List of questions for consultation

[geepad]

Hello, going for consults this week - don’t have time to do an exhaustive search - can anyone provide important list of basic questions to ask based upon your experience? You can also point to any good threads as I’m sure this has been discussed

Thanks 

 

From my initial research - of course I will ask options, fut vs fue, scar expectations, doctor history and certs, risks and complications, punch diameter / shape and size of incisions, size grafts, recovery, medications 

[kiwik]

Ask for a precise estimate of the number of grafts that can be extracted from your donor, and for a long-term strategy. For most people, one HT is not enough, but it can make you happy for a few years before you need a second one: it's important to know how many grafts you may need for the second HT, and how many will be left in the donor area after the first one. 

[Gatsby]

Ask what would be the surgeon’s life plan for surgery for you? Make sure you get to see a large volume of the surgeon’s work. How long has his team been working together and what is the policy if you are not happy with the results after 12 months?

[sl]

In-person consultations are usually time restricted so the ideal is to know general info prior..so, rudimentary info such as punch size and type, incisions and how they are made, needle sizes, doctor experience, qualifications, role of the technicians,  recovery, meds are all things that can easily be done prior via calls or emails etc and before a consultation and then dismiss the clinics you do not want and hone in to the ones that then you prefer and make sure the consultation is then very hands on and with personal data that you cannot get via an email. So, take advantage of being with the doctor and the equipment to get real empirical data on your case that then is the basis for what can be achieved and what is the plan for you personally. 

Many seem to have consultations but come away with zero hands-on real empirical data specific to their own donor, loss, density, FU make up etc and for me that defeats the purpose of being seen in person when that is the only way to obtain such data, whereas many other questions are easily answered remotely.

All the best for your consultation/s.

 

 

[A_4_Archan]

@geepad in person consultation don't have infinite time...so i would 100% agree with @sl that don't waste time for the things which can be known via messages or phone calls....don't ask those silly questions like punch size and which puch and which technique and all such things...that all can be dealt with without personal consultations..

Make a list of things which can't be known via virtual meeting or messages or calls and be specific to that only...

Edited July 17, 2023 by A_4_Archan

[mr_peanutbutter]

i think it would be cool to have a pinned thread where all the question you should ask during a consultation are listed (maybe seperate in question you should ask in person to question you can already ask via chat)

 

i feel like this an reoccurring topic and such list would give valuable info to many people

[geepad]

2 hours ago, sl said:

In-person consultations are usually time restricted so the ideal is to know general info prior..so, rudimentary info such as punch size and type, incisions and how they are made, needle sizes, doctor experience, qualifications, role of the technicians,  recovery, meds are all things that can easily be done prior via calls or emails etc and before a consultation and then dismiss the clinics you do not want and hone in to the ones that then you prefer and make sure the consultation is then very hands on and with personal data that you cannot get via an email. So, take advantage of being with the doctor and the equipment to get real empirical data on your case that then is the basis for what can be achieved and what is the plan for you personally. 

Many seem to have consultations but come away with zero hands-on real empirical data specific to their own donor, loss, density, FU make up etc and for me that defeats the purpose of being seen in person when that is the only way to obtain such data, whereas many other questions are easily answered remotely.

All the best for your consultation/s.

 

 

Thank you great info.

I guess I will not ask any questions until I get said empirical data after they analyze me. Of course I’ll then ask whatever common sense questions I have based upon my personal consultation. I’ve done reading on many websites regarding all this already of course I just haven’t honestly done deep reading here (my apologies) though I’ve gone through several threads of those who have personally down it in Thailand - hence if anyone has any possible more esoteric questions or ‘hey, if the doc says this , then ask that…’

thanks!

[geepad]

1 hour ago, mr_peanutbutter said:

i think it would be cool to have a pinned thread where all the question you should ask during a consultation are listed (maybe seperate in question you should ask in person to question you can already ask via chat)

 

i feel like this an reoccurring topic and such list would give valuable info to many people

Yes that’s what I was kind of hoping for, a pinned thread where all is in one place, or at least a lot  

[mr_peanutbutter]

5 hours ago, geepad said:

Yes that’s what I was kind of hoping for, a pinned thread where all is in one place, or at least a lot  

@Melvin- Moderator could we make it happen?

[YodaHead]

Some great suggestions so far. One open ended type question i like to ask at the end is this:

”As an experienced HT surgeon, you must have had patient results you were extremely pleased with (i.e above avg) and may have seen some below avg results. For those few below avg results in your practice—what key factors do you attribute to such results?” 
 

I ask this to know if they are transparent, and also helps to know in advance what to do/not to do.

[geepad]

10 minutes ago, YodaHead said:

Some great suggestions so far. One open ended type question i like to ask at the end is this:

”As an experienced HT surgeon, you must have had patient results you were extremely pleased with (i.e above avg) and may have seen some below avg results. For those few below avg results in your practice—what key factors do you attribute to such results?” 
 

I ask this to know if they are transparent, and also helps to know in advance what to do/not to do.

Thanks, great idea