It takes a total of 15–16 years to become a fully certified and practicing plastic surgeon, as stated by the British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive, and Aesthetic Surgeons (BAPRAS).
The education required to become a plastic surgeon is broken up into many phases, which are as follows:
The First Stage, Medical School
The typical amount of time spent studying medicine at a university is between five and six years. The General Medical Council has to approve of your degree before you may practice (GMC).
The admissions process for medical school is very tough, and only the very best applicants are selected, so in order to study medicine at university, you will need to have good marks in your A Levels. Ideally, you should have a AAA in chemistry, biology, and physics or math. The duration of this training is typically five years.
You are eligible to submit an application for a graduate program in medicine if you have previously earned a bachelor's degree in a scientific field. As a result of the scientific expertise you acquired throughout the course of your first degree, the completion time for these programs is shortened from five to four years.
STAGE 2: FOUNDATION PROGRAMME (FY1 & FY2)
Trainees sign up for a foundation programme after they have completed their studies at a medical school in order to obtain experience working in a variety of healthcare environments. In addition to their time spent in the operating room, residents will also spend time practicing general medicine and other medical specialties.
A rotation in plastic surgery is not often included in foundation programs; nonetheless, attendance in such a rotation is not required in order to participate in core surgical training in the field of plastic surgery.
Trainees will become completely registered with the General Medical Council after they have finished their fundamental training programs. This paves the way for them to apply for training in Core Surgical procedures.
STAGE 3: BASIC TRAINING IN SURGICAL TECHNIQUES (CT1 & CT2)
The process of getting into this level of training is challenging and competitive. Trainees are required to go through a nationwide selection procedure first, during which applicants are picked based on the work portfolios they have submitted along with interviews.
As a rule, after a trainee has been approved, they will spend the next two years rotating among a number of different surgical specialties, each of which will need them to work for between four and six months. In order to be eligible for further training, candidates need to have spent a minimum of six months working in a plastic surgery role.
It is also possible to submit an application for a specialized Core Surgical training program. Those who are accepted into this program will spend anywhere from a year and a half to two years concentrating only on cosmetic surgery. A trainee who is devoted to plastic surgery will have an advantage as a result of this, despite the fact that it restricts their understanding in other fields.
In order to go on to the next stage of Core Surgical training, learners need to pass the MRCS test. This is a test of the candidate's ability to perform fundamental surgical procedures, and passing it permits them to apply for specialty training. Applicants are asked to rate the areas of the country in which they are most interested in working, and positions are then awarded based on the applicants' performance in interviews.
The time period for receiving applications for plastic surgery Specialty Training takes place once a year and is consistently ranked as one of the most competitive facets of the military. The candidates are selected on the basis of their portfolios, evaluations of their experience, and evaluations of their communication, presentation, and clinical abilities, among other factors.
PHASE 4: SPECIALIZED COURSES AND TRAINING (ST3-8)
Following the completion of their study in Core Surgical Procedures, applicants will then devote the next six years of their studies to specializing in plastic surgery. These six years may be broken down into two distinct parts:
Intermediate training (ST3-6) entails learning techniques that are applicable across all specialties of plastic surgery throughout this stage.
Final (ST7-8): During this stage, senior trainees participate in research and training in their respective fields of specialization in order to further hone their abilities.
Some students elect to spend their final year participating in a Training Interface Group (TIG) Fellowship rather than taking classes.
These cross over into other areas of specialized interest and may include the following:
Major trauma
Surgical correction of cleft lip and palate
Surgery on the hands
The use of lasers in medicine
Oncological surgery of the head and neck
Breast augmentation using oncoplastic surgery
Oncology of the skin
Surgical procedures for reconstructive and cosmetic purposes
It is very difficult to get entry into any of these four phases of training, as well as a Fellowship with the Training Interface Group. The final selection is based on a mix of test scores, evaluations of portfolios, and interviews, all of which evaluate the candidate's temperament and character in addition to their academic accomplishments.
POSITIONS OF CONSULTANT
After you have finished the required number of years of training in your specialty, you are eligible to apply for consultant positions.
Before beginning work as a consultant, there are many skilled in the field of plastic surgery who choose to first complete a fellowship. The following are some areas of particular focus in the field of plastic surgery:
The academic equivalent of cosmetic surgery
Cosmetic surgical procedures
Burns
Surgical correction of cleft lip and palate
A difficult injury
Surgery of the face and skull base
Reconstruction of the ear
Reconstruction of the genitourinary system
Oncological surgery of the head and neck
Surgical procedures on the hands and upper limbs
Trauma to the lower limbs
Breast augmentation using oncoplastic surgery
Reconstruction of the pelvis
Surgery on tumors of the skin and soft tissues
Vascular anomalies
Accreditation by prestigious organizations like the Royal College of Surgeons (RCS) and the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons is required for highly skilled plastic surgeons to practice. [Citation needed] (BAAPS).
WHAT SKILLS DOES A PLASTIC SURGEON NEED?
It is not a decision that should be taken lightly to pursue a profession as a plastic surgeon. Because there are not nearly as many training positions available for plastic surgeons as there are for other medical specialties, the cost of education in this field tends to be much higher than that of other medical specialties.
To be successful as a plastic surgeon, you will need to possess qualities such as patience, hard work, discipline, and a high level of professionalism. Additionally, you will need to have a degree of perfectionism, which will enable you to provide your patients with the best possible outcomes each and every time.
You need to be able to read people well and have a highly empathetic temperament to complement the high degree of intellectual and scientific competence you possess. It is an essential part of a surgeon's job to be able to identify when a patient does not meet the psychological requirements necessary to undergo cosmetic surgery.
This is not a profession for those who are easily discouraged. It is believed that around 15 percent of patients who go to a cosmetic surgeon will have body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), and that 50 percent of patients who have BDD and have surgery are unhappy with the results of their procedure.
WHAT ARE SOME OF THE PROS OF WORKING IN THE INDUSTRY OF PLASTIC SURGERY?
Becoming a plastic surgeon comes with a number of benefits, including the following:
There are very few changes that are more significant than those that occur in a person's outward appearance. Performing cosmetic surgery is a very gratifying career that has the potential to make a significant positive difference in the lives of patients.
The field of plastic surgery offers a large lot of career diversity opportunities. You will interact with patients spanning a wide range of ages and anatomical locations, and you will also have the ability to specialize in a variety of different fields, depending on what you feel most comfortable doing.
To become a plastic surgeon requires a very high degree of education, and as a result, the salary for this profession is extremely high. Once your reputation has been established, you may be able to earn an appealing wage.
The job of plastic surgeon allows you a significant amount of personal autonomy and flexibility. Once you have obtained your certification, you will have the ability to work anywhere in the globe, as well as establish yourself in private practice, launch your own company, and determine your own fees.
Because plastic surgery is such a dynamic discipline, methods are always being developed, refined, and updated; as a result, many skilled surgeons have the opportunity to cultivate their skills in new operations.
WHAT TYPES OF CHALLENGES DO YOU FACE WHEN YOU WORK IN THE FIELD OF PLASTIC SURGERY?
The path to become a plastic surgeon is not without its share of obstacles, including the following:
A very lengthy term of training, consisting of roughly two decades of education and work weeks that may reach up to one hundred hours while the student is still in school.
Even though the number of openings for the job of consultant has increased over the previous twenty years, cosmetic surgery continues to be a very competitive career option, with as many as 120 applications competing for every position.
You will be accountable for the satisfaction and sense of self-worth of your patients when you work as a cosmetic surgeon, and any error you make might have severe repercussions.
Because there is relatively little money available for the position, trainees could have to pay for further education on their own. It goes without saying that this is a highly expensive course of action, and many trainees will struggle to be able to afford it until they have gained more traction in their careers.
The number of customers who are unsatisfied with the outcomes of their treatments has expanded with the number of plastic surgeons in the United Kingdom and internationally, which has led to an increase in the amount of litigation filed against doctors.