How to Choose a Plastic Surgeon

How to choose a plastic surgeon in the UK

Your surgeon matters more than the clinic, the date or even the exact technique: the same operation in different hands can give very different results. Whichever of our cosmetic surgery procedures you are considering, the checks are the same, and you can do most of them yourself, free, in a few minutes. In the UK any doctor on the medical register can legally perform cosmetic surgery, so the title on a website tells you very little^[1][2]. What tells you a lot is where the surgeon is registered, how they trained and how they run a consultation.

Use these six checks before you book. Then read what happens at a plastic surgery consultation and work through our pre-consultation checklist so you arrive ready.

1. Specialist registration. The surgeon is on the GMC Specialist Register, in the specialty that covers your operation.
2. Surgical training. They hold the specialist surgical fellowship for that specialty, such as FRCS (Plast), or a European specialist qualification such as FEBOPRAS.
3. Experience in your procedure. They do your operation regularly and can show you before and after photos of their own patients.
4. The hospital. It is registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC), and you have read its latest rating and report.
5. The process. You meet the surgeon who will operate, they take your consent themselves, and you are encouraged to take at least two weeks to decide.
6. Aftercare. You know who looks after you after surgery and how to reach them at any hour.

Plastic surgeon vs cosmetic surgeon: what is the difference?

A plastic surgeon in the UK has completed specialist training in plastic surgery: medical school, two foundation years, core surgical training and then around six years of higher specialist training, before joining the GMC Specialist Register. That training covers reconstruction after injury, cancer and burns as well as aesthetic surgery, which is where much of a surgeon’s judgement about tissue, blood supply and complications comes from.

“Cosmetic surgeon” is a description, not a specialty. There is no training pathway, examination or register entry behind it. A doctor who uses it may be a fully trained plastic surgeon, a specialist in a related field working within it, such as an ENT surgeon doing nose surgery or an eye surgeon doing eyelid surgery, or a doctor whose surgical training is limited^[2].

The confusion is common, even among doctors. In a 2018 study in the Annals of Plastic Surgery, 54.3% of 474 medical students shown real practitioner websites believed that cosmetic surgeons were board-certified plastic surgeons^[3]. A 2015 analysis of 7,500 websites in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery found that 94.3% of general surgeons and 70% of eye surgeons advertising cosmetic surgery were working outside the scope of their training^[4]. Both studies are American, where certification works differently, but the lesson holds here: check the register, not the title.

What qualifications should a plastic surgeon have?

• GMC registration with a licence to practise. The legal minimum for any doctor working in the UK.
• Entry on the GMC Specialist Register. In plastic surgery for most cosmetic operations; some operations sit in other specialties, such as ENT for some nose surgery or ophthalmology for oculoplastic eyelid surgery. Entry follows a Certificate of Completion of Training, or the GMC’s portfolio pathway (formerly CESR) for doctors who trained abroad.
• A specialist fellowship. FRCS (Plast) is the examination at the end of UK plastic surgery training; FEBOPRAS, from the European Board of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery, is the European specialist examination.
• Optional extras. Royal College of Surgeons cosmetic surgery certification, and membership of BAAPS or BAPRAS, add assurance but do not replace the checks above.

Many consultants also hold, or have held, NHS consultant posts, which require specialist registration. Ask how often the surgeon performs your particular operation: specialists tend to concentrate on a group of procedures, and the questions to ask about experience are in our guide to questions to ask your plastic surgeon.

How to check a surgeon is on the GMC Specialist Register

The GMC medical register is free to search by name or by seven-digit GMC reference number. A doctor’s entry shows whether they hold a licence to practise, whether they are on the Specialist Register and in which specialty, and any conditions or warnings on their practice^[5]. It takes about a minute, and it is the single most useful check you can make. Tick off each step below; your ticks are saved on this device and you can print the list.

Every surgeon’s profile on our site lists their GMC number, so you can check our surgeons’ GMC numbers and qualifications before your consultation.

What is RCS cosmetic surgery certification?

After the Keogh review of cosmetic interventions recommended formal certification of surgeons doing cosmetic work, the Royal College of Surgeons of England introduced a voluntary certification scheme in 2017^[6][7]. Surgeons apply in defined areas, such as breast, nose, eyelid, face, ear and body contouring surgery, are assessed against an agreed national standard, and certification lasts five years. The College publishes a register of certified surgeons.

The scheme is voluntary, so a surgeon who is not certified is not a warning sign on its own. A surgeon who is certified has had their training and practice in that area checked by an independent body, which is useful extra assurance.

BAAPS and BAPRAS: what membership tells you

BAAPS (the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons) and BAPRAS (the British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons) are professional associations for plastic surgeons. Full membership generally requires specialist registration in plastic surgery, and both publish safety advice for patients, including that you should meet the surgeon who will operate and expect a cooling-off period after your consultation. Membership is a reasonable signal, but some well-qualified surgeons are not members, so treat it as a supporting check rather than the main one.

How to spot a bad plastic surgeon: the warning signs

The Keogh review recommended prohibiting time-limited deals, financial inducements and two-for-one offers, and the Royal College of Surgeons’ professional standards tell surgeons not to use them^[7][8]. If you are weighing up surgery overseas, read about the risks of cosmetic surgery abroad first, and for the questions to ask about the hospital itself, see our guide to choosing a cosmetic surgery clinic.

What are the signs that a plastic surgeon is good?

• They examine you and ask why you want surgery, including how you feel about your appearance day to day.
• They tell you what surgery cannot do, and sometimes advise a smaller operation, a different one or none at all.
• They explain the risks of your operation, how often they happen and what would be done about them.
• They show you before and after photos of their own patients, including typical results, not just the most striking ones.
• They give you a written plan and quote, and time to think, and are happy for you to come back with more questions.
• They tell you exactly who will look after you after surgery, and how to reach them.

Sometimes the most useful thing a surgeon can say at a first consultation is “I wouldn’t do that”. A good surgeon is as clear about what an operation can’t do as about what it can.

Dr Spyridon Vlachos, Specialist Plastic Surgeon and medical reviewer

Our surgeons at Centre for Surgery

Our surgeons are GMC-registered consultants, and each profile lists their GMC number, qualifications and the procedures they perform, so you can check them for yourself. You are booked with a consultant who performs the operation you are asking about, and the consultant you meet at your consultation is the surgeon who operates and who takes your consent. We recommend at least a two-week cooling-off period after every consultation, before you confirm a surgery date.

Surgery takes place at our hospital at 95–97 Baker Street, which is rated Good overall by the CQC^[9]. We publish our complication and revision figures, and you can see before and after photos of our own patients and read patient reviews.

Awards are no substitute for the checks on this page, but they are another independent view of a hospital and its team. We were Aesthetics Awards finalists in 2025 and 2026, Dr Michail Vourvachis was Highly Commended for Best Surgical Result at the 2026 awards, and we hold the WhatClinic Patient Service Award 2026. The full list is on our awards and accolades page.

References

Regulatory guidance comes from the official sources listed.

1. General Medical Council. Guidance for doctors who offer cosmetic interventions. In effect from 1 June 2016.
2. NHS. Choosing who will do your cosmetic procedure. Last reviewed 23 June 2023.
3. Tessler O, Bourn L, Lin SJ, et al. Cosmetic surgeon representation: ensuring board certification transparency and patient awareness. Ann Plast Surg. 2018;80(6S Suppl 6):S431–S436. doi:10.1097/SAP.0000000000001430
4. Barr JS, Sinno S, Cimino M, et al. Clinicians performing cosmetic surgery in the community: a nationwide analysis of physician certification. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2015;135(1):92e–98e. doi:10.1097/PRS.0000000000000774
5. General Medical Council. The medical register: search for a doctor.
6. Royal College of Surgeons of England. Cosmetic Surgery Board Certification.
7. Department of Health. Review of the Regulation of Cosmetic Interventions: final report (the Keogh review). April 2013.
8. Royal College of Surgeons of England. Professional Standards for Cosmetic Surgery. April 2016.
9. Care Quality Commission. Centre for Surgery, Baker Street: inspection report. Published 16 May 2023.