While hospitals and clinics have remained open during the pandemic, many procedures have likely been cancelled. We can surmise that these include elective cosmetic and plastic surgery since these aren’t a matter of life and death, literally. Fortunately, many clinics like Athenix Body offering these services have remained open and, more important, implemented pandemic protocols.
General Pandemic Protocols
Every hospital and clinic has its own pandemic protocols depending on the types of services offered. But there are several similarities, too, including the followings steps.
- Prospective patients are tested for the coronavirus 48 hours before the surgery. Only if the test results come negative will the surgery proceed.
- In case of intubation, only the anesthesiologist is allowed inside the operating room. He wears protective personal gear (PPE), an N-95 mask with a face mask underneath, and a powered air purifying respirator, among others.
- Doctors and nurses aren’t allowed inside the operating room for 20 minutes after the anesthesiologist has done his work. They also wear PPE including masks with face shields, whether the procedure involves oral airway work or not.
- Patients are sent home as soon as possible. Patients required to stay overnight aren’t allowed to have visitors, not even immediate family.
Suffice it to say that doctors, nurses and other medical professionals take more safety precautions to protect themselves and their patients against exposure.
Cancellation of Procedures
Don’t be surprised if your scheduled procedure has been cancelled even if the work-up has been completed. This isn’t being unprofessional on the part of the doctors! Instead, it’s about ensuring that both medical professionals and patients aren’t taking unnecessary risks.
You may have planned for a thigh liposuction since January 2020, perhaps even saved for it. But your doctor decided to cancel since the clinic management decided to postpone all procedures until pandemic protocols are in place. Since it’s already the middle of June, your doctor and his clinic will likely be ready for you.
You can ask for a definite date, or a reschedule, for this reason. You may want to be in the right physical and mental condition for the procedure while waiting. You can think of it as making productive use of your idle time during the shelter-at-home orders.
We understand that while elective cosmetic procedures, such as body lifts, are done for beauty purposes, these have significant psychological impact. Whatever you’re feeling now, such as doubting whether you will ever get a body lift, is valid. But be patient since there’s a time for everything and that time may well be now!