How to choose a safe aesthetic clinic

Aesthetic surgery is real surgery: there is anaesthesia, a risk of bleeding, infection and thrombosis, and a recovery that needs monitoring. Choosing the right clinic matters more to the outcome than choosing the country, and it can almost always be checked before paying anything.

Start with the facility. Confirm a valid health licence and verifiable accreditation (JCI for hospitals, ISO 9001, local ministry registration), an in-house operating theatre with resuscitation equipment, a board-certified anaesthesiologist present throughout the procedure, and an agreement with a referral hospital in case a complication requires admission. Major surgery performed in a consulting room without hospital backup is an immediate red flag.

Then the person. Ask for the surgeon's full name, licence number, official specialty —plastic, aesthetic and reconstructive surgery; ENT for functional rhinoplasty— and membership of bodies such as ISAPS, SECPRE or the equivalent national society. A telling detail: in many low-cost packages the patient does not know who will operate until the day itself. If they will not confirm the operating surgeon in writing, do not book.

Insist on a genuine prior consultation, even by video call, covering medical history, medication, allergies, lab work and anaesthetic risk assessment (ASA). The quote must be fixed and itemised: fees, theatre, anaesthesia, implants with brand and reference, compression garments, hospital nights, follow-ups and what happens if a revision is needed. Informed consent must be provided in your language, listing complications specific to your procedure rather than generic text.

Clear warning signs: prices far below market; pressure to decide today with a discount; social-media recruitment with no identified doctor; before-and-after photos without consent or consistent lighting; promises to operate several areas on the same day without justification (long surgical times multiply thromboembolic risk); no follow-up plan; and a return flight booked 48 hours after an abdominoplasty or breast implant, when 7 to 10 days with prophylaxis and compression stockings is the prudent standard.

Ask the uncomfortable questions too: how many cases like yours the team performs per year, their revision rate, who attends you overnight after surgery, whether they hold malpractice insurance and what legal recourse you have in that country. Keep everything in writing: emails, quote, consent and the surgical report with the reference of any implants used.

At medviajes we only list centres with verifiable accreditation and confirmed contact details, request written quotes and plan the stay with the rest days and follow-ups the procedure requires. Indication and technique must be decided by a qualified surgeon after assessing you.