like breadsticks  ) they shouldn't deny surgery on BMI / weight grounds at least  (a favorite NHS get out trick)

I hope it goes well for you, the NHS experience isn't particularly nice (lack of privacy etc).  But people shouldn't allow that to put them off really, as the surgeon and medical team doing the operation are still going to be experienced and capable....... unfortunately they just treat the patients, it is the idiot pen pushers and government interference that makes the whole thing a pain in the ar*e at times.

[Bigdom]

 

But people shouldn't allow that to put them off really, as the surgeon and medical team doing the operation are still going to be experienced and capable

I had an operation about 5 years ago (courtesy of Bupa) with the same surgeon that was going to do it on the NHS.  Different care standards etc, etc, but still the same Surgeon.  The only thing was it brought it forward by over a year by doing so!!