From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, May 9, 2023
Health Ministry warns Israelis not to get surgery abroad
Renee Ghert-Zand is the health reporter and a feature writer for The Times of Israel.
The Health Ministry warns Israelis against undergoing surgeries and medical treatments abroad. The ministry says it received several recent reports of severe complications and hospitalizations following plastic surgeries performed on Israelis in other countries.
More than 80,000 Israelis seek plastic surgery every year. The most popular procedures are breast augmentation, liposuction, and nose surgery. Many Israelis seek plastic surgery abroad to save money.
According to The Israel Society of Plastic Aesthetic Surgery (ISPAS), around 80 citizens are treated annually by plastic surgeons in emergency rooms and public and private clinics for complications resulting from surgeries done abroad. These include infections, bleeding, lack of healing and permanent scarring. In extreme cases, patients exhibit paralysis or are at risk of death.
ISPAS had urged the Health Ministry for six years to issue a warning like the one it has now made.
“It is critical that the public understand that every procedure has risks and requires recovery under the supervision of a plastic surgeon who knows how to prevent complications ahead of time, and to deal with them if they do arise,” says ISPAS chair Dr. Meir Cohen.
The Health Ministry emphasizes that there is generally no reason to leave the country for plastic surgery. It offers advice for Israelis who despite the warning insist on traveling abroad for plastic surgery and other aesthetic procedures. It recommends researching the institution where the operation will take place, the regulatory supervision in the specific country, and whether the procedure sought is done according to the accepted medical practices.
