Truth or False. Doctors can't put before & after pictures due to privacy issue?

[Dlink]

Hello.

One of the recommended due diligence of the patient in finding a doctor is evaluating before & after pictures right.

I have encountered a number of doctors who don't list very make pictures on their website. They might have like one picture at a strange angle.

Usually when I contact them about why they don't have a gallery of pictures to evaluate, they say its for privacy concerns.

I am not sure how I would possible identify someone from a picture zoomed in at a chest.

For example, have you ever gone to the beach and said, hey I recognize that guy's chest from randomly going to plastic surgeon website and looking at before & after pictures zoom in at a chest without even showing someone head.

Is this the real reason or is it because they are lazy or possible ashamed of their work?

I mean, sometimes they say that they have a book that they can show me if I come in for a consolation.

I do not want to waste a doctor's time if I have no interest in having the surgery performed by them due to not like the results. This is especially true when I am considering flying into another state to have the operation done.

I just find it could save everyone involved a lot of time and effort if they would show their work on their website and let the person decide.  

How do Doctors like Dr. Jachobs and Dr. Bermant manage to get so many before & after pictures if there are privacy issue which other doctors are claiming as excuses for not having any pictures(or very old, out of date, small pictures from strange angles) ?

Thanks for your help.  

[hammer]

My wife had a in home day care for a few years and state law required that she had written consent to take pictures and post them of any of the kids, just on a wall.

I also was the director of a volunteer group for the Sheriffs office the same rule applied and I also needed it to post the picture on line.

I would say the rules are the same in most states as well as they are here in Minnesota.  The pictures that you see posted have given written consent, or the doctor could be facing a law suit.

[Dlink]

My wife had a in home day care for a few years and state law required that she had written consent to take pictures and post them of any of the kids, just on a wall.

I also was the director of a volunteer group for the Sheriffs office the same rule applied and I also needed it to post the picture on line.

I would say the rules are the same in most states as well as they are here in Minnesota.  The pictures that you see posted have given written consent, or the doctor could be facing a law suit.

What is strange is that these doctors will have before & after picture of tons of women procedures but not any gynecomastia cases.

I ask one doctor's office why they don't list that they perform gynecomastia surgery and they said was due to privacy issue.
( I did not even ask for photos, just why they don't list it as a bullet point on their website!!)

If you do need some kind of consent, I think what some doctors must do(and this is only my guess) is have the consent form as part of the normal forms the pattens fills out before surgery. Instead of making a big and separate deal out of it.

Draw as little attention to it as possible.

I can almost guarantee that they will never be recognized from a picture of their chest without their head in the picture.

[hammer]

It is very normal for woman to have breast and they are not as shy to show them! Now if they had grown a penis do you think they would be as forward with before and after pictures?

I know and understand what you are saying about the men not being recognized without there face in the picture, however, many of them have had a lot of trouble dealing with the breast all along and to post pictures of them for all to see is asking a hell of a lot for them to do! No every one is strong enough to do this.

[Dlink]

It is very normal for woman to have breast and they are not as shy to show them! Now if they had grown a penis do you think they would be as forward with before and after pictures?

I will have to ask Lady Gaga and Jaime Lee Curtis.

Men are posting pictures in this forum all the time with before and after pictures. If these doctors are doing 100's of cases, I am not they could get at least more then 1 or 2 people to consent to pictures out of so many people.

I have read advise on this forum and other websites and try to follow them however these doctors are uncooperative as far as showing their work via before and after pictures as well as explaining how they do things.

I will spend like a hour writing a well constructed in sighting email about surgical technique, experience, philosophy, and I get like a used car salesman " " Crazy Dr.Dave's Halloween special, act in the next 24 hours and get an extra 5% off your next 2 surgeries"   

They don't answer the question and I get on their spam list. The email responses are trying to close in on a sale without even addressing any of the questions.  I get some cut and past definition of what gynecomastia is along with generic phrases like " each situation will vary"

Very upsetting especially the phone calls dispute asking to be contacted via email.

Does anyone else here know what I'm taking about or maybe this is just were I live?

Thanks

[hammer]

I don't know about lady Gaga but Jaime Lee was born a hermaphrodite  from what I understand. She is my age and back then when a child was born that way the parents decided what sex they would be, but now they will wait to see what the child's hormones dictate. As I said, this is from what I understand!

As for people posting pictures, I'll bet that there are much more surgeries done without posting of pictures then those that do post!

[Dlink]

I don't know about lady Gaga but Jaime Lee was born a hermaphrodite  from what I understand. She is my age and back then when a child was born that way the parents decided what sex they would be, but now they will wait to see what the child's hormones dictate. As I said, this is from what I understand!

As for people posting pictures, I'll bet that there are much more surgeries done without posting of pictures then those that do post!

I would bet money that Lady Gaga is one also. There have been pictures of bulges around the groin area and she has a man's face but dressed up like a female. I think that is why there are so nutty costumes to distract people to the obvious fact.  Everyone knows that Jamie Lee Curtis is one also however she has never officially admitted it.

In any event, these doctors if they really want to market their services, need to start taking before and after pictures so potential patients can see how good the outcomes are.

Thanks.

[Paa_Paw]

You are confusing ethical and legal standard with marketing.

The standards of what can or cannot be used in the way of photographs will vary from place to place. Likewise, Some Surgeons make good use of photographs and others do not. It not, by itself, a good standard.

[Dlink]

You are confusing ethical and legal standard with marketing.

The standards of what can or cannot be used in the way of photographs will vary from place to place. Likewise, Some Surgeons make good use of photographs and others do not. It not, by itself, a good standard.

The before & after pictures are the most powerful tool that a patient who is reaching a doctors has would you agree?

Some Ivy league school doctors have horrible online ratings, some doctors with horrible medical schools have fantastic online ratings. Some doctors with great online ratings have been said to have horrible results for gynecomastia dispute having good results for face lifts,etc..

Those before & after pictures are all we have.

I read a story on here about an Indian doctor who was said to be very nice and friendly making the person feel comfortable but when they saw the before & after pictures, they were like " OH My gosh, these people were butchered."   

Those pictures are the single best evaluation method we have and those pictures are not provided in most cases.

There was one doctor who provided 2 pictures for what was average gynecomasta results.

One pictures was like a morbidly obese man who had so much fat removed, that it required the removal of a ton as skin as well showing very oddly surgical results and other picture of someone who looks like they have chicken pox and freckles in such quantity that you can't even see what scars, incision were made. 

Both these cases were very odd and unusual cases and almost seem to have been picked to disguise the surgery results in my opinion.

Why does Dr. Bermant and Dr. Jachobs have so many pictures? Those guys do it right.

[Paa_Paw]

The Cardiologist who stented several major arteries posted no pictures. Neither did the Eye Surgeon who removed my cataracts and took me from nearly blind to 20/20 vision. The Hospital where I and my family have always received first rate care has a long list of terrible reviews. I went to them on the basis of their credentials and the recommendations of a Doctor and friend (now retired) who I know and trust. Pictures can be altered or selectively culled to make a point, but a personal endorsement from someone you know and trust is of great worth.

Do not allow a flashy photo album or a few bad reviews to be your only source of information, ever!

[Dlink]

The Cardiologist who stented several major arteries posted no pictures. Neither did the Eye Surgeon who removed my cataracts and took me from nearly blind to 20/20 vision. The Hospital where I and my family have always received first rate care has a long list of terrible reviews. I went to them on the basis of their credentials and the recommendations of a Doctor and friend (now retired) who I know and trust. Pictures can be altered or selectively culled to make a point, but a personal endorsement from someone you know and trust is of great worth.

Do not allow a flashy photo album or a few bad reviews to be your only source of information, ever!

Plastic surgery at the end of the day all about visual appearance and looking good whereas the surgeries you are talking about are all about fixing a vital organ for life and death.

Plastic surgery is very careful to minimize scaring and preserve natural look.

I hope you understand the difference. Both skilled and difficult but one is most of an artist and the other one is more of an engineer.

That being said, there is a doctor I was considering but there is a women who keep writing him bad reviews and even created a dedicated website to keep people away from this doctor.

(plasticsurgeryinjuries dot com)

She did file a complaint against the state's medical review board but it has " no cause for further action"

So, do you think I should still be considering this doctor even though this women feels so strongly that he is a bad doctor? She went in for a face lift but my issue is gynecomastia? What do you think?

Also, did your doctor friend retire due to Obamacare or because of age?

Thanks

[Dr. Elliot Jacobs]

Most plastic surgeons are proud of their work and would want others, particularly on the internet, to see examples of their work.  If they provide a large number of photos for one procedure and very few for another procedure, then I would guess that they simply haven't had enough patients for that particular procedure.  It really isn't a matter of privacy -- period.

I take photos of every one of my cases.  I also have a specific photo consent for my patients.  One paragraph simply gives me permission to take their photos -- just for my medical records.  They must sign this or I will not operate upon them, since photos (for a plastic surgeon) are an important part of their records.

I have another paragraph which specifically requests their permission to put their photos on the web -- if I feel it could illustrate something.  Not all my patients sign this paragraph and I respect that -- those photos are never placed on the net.

In sum, every photo on my website has been placed there with specific patient consent -- nothing less.

Dr Jacobs

[Dlink]

Most plastic surgeons are proud of their work and would want others, particularly on the internet, to see examples of their work.  If they provide a large number of photos for one procedure and very few for another procedure, then I would guess that they simply haven't had enough patients for that particular procedure.  It really isn't a matter of privacy -- period.

I take photos of every one of my cases.  I also have a specific photo consent for my patients.  One paragraph simply gives me permission to take their photos -- just for my medical records.  They must sign this or I will not operate upon them, since photos (for a plastic surgeon) are an important part of their records.

I have another paragraph which specifically requests their permission to put their photos on the web -- if I feel it could illustrate something.  Not all my patients sign this paragraph and I respect that -- those photos are never placed on the net.

In sum, every photo on my website has been placed there with specific patient consent -- nothing less.

Dr Jacobs

Thank you for explaining. This also was my understanding on the situation. I think its very smart how you incorporate the consent forms in with the other forms so it become standard practice.

Let me ask you another question.

I have had several doctors tell me that they do have many before & after pictures available but they are not allowed to email them to me or post them online due to privacy issues however if I physically come into their office, they will show them to me.

If a patient signs a consent form to have the pictures included as before & after pictures, is there a difference between in office vs online portfolio? Is there a separate paragraph consent signature required for online before & after vs in office before & after?

I am not sure if this might be more marketing than privacy in order to get people into the office? The problem is I'm contacting doctors out of state and I would literally have to fly there in order to see these picture.   

Thanks

[Dr. Elliot Jacobs]

Don't know about other doctors, but in my practice, there is a separate paragraph allowing me to take their photo for the medical records -- if they don't sign this, then I don't operate.

There is a separate distinct paragraph which give me permission to post their photos on the web.  It is up to them to sign this or not.  If they don't sign it, then their photos are NOT posted. 

I do not email specific photos to potential patients.  If they want to see example of something, they can look at my website, where I have hundreds of photos posted.

Dr Jacobs

[Dlink]

Yes, emailing would not make sense since you already have them online however some of the doctor's I'm contacting have no pictures online but only available in their office.

Just wondering if the patient has consented to the before and after pictures to be shown to other potential patients in the office, why would it be so much more of a stretch to have them online as well.

In any event, I have found 2 doctors who do manage to have picture online.