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What to Expect From Your Online Consultation

 

As Coronavirus, lockdown, and work from home have rapidly become the new normal, here at Manchester Plastic Surgery we’ve been focused on providing the best support we can for our patients from home – via video calls on Skype, Facetime, or Zoom.

Like many, we hoped lockdown would not persist into the second half of 2020, but we’re happy to be doing what we can to continue our services. While we have been running video consultations over the past few months, we’re now able to offer a limited number of face-to-face appointments, though many people are still finding it quicker and more convenient to have an initial discussion via Zoom. If you do choose to have a video consultation, this would then be followed up by a more detailed appointment in-person which can take place at a convenient time, depending on the timescale for your surgery.

This is exciting news as it means you don’t have to postpone all your plans for surgery while you wait for an appointment at the clinic. In your virtual pre-operative consultation, we’re able to assess your circumstances, discuss your expectations, and answer any of your questions all from the comfort of your own home – gathering all the same information that we would at an initial face-to-face appointment!

Once we’ve spoken with you twice (at lease one of these appointments will be in-person), We’ll be happy to schedule you in for surgery and add you to a contact list for when slots become available. All of this will be explained in more detail when you speak with your surgeon in your appointment.

While scheduling your surgery may be complicated at the moment, we encourage you to embrace the chance to get in touch with us via video. This is a convenient opportunity for us to talk freely and openly about the treatment you have in mind, and help you decide if surgery is right for you.

 

Booking your consultation

Setting up a virtual consultation is simple. You can call us on 0800 015 0622 or complete the form below and provide your contact details and an indication of the type of surgery you’re considering. We’ll then be in touch to arrange a date and time that suits you with one of our surgeons, Mr James Murphy and Mr Adam Goodwin.

 

Before the call

Once you have your appointment confirmed, we advise having a look through our webpages, before and after images, case studies, and blog posts to get a feel for our surgery and the treatment you’re interested in.

We provide detailed information for each treatment we carry out, including explanations of the various options (i.e. facelift, mini facelift, or face and neck lift), the surgery itself, preparing yourself, recovery, and aftercare. This proactive research will help you formulate an understanding of the surgery before you have your consultation and determine if there are any additional questions you would like to ask.

 

How your virtual consultation will work

Your consultation will usually last around 30-45 minutes. During the call, Mr Murphy or Mr Goodwin will discuss with you your motivation for surgery and the results you’re wishing to achieve.

Before your call, we’ll ask you to send through some good quality photographs from a variety of angles of the area that you would like us to treat. You can take these in the privacy of your own home so that you feel comfortable with speaking to us about whichever area you’re concerned with. This allows you to feel relaxed throughout the consultation, and enables us to assess your treatment areas and discuss with you your desired results and treatment options.

Open and honest communication with your surgeon is extremely important to make sure you’re confident you’ll receive your dream results and you’re in safe hands. Our surgeons will always provide you with accurate answers to your questions and set expectations for realistic results, and we’ll ensure you receive all the information that you would get from an initial meeting in the clinic, so you don’t have to wait to see us in person to begin making decisions.

The video consultation is also a great opportunity for you to discuss any fears you may have about the surgery. The aim of these calls is simply to help you, understand your situation, and provide you with tailored and honest advice about your procedure so that you feel confident you’re making the right choice.

 

Face-to-face follow up

Following your consultation, you may wish to go away and do some more research into your procedure, or you may decide immediately that this is the right choice for you. Once you’ve let us know how you’d like to proceed, we’ll make a record of your contact details and we’ll get in touch with you to arrange a follow up conversation, adhering to safe and responsible social distancing practices. This will take place in the Manchester Spire Hospital where Mr Murphy or Mr Goodwin will detail your procedure and expected results and arrange to perform your surgery.

 

Book your consultation

For further information, or to book a consultation via video or face-to-face , please get in touch or complete the form below.

If you would like to learn more about this procedure or are interested in a consultation, fill out the form below or call us on 0800 015 0622