By Ola Kotun, Founder, 5 Delphi · 3 October 2026
In aesthetic surgery the loudest name is rarely the safest choice. Online visibility rewards marketing. What protects your result is evidence: training, volume, complication and revision history, and fit with the outcome you actually want.
1. Check registration and specialist training
Confirm the surgeon is on the relevant specialist register in their country and that the clinic is regulated and accredited. In the UK that means checking the GMC specialist register and the clinic's regulator inspection reports.
2. Ask about volume for your exact procedure
Surgeons who perform a specific procedure often tend to have more predictable results. Ask how many of your exact procedure they perform each year, not how many operations overall.
3. Ask about revisions and complications
A confident surgeon can tell you how often they revise their own work and how complications are managed. Vague answers are a signal.
4. Match the surgeon's aesthetic to your goal
Excellent surgeons have different styles. Look for consistency across many results that resemble what you want, not a handful of highlight photos.
5. Plan the recovery and the jurisdiction
Surgery abroad can be excellent, but consider follow-up care, travel after surgery, and what legal recourse you have if something goes wrong.
Red flags
- —Pressure to book quickly or discounts for deposits
- —Consultation only with a coordinator, not the surgeon
- —No clear answer on complication or revision rates
- —Recommendations from someone paid per referral
Key takeaway
Choose on outcomes data, revision rates and complication history. Time, money and reputational risk are too large to choose on marketing.
Related
This guide is general information, not medical advice. Speak to a qualified clinician about your own situation.