The world has undergone tremendous change in the last two decades.

For instance, when I was a kid, getting from one place to another by plane was a big deal.

It was expensive. It was difficult. Plus it was not possible to fly from any one place you wish to another.

Today, it is possible to use your smartphone to buy a ticket to anywhere around the world in only 10 minutes and travel on the very same day. Moreover, on the way to the airport, you can book a hotel in the city you are going to.

The combination of such freedom of travel with social media visibility and the ease of access to physicians resulted in the rise of global aesthetic tourism.

Now, traveling between countries is perhaps easier than the intercity travel 10 years ago.

Turkey has emerged as a rising country in health tourism for aesthetic procedures, owing to both the quality of health and tourism services and affordable prices.

As of now, one third of all patients we have had for facial rejuvenation surgery are traveling from abroad. Considering the current growth rate, at least in my own practice, I predict that this rate will exceed 60% in the next 10 years.

If you are a candidate for facial rejuvenation surgery in my clinic and reside outside of Turkey, this post will guide you.

The key factor that drives a patient’s motivation for treatment in another city is the cost/benefit advantage.

There is almost no country in the world where there are no plastic surgeons or where facial rejuvenation surgery is not available.  Therefore, a patient leaves their comfort zone and goes to another country for either a better price or a better service. This is the motivation that brings my patients from another country to my clinic.

First of all, when evaluating surgeries related to facial aesthetics, you should know that not all surgeries introduced under a specific – and same – name are indeed the same. Just as not every watch or every car is the same, not every facial rejuvenation surgery is the same, either.

We are currently performing sub-SMAS techniques, endoscopic surgery techniques and advanced oculoplastic surgery procedures in a very comfortable environment at internationally-accredited hospitals. I am interested only in facial aesthetics, and I perform such surgeries every week, hundreds of times a year. We have refined surgical techniques to reduce complication rates far below the averages in the literature. I am a physician who has produced work that made it into the international literature on facial aesthetics, has been invited to scientific meetings in various countries of the world and has developed and improved modern surgical techniques.

There are other physicians who have this level of expertise both in the world and in Turkey. However, the vast majority of these physicians reside in developed countries where income per capita is above USD 40,000. In such countries, you need to allocate a budget that is 4 to 10 times higher than that in Turkey to secure being operated by a surgeon having the same level of expertise. You can confirm the accuracy of the rates I have given above by getting and comparing prices from 5-10 different doctors you follow on Instagram.

Some of the candidate patients state that our surgery fees are not very affordable and that they can have surgery in London, New York, Paris or Zurich at the same price. That’s right. You could probably have surgery where you live at the same price. However, you will probably not have the same quality of surgery and the same quality of surgeon with the same expertise. In summary, our cost/benefit ratio is quite high compared to countries with more stable economies.

Before traveling, you can contact us for references from our patients living in the same country as you. Most likely, we can put you in contact with another patient who lives in the same country as you so that you can benefit from their experience. At the decision-making stage, you can request my scientific articles about your surgery from my assistant. You can reach us directly on Whatsapp/Instagram.

Initially, we conduct an online consultation with candidate patients abroad. During this consultation, we both get to know each other and discuss the details. Most of the time, the surgery plan and price are determined during this online consultation. If you decide to move forward with us, my assistants will assist you in arranging surgery appointments, preoperative examinations and consultations, airport transfers, hotel reservations, an attendant and an interpreter.

Before the operation, you should inform us about your medical history, allergies, the medications you use, past and current diseases and anything that may affect the surgery process. We do not recommend that you plan your travel with promotional flight tickets that cannot be changed or promotional hotel reservations that do not have a cancellation option. For instance, in case of an active infection, we may need to postpone your surgery. Therefore, if you have a fever 2 or 3 days before your travel date, you should be able to reschedule the ticket for a later date.

A key issue that my patients traveling from abroad should know is that in case of a possible complication, the time they need to stay in Turkey may be slightly longer. Although the probability of a complication that may require you to stay longer is very low, we still recommend that you flexibly plan your work and social life on your return.

We often arrange your stay in Turkey to be as long as we can safely send you back to your country. Sometimes, my patients prefer to take a short vacation in the immediate surroundings or on the Mediterranean/Aegean beaches following the early postoperative monitoring period that takes 3 or 4 days, recover from their edema and bruising and return to their country in a more normal appearance. I would strongly recommend my patients who will travel between April and November to consider this option as well.

We consider our international patients to be our guests. My clinic, the hospital where you will be operated and the hotel where you will stay are all located within a circle with a diameter of 300 meters in the most stylish and safest neighborhood of Ankara. There are many restaurants, pharmacies, cinemas and shopping centers within ten minutes’ walking distance.

We act on the awareness that you have been entrusted with us by your family and relatives. It is impossible for you to be left alone and unsupported here with no communication. You can be sure of that.

Feel free to contact us if you are planning to travel from abroad for facial rejuvenation surgery or another facial aesthetic procedure.

Take good care…

… of yourself and your beauty.

OB

Don’t worry. I’m traveling for congresses but you’re just traveling as a tourist.