Albion71's Hair Transplant with Dr. Kulahci - Hair Loss Blogs

[RodG]

Hi,

 

I would like to congratulate you on such a professional approach to the HT result that you had and your experience with Transmed. I think that most members who have researched HT's understand that at times a patient isn't going to have a great result either due to physiology or perhaps a less than perfect operation that affects growth.

 

I do think that for forum members to have confidence in the clinic that they chose they also need to have confidence that they will stand behind a patient if results are less than sub par. Most of us on this forum are not wealthy businessmen who can afford to shell out ten's of thousands of dollars on a whim.

 

As a side point I'm currently in Bangkok, Thailand and I'm off for my 11.5 month review of my HT procedure that I had with DHT Clinic. Doctor Pathmovanich did not perform my HT but his assistant Doctor Kulakarn and staff performed the surgery.

 

Kind Regards and good luck.

 

Regards

 

Rod

[Jeremiah]

Hi Albion71, I meant to reply to your last post on my own Transmed thread but have been sidetracked lately (planting a mango orchard of all things!)

Yes your latest set of pics on your blog give a better indication of the level of improvement, though again, more detailed shots would have been preferable. Is this the best detail they could provide? If so, it would seem to suggest further obfuscation on their part. To my own eye, the improvement looks to be only 50%-60% at best. Not a disaster by any means, but a little disappointing for sure. If I were in your position, I would hold out for something like a 40%+ refund and use the dosh towards getting maybe 1000+ FUE grafts done in the frontal areas, maybe by one of the Belgian docs.

As you know, I already have my doubts about Transmed, and didn't particularly like the way I was treated at times (but of course this will pale into irrelevance should my own HT eventually prove a success!) If I could go back in time, I would perhaps opt to go with a small-scale doc that specialises in HT only, rather than a full-spectrum cosmetic clinic with international aspirations, that might sometimes be paying more attention to brand promotion and protection, cash-flow and business planning etc. than to customer satisfaction.

To pick up on one aspect of your post-op experience, how did the many zits you encountered end up? I ask this because I've had maybe ten in the last few weeks (now 2 months post-op) One grew quite big, so I went and squeezed it, only to find the whole graft came out as well, the hair in it was bent double as if it had been growing and was trying to emerge, but couldn't. So did you take care not to lose grafts in that way? Do you think the number of zits was in any way relevant to the number of failed grafts?

Anyway, I'm sure things will turn out well for you in the end, it'll just take a little longer getting there than expected, and it's good we have the support of the guys here on the way. Chin up M8.

[TM]

Dear all,

 

Hair Transplant Network is an excellent tool for us to follow-up with prospective and current patients. We follow the discussions and topics on the forum daily even though you do not see us posting and answering every inquiry on the forum about Transmed and/or Dr Melike. We do not have a Sales rep defending us and/or advertising for us. This is because -except very few exceptions like this post- we wish and always stirve to establish a one-on-one communication with patients given our privacy guidelines. That is also why we flew Mr Albion over to Turkey, covered his accomodation and transport while in Istanbul: to establish a communication.

 

Yet it seems that we have not been successful in this case. We do not think we have reached a common level of trust where we can communicate, discuss and agree on a solution with our patient. This, we understand through the fact that Mr Albion was perfectly kind to us while in Istanbul, yet did not ask the questions on his mind freely and openly to us as he did on the forum.

 

This is why we think there would not be a point in going at length about defending and explaining Dr Melike's assessment of this case. First and foremost because the patient is clearly not happy and he is not satisfied. Whatever proof we will state is not going to make any difference.

 

For us, patient satisfaction is everything. Transmed's 17 year history and Dr Melike's reputation have been built on this.

 

We feel for our patient. We will take his offers and hopefully provide him with a solution that can re-build the trust that was lost during this process. If we cannot, finances will be the last resort we will depend on to cover his losses during this process.

 

We will continue to communicate in private with our patient.

[El Nino]

TM,

 

Albion's real name is on those pics, has he consented to this?

[Bill - Seemiller]

This has been corrected. I've sent a note to the clinic to be careful of this in the future.

 

Best wishes,

 

Bill

[Albion71]

To pick up on one aspect of your post-op experience, how did the many zits you encountered end up? I ask this because I've had maybe ten in the last few weeks (now 2 months post-op) One grew quite big, so I went and squeezed it, only to find the whole graft came out as well, the hair in it was bent double as if it had been growing and was trying to emerge, but couldn't. So did you take care not to lose grafts in that way? Do you think the number of zits was in any way relevant to the number of failed grafts?

 

I did get plenty of zits - but when I raised this at my consultation with Transmed they said it wouldn't affect the success or otherwise of the grafts. I think a lot of people have had zits as part of the regrowth phase and still had successful results. It's no different to getting zits when hairs in your beard ingrow.

[Bill - Seemiller]

Albion,

 

I know you've been in touch with the clinic and according to their last email to me earlier today, they've emailed you back and are awaiting your response. Please do update this community on the outcome of your recent discussion. Ultimately, I hope you can all reach an agreement that's fair and reasonable for everyone.

 

Best wishes,

 

Bill

[Albion71]

Hi all,

 

I've had further discussions with Transmed since I was last on here, and we have reached a financial agreement which I am happy with. I won't go into the exact numbers but I think it reflects the outcome of the HT.

 

I imagine many clinics would not offer any compensation to patients disappointed with their HT result, so I think it is a very impressive gesture by Transmed.

 

I should say that Transmed have been very professional throughout this, and I feel sad that my experience with them was not all I'd hoped for.

 

Also, thanks again to Bill for his support, and everyone else in the community.

[Albion71]

Our messages crossed there Bill - I've PMed you with a bit more info.

[SkinUpPinUp]

Considering what has just happened on another thread with another surgeon, I don't want to stoke the fires of mistrust but there's something here that makes me feel...deeply uncomfortable. In essence: alarm bells are ringing.

 

Firstly, we have what is clearly an underwhelming result with some interesting reactions from Transmed. Just looking back at the thread, I cannot help but see some very curious occurrences

 

1. The procedure itself - the graft placements themselves look pretty sparse and far apart. But then, we're talking 2,900 grafts for a patient clearly headed towards a Norwood VI. With a relatively small graft count, trying to gain any sort of coverage - even with concealer - on that level of hairloss is unlikely.
   With such a modest graft count over such a large area - how could this have turned out as anything but underwhelming? This either wasn't properly thought out by the surgeon or communicated properly to the patient.
    
   
2. Dr Melike Kaluhci considering it a "success". Again, this makes me think she had a very low density plan in the first place and, by that assertion, this is a success. I just don't think that the patient was properly communicated with as to what the outcome was supposed to be. Also, the claim that there was a 90% yield rate, hence would only refund 10% of the operation cost. Without a proper hair density measurement and comparing it with the graft density measurement in the recipient area - how was this number reached?
    
   
3. The company comes on here to reply, but only after being encouraged by Bill.
    
   
4. In the post from Transmed, they admit that they have "not been successful" on a public forum. This is in direct contradiction to what was said to the patient on a one-to-one basis (see point 2). Why the change of mind?
    
   
5. In the reply, they publish the full face and name of Albion. Ironically, in the very same post they said they value patient privacy! This, in particular, troubles me as I remember a particularly notorious surgeon doing this sort of thing many years ago to unhappy patients who went public.
   

 

Now, let me just stress that I do not have an agenda and am not here to troll - I am just trying to call things as I see them. I think that this is an excellent forum and we have some incredible coalition surgeons that post regularly here. Even the most abrasive surgeons (and you all know who I am talking about) at the very least have some damn good - and consistent - results to back them up. So politics aside, the coalition has many great surgeons, Dr Melike Kaluhci, however...(deep breath)...I don't believe is one of them.

 

Albion71, do what you will here with regards to going back for revision. However, with a finite number of strips and donor hair, I would think very, very carefully before committing, no matter how discounted the rate. There are plenty of other great surgeons in the coalition, you may want to consult and getting an honest and off-the-record appraisal with them before making any further moves.

 

On a pure maths side of things, were you ever told what density to expect (hairs per cm/2)? If so, where are you now?

 

Anyway, whatever you do, I wish you the best of luck.

 

Bill - no offence intended here, mate. I do not mean to ruffle feathers or upset stakeholders. However, I think we need to think about this patients' donor supply, bank balance and happiness - this must take precedence over everything else and to advise anything that is not entirely impartial would be doing this man an injustice.

[aim4hair]

Yet it seems that we have not been successful in this case. We do not think we have reached a common level of trust where we can communicate, discuss and agree on a solution with our patient. This, we understand through the fact that Mr Albion was perfectly kind to us while in Istanbul, yet did not ask the questions on his mind freely and openly to us as he did on the forum. [/font][/size]

 

I give credit to TM for admitting that they have not been successful in this case instead of trying to defend their work.

 

 

 

Good luck with your next HT Albion. hope things work out well for you.

[Bill - Seemiller]

SkinupPinuup,

 

I wholeheartedly disagree with your opinion of Dr. Kulahci. In my opinion, Dr. Kulahci is truly one of the good guys and regularly performs densely packed ultra refined hair transplants (when appropriate for the patient) with excellent results. Not every hair transplant is aimed at density. Albion had a lot of baldness to cover and a limited donor supply. Thus, obtaining the kind of density he wants may very well take more than one procedure. Surgeons aren't miracle workers and have to work within the constraints they're given, which is their own ability and patient characteristics. If you look at several results posted on this forum by Dr. Kulahci, you can see that her work is ultra refined and her results are typically excellent.

 

Dr. Kulahci and her staff do not patrol the forums on a regular basis. Thus, as a courtesy, we've informed her of Albion's public posts and encouraged them to respond. And while I agree that they should have been more careful about posting anonymous photos, after emailing them about this, they did admit they posted these rather haphazardly as they don't a designated individual to handle concerns on our public forum.

 

What bothers me about your post is how bad you've quoted TransMed out of context. Anyone who reads their post can see that "yet it seems that we have not been successful in this case" was referring to the previous statement about attempting to establish adequate communication. There is no contradiction here.

 

At the end of the day, every surgeon has cases of less than optimal results and patients who aren't satisfied (whether they're results weren't as expected or their expectations were too high). What separates the elite from the rest is how these concerns are handled when they arise. Not every case is cut and dry either. In this case, I believe that Dr. Kulahci gave 110% to stand by her patient to make him happy despite her initial assessment of the results. Thus, not only does Dr. Kulahci typically produce excellent results, but she's proven to be a stand up physician.

 

Each member of this community is welcome to draw their own conclusion. But I see no reason to believe that Dr. Kulahci doesn't regularly produce excellent ultra refined results and thus, I believe she's earned her rightful place in the Coalition.

 

Best wishes,

 

Bill

[Ahairdown]

Hey albion, glad you got sorted out and gave us an update. Would have been nice to have some clarification regarding the 90% success comment or whatever it was, but in reality the doctor doesn't owe us anything - but rather only you as are the patient - and you have confirmed that you feel like they've come back and done you right.

 

Good luck albion!

[jessie1]

Albion,

 

You have been on a hell of a journey mate and I am so pleased that you have managed to work things out with the Doc. It is regretable that your journey was so long and drawn out and I'm sure that things have been somewhat stressful for you. You have handled this with restraint and dignity.

 

SkinupPinup, I tend to agree with you. The whole 'saga' for want of a better word sits very uncomfortably with me. Without having the benefit of all the information here it is difficult to be absolutely clear on what has gone on. What is clear is that Albion has seemingly 'jumped through many hoops' to get where he needs to be.

 

Bill: The fact that Albion has managed to work things out with the Doc, I feel in part ( ok, a large part), is down to your intervention. We will never know what has gone on behind the scenes, but for me the turning point seemed to be when you made contact on behalf of the patient.

 

I have absolutely no knowledge of this Doc so I am genuinely not best placed to offer my opinion on their competence/ aftercare service, especially when this is the only post i have read about Dr. Kulhaci.

 

Quick question though Bill: Do you think that Albion would have managed to secure a deal with Transmed, and effectively have his concerns addressed, without your intervention and personal correspondence with the Doc?

 

Albion: All the best and keep us updated with your journey. It goes without saying that you have attracted a huge amount of backing from forum members,

 

Jessie1.

[Bill - Seemiller]

Jessie,

 

Dr. Kulahci has a long standing reputation of standing behind her patients. Obviously, every situation is unique and each case has to be taken one at a time. But while I won't deny that this community is a powerful influence and I did help intervene to facilitate some discussion between Albion and the clinic, I have every confidence that Dr. Kulahci and TransMed stands behind their patients.

 

Best wishes,

 

Bill