am_cake Posted January 21, 2007 Share Posted January 21, 2007 Hello, I'm new here and I've basically been reading these past 12 pages for ideas. I like the sound of going to Korea to get a rhinoplasty done b/c I hear a lot of celebs get it done there buh I don't speak a word of Korean.. or any asian language for that matter. Well, thas not true, I'm currently a first year at U of T and have been learning Mandarin since sept. =P Woohoo wo shi Duolunduo Daxue de xuesheng, wo xuexi Hanyu!! =D haha but yeaaah, are any of you from Canada and live around the GTA that are planning to go overseas for nose job around late April-early May? It would be nice to not be ALONE.. T_T plus I haven't told my parents what I plan to do Also, need recommendations for good surgeons that aren't overly pricey. =/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
am_cake Posted January 21, 2007 Share Posted January 21, 2007 Oh forgot to mention that I'm a chinese girl. I have pic in profile but you may not be able to see the full largeness of my nose there =( .. cuz it was taken with the sunlight behind me so that my face is completely shaded. As for the nose, I already have a nose bridge, the problem is everything sticks out too far from my face AND is the typical asian-wide at the same time. So, i'm basically looking for smaller nostrils and the lower part of my nose narrowed. Contemplating getting the bridge narrowed as well so its proportioned.. Hm.. i may have to go in June or Aug to build up funds =( So time is flexible. Talk to me! msn> [email protected] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nnhongnheo Posted January 21, 2007 Share Posted January 21, 2007 oh men, Jas3m. I thought that u might still in Korea around May...that would be really nice. I will have a buddy, specially male =) taking me around Korea..that would be fun. -Btw, i'm really looking forward to your post on Dr. Jung and Ozclinnic. I'll be in Korea in May, but i'm still hesitate between those 2 doctors. are the two clinics close to each other? which clinic is more busy? and which doctor have more reputation???? -Anyway, thanks Jas3m for your posts so far....and i hope that u have to great time over there. I'm really looking forward to the trip coming up, but also very nervous (kind of scary though) because i don't know the language and anybody over there. hummmmmmm anyway, good night guys Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meowgirl Posted January 22, 2007 Share Posted January 22, 2007 Hey Jas3n thanks again for giving us 'hands on' info and also unbiased info as like mentioned earlier we can only rely on what the website say - (and I know website info can be twisted and its images as I'm a web designer and I do that all the time for clients! ) ANYWAY... you're opionion is highly valued and after all your researching it would be nice to know which surgeon you go with. For the time being which one has impressed you that most? Keropi - yeah Im thinking of staying there around 2 weeks, I want to make sure my nose doesnt fall off when I'm on the plane home! And I doubt I can afford commodation more than 2 weeks either! nnhongnheo - good luck girl! I think you're the first out of the bunch to head out there? Let us know how it gets on etc and report back to base! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jas3n Posted January 22, 2007 Share Posted January 22, 2007 hey all thanks for welcoming me to this thread. im really happy to be of help; after all i've nothing much to do around here in seoul except hang with my mum..which i've done PLENTY of already LOL...im also happy to do my bit making the world a more beautiful place, pun intended . anyways im gonna tell you all about the 'field trip' i did today to plastic surgery St (from the addresses of clinics on the st im pretty sure its called Shinsa Dong -unless the word dong means district or something). i had a look at 2 more clinics, including having a consultation at one, called CM. Confidence Maker, nice name eh? my nose is a typical asian wide and blunt nose, though my bridge is highish. so i require the following things btw, so the procedures/prices described were for my case only: 1. deviated septum 2. slight crookness (soccer accident i think) 3. reduction of alar 4. reducing width of nostrils (and middle section between nostrils (not sure what its called) 5. making the tip sharper and higher ok CM: This one seemed small in size, but was fairly busy (6 ppl in the waiting room apart from us) and seemed to do quite a bit of rhino from the look of 2 of the girls waiting in there (noses looked like they'd been 'done'). that sort of set the tone for my visit, and i didnt feel all that confident about the place doing top notch surgery from the slightly obvious plastic surgery look of the girls in the waiting room. my validations were proven correct later. Let me say the +ves first however: the waiting room/reception was a neat, modern little place with wood panelling, white marble and soft colours. There was a pc for free webaccess as well it seemed. In terms of visual appeal it was good, as was the service: the receptionists were nice considering we were 30 mins late for the appt; and the 10 min consultation was free. In the consultation the dr asked me 1st what i wanted done, and then briefly described what he would do to achieve that for the price of $3 mill Won (cheapest so far). These are some of the details (im missing a few tho, and its a bit erroneous cos iv got pretty bad memory, and dr choi didnt explain that well): 1. do a cartilage graft from my alar cartilage to straighten out the bend 2. It was here the -ves really came to light:: english was lacking badly among the receptionists (2 out of 10 ability), and the dr was not that great either(6 out of 10). moreover he didnt seem to explain a whole lot -my mum more had to interrogate him 50% of the time for other info, he. He seemed to not to describe in sufficieint detail what would occur. with the describing he did, he showed photos though the photos he used to give me a better idea were definitely nothing to write home about. Experience, expertise and qualifications seemed ok though not great. His xp was described to be 7yrs (80% women) though he had not had many foreign patients at all and qualifications was one of the Seoul universities as a doc -cant remember if i saw a rhinoplasty qualification in there however. Honestly I did not feel comfortable that he would do a good job. 5/10 i'd say -AVOID. YOu get what you pay for it seems. i've noticed a trend among all the clinics that most of the clients are women. it's pretty much as you'd expect. young women in their 20s (or younger) and 30s make up probably 55% of the clientele in any clinic (age though is hard to tell among asians sometimes) and the rest is mainly older women (35%) with the balance made up of men (around 30 y.o). i bet most of the older women are the mothers too -as seemed the case in CM clinic. Young women seem to be fueling the south korean trend towards cosmetic surgery, and most of the surgery is the eye job or nose job. chin jobs are pretty popular too (i include jaw bone shaving to basically change lower face shape among chin jobs). cosmetic surgery is huge here no doubt about it! anyways, i had a look at the OZclinic website and forum and dr park seems quite well qualified, he answers the questions alright too on the 'consultation' link, very personalised rather than totally commercialised (compared to some), and also pretty very experienced. however having seem the next clinic, i'm not entirely sure Ozclinic is right for all of you -the qualifications of the docs at the next clinic i went to are great, the best ive seen so far. i'll continue on about it in my next post..this one is getting way too long ush: its good enough for me to say so far clinic 9 and this one would be in a close tie for my business Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jas3n Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 hello again everyone how u all going? hope ur not worrying too much about ur nose! not much point stressing atm cos there cant be much done about it until it gets operated on! i think the thing to focus on now apart from finding a good surgeon, is getting on with life and focusing on strengthening ur relationships with friends and family. At the end of the day they'll be the ones supporting you when you get your surgery done. oh, that as well as making sure you have enough $ to get the best surgeon for you. like someone said on the post earlier: $ can be earned, but ur nose u have to live with...revision rhino can only do so much... anyways i went to 3 more clinics in the meantime. one of those was Dr Jung at his Shimmian Rhino clinic. ill give it my best shot in describing my experience there, but i know im not the best writer so if i've left anything out, feel free to ask qs. Dr Jung: Dr Jungs clinic is basically a small-medium sized clinic, 50m from the exit of Gangnam Stn. On the 2nd floor of a pretty ratty, 20yr old building, its probably the size of a large apartment as it takes up about half the floor its on, but despite that it is a rather cramped place, not really at all as i expected it to be. The inside reception/waiting area is hot, merely adequately decorated, and does not look as new, high tech and modern compared to all of the other places iv been to. The ceiling is low and the place seems a bit cluttered due to the amount of furniture in there. there are a lot of things in the one room: on the walls -achievements, press clippings and the like; in the middle, couches; on one side a 1x2m 'consultation room' -with a random guy sleeping in there (im not joking), and next to that a 1x1m make up room -to cover up scars and the like. An additional adjoining waiting room about 3x5m seems a bit less constrained. but altogther id say space is definitely a premium here. I must say i really thought Dr Jungs place would be better; as the website looks so good and so professional. but the look of the clinic and the building its in doesnt live up to the hype, not by a long shot. so far not so good. That look combined with the receptionists' lack of english -they were friendly and really trying but ineffectual in explaining; sorta makes me give a 5/10 for first impressions. fairly comfortable. BTW does anyone know how i can transfer photos and pictures to pc from a cellphone that doesnt have a memory stick??? i have lots of clips i took at the clinics i went to, including Dr Jungs but i dont have the tech-know-how to share it with you all. :s B4 i continue, i'd also like to deduct a point from my review of the place, for being so damn obscure and difficult to find. The clinic is located on top of a bakery/cafe and the sign is so small, plain, uninspiring and badly placed that you wouldnt be able to see it unless someone pointed it out to you. I feel the need to vent! To make matters worse the english instructions on the website are more than unhelpful. I spent nearly 45 mins walking up to the wrong end while it was getting dark, windy and bitterly, bitterly cold!! they make it seem like the clinic is on the OTHER END of the st when its clearly not. and they cant even put a simple sentence in the website that says: 'Clinic Above 'Crown Bakery' near 'Starbucks, 50m from exit 3'' It took me two trips to get to the place, because not only did it take too long to find it the first time, but when i rang up that time near 6pm they told me it closed at 6pm. However as these things go, the next day, when i came by, the sign said: 'M to F 9.30am to 7pm). Just Great OK meeting Dr Jung: I Walked into his office with pretty high expectations from what i'd seen on the website and b/c he seemed to be one of the options for most on this thread. Basically with Dr Jung, and the other consultations i had today. I expected a fluent english speaker, a detailed explanation of procedure options, costs, risks and recovery. The ideal surgeon for me would have realistic & clear b4 and after photos showing excellent results, he would give me a list of referalls (previous patients), show his education/training if required and explain how many procedures LIKE mine he'd done with what sort of success. And he would discuss it all, taking his time to do it, and polishing it off with a confident, relaxed smile that would put me utterly and completely at ease, with faith that he'd make my nose look better than any other surgeon. Well Altogther id say those expectations were partially fulfilled but not completely enough for my satisfaction. Dr Jung is a pretty standard looking middle aged asian man with glasses, he could've be the next korean man on any street in seoul, though unlike most koreans id come across he spoke very good english (8/10). He was polite, very friendly, AND spoke mandarin too! so far so good. i was at ease, as was my mum. The room itself was an office, nice, big, comfortable, less cluttered with a huge desk and a convenient LCD screen for patients to look at photos. Basically the next thing to go through, was telling the Doc was i wanted to get done. Same procedure as what happens at any other clinic. we discussed correcting the 5 things i wanted done (heighten and narrow drooping tip, narrow down alar, straighten septum, Narrow bridge, columella narrowing -god my nose sounds horrible!...lol but it really isnt- just needs a bit of refining work ). Anyway compared to other places i'd been to he gave a pretty decent description of the procedure: 1. alar base resection; 2. ostetomy, 3. septoplasty, 4. tip refining. somethiing along those lines. He used b4 and after pictures to demonstrate, and i felt the techniques he was describing were more refined or detailed than the previous surgeons i went to. All good. However what i didnt like was the fact that he didnt touch my nose or use feel to determine what procedure was best; i pretty much just said what i wanted and he said what he'd do without closer analysis. For me that was not thorough enough..the doc at the Male only clinic did it, why shouldnt he?..even though he's very experienced (11,000 cases i was told -which is the highest figure ive heard of), i think the sense of touch is needed to partially determine how to operate -such as what needs to be altered through an osteotomy..LOL. this was one of those rare cases when i wanted another guy to feel me up...err..that sounds a bit wrong... anyway it was only a after he'd finished describing a few procedures, and when i'd asked abt reducing my columella (middle bit of flesh/skin separating nostrils as seen from the bottome) that he strapped on some flashy magnifying glass device and felt my nose a bit. Altogether, he did a pretty good job of explaining, but didnt address some things which for me were a concern -the columella and the deviated septum. Those things, he declared that would all be taken care of..without much further explanation.. In fact i believe he said, 'all is available/possible/<insert synonym for possible> at our clinic' , and later when i looked at the website, those exact same words appeared in there. During the consultation we also went through the other important things too btw: operation time (1 -1.5hrs), recovery (2wks reduced swelling, 1mth ok to do moderate exercise), further visits and cost. just adequate detail. but as im a detailed person i felt not satisfied or comfortable enough (it was a FREE ~10 min consultation), and wanted to ask more questions. However to me by the end he started to seem rushed, becoming more 'a yes man' rather than the objective surgeon. i guess he had a surgery to do -which was validated later when i saw him put on one of those drs masks and rush out to do some kids nose. For sure if i was to do a surgery with him, i'd require anotehr longer consultation to see what exactly he is going to do, and to get to know him well enough to trust him. This sort of consultation of course happens b4 any cosmetic surgery. However that would require payment for the long consultation and more concerning if i were a foreigner with limited time/money, and came all the way 2 korea for consultation+surgery only to decide he is not the right surgeon, then that would be an incredible waste of time, effort and money. yes mostly money, b.c i think with some clinics you usually make a prepayment for the operating theatre booking fee, anaesthetician costs etc. That could be $USD 1000, not to mention accomodation, food, planeticket. BUT if you decided to go ahead with such a surgeon you're only partially happy with, then i guess those are just a few of the costs. You're probably wondering how much moolah he wanted to collect: it was USD $4000...all up, including operating/surgeon fees, anaesthetician, medication. Im not sure if i could have bargained it down (with some places you can!). Note with that fee, you also get a 'free' stay on the 6th Floor Recovery rooms of the clinic for one night after surgery, its got internet, tv, food i think. but from the photos i saw, seemed a bit uncomfortable. better than nothing i suppose! The final impression was that he was more after my money than helping me achieve my needs. Altogether, i'd need to go back to be sure, but at this point, i'd give his clinic+the consultation an initial 7/10. Through his website he's a good salesman no doubt. But there's definite room for improvement. Im probalbly contradicting myself by saying he did a good job before and now saying he didnt..hope ur not too confused..im not the best at describing LOL i havent even finished writing this post, and the forum wont let me submit anything more than 10000 characters. next post will continue on about this field trip.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jas3n Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 OTHER IMPORTANT THINGS: 1. the b4 and after photos. All were pretty much unblocked facial shots btw from side and front. I felt they were ok. more of a visible improvement between shots than i saw at other surgeries. However a few of his noses are a bit too straight, some seemed a bit unnatural like not broadening progressively towards the tip. Some were great, but there were one or two that i would question. There was one pic of a guy who did two with Dr Jung. The second job looked pretty bad -a classic Michael Jackson nose. I wonder if these are the good examples, then what about the large majority that aren't shown -are they any good?! at other small clinics i wonder about the same thing -as larger ones would have a lot more 'quality control', small ones could have a large no. of undocumented 'bad jobs'. 2. Dr Jungs qualifications, while great are nothing spectacular. He seems qualified to do medicine from Yonsei which is one of the top 3 here. hes got a doctorate and masters degree (i think 1 from In-ha which is i think is a smaller or less renowned uni), and hes operated on a ton of patients. i bet he does at least 4 or 5 a day. there were 7 other patients in the clinic if i remember correctly, and i think one or two celebs have come there. From all that it seems ok, but not great considering there are lots of celebs and lots of other docs with similar if not as specific rhino training as Dr Jung. What i dont like is the fact that he doesnt seem to be part of the important plastic surgeons bodies in Korea; in Australia a good cosmetic surgeon is first part of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (requires 7 yrs experience on top of the 6 yr med degree + a hard, hard exam) AND then the Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons (additional training of at least 3 more yrs i think + APPLY for membership (which they may not get)) AND THEN the Australian Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (which they have to apply for too). So most of them are older than 35 y.o. but very, very highly trained. Im almost convincing myself to do it in australia now LOL ush: IF KOREA is anything like aus (it might not be), then a good surgeon would be part of the KOrean Society of REconstructive Surgeons (The Korean Society of Plastic and Reconstrucive Surgeons) and maybe also part of the Korean Society Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. DR JUNG it seems is not part of these associations. If he were i think he'd put them on his website. on the other hand, Dr Jung seems to be experienced, up to date, and his results seem good in probly 90% of the cases i saw so that probly makes up for it somewhat. CONCLUSION: I won't get it done here. neither i, nor my mum liked the clinic, the dr was ok, seemed skillful, but he pales in comparison to the Dr at DreamClinic (www.dreamsurgery.co.kr)...i'll write about him nextish FARK this post is LONG...2230 words. it took me like 3 hrs to write hahah. hope you all enjoy it, like after reading every single juicy word. LOL......now, does anyone care to break it up into some readable chunks? nite all sleep time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keropijennifer Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 Jas3n: "However a few of his noses are a bit too straight, some seemed a bit unnatural like not broadening progressively towards the tip." That was exactly how i felt - that Dr Jung makes the noses too straight, with the tip too thin. Which is y I am considering Dr Park's (Oz clinic). so Jas3n, wat was wrong with Ozclinic? U mention on page 12 I think that u werent sure whether it was the right clinic for all of us, and that others were better. From the photos on the website, the noses seem pretty natural looking, not plastic at all, which I like. From what you've said, it seems like the websites are not all that accurate in terms of not actually giving you a good idea of what the clinics are really like and what you should really be expecting to see. I really did think Dr Jung's one would be grand and magnificent, considering he's done so many nose jobs. So I was real surprised to know that it wsnt how i expected it! I look forward to reading the next ones! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meowgirl Posted January 25, 2007 Share Posted January 25, 2007 Hey guys and girlies! Yes jas3n, you're right.. a good reputable surgeon SHOULD be under somekind plastic surgeons bodies. from all the little articles I have read about plastic surgery they ALL recommend to check out the surgeon creditials via a registered plastic surgery bodies list. I dont know why Dr Jung isnt on there, if he's that good then why not? That does make me feel uneasy... Dam and I thought we'd found the surgeon of our dreams! But yes, keropi, he does seem to have the best before and after images.. but can we trust it?? Mind you what else can we go on?? As jas3n said, they can easily display their 'best' creations and hide the botch jobs Having said that.. what surgery wouldnt hide their bad jobs and display the best??!! ARgh! What to dooooo?? Again jas3n thanks again for opening our eyes abit before we leap in. P.S Korean actresses/actors are quite open about their surgery right? Have you read or heard anything in korea that they told where they had it done? probs not - its their close guarded secret! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keropijennifer Posted January 25, 2007 Share Posted January 25, 2007 Oh man.....Now I'm really confused! ush: I think wat would be great is if some1 could read korean and check out those websites we've all been looking at for some time cause I see that they've got sooo much more info on the korean webpages, but hardly anything on the eng ones! ush: (I've been browsing thru them, even tho i cant read a single word!) I think on those webpages, some clients have written about whether the surgeons did a good job or not etc. That shd at least give us a slightly better and more realistic idea than wat we've got at the mo. I'm really hoping Jas3n comes back to us with good news on Ozclinic. Or at least recommendations of some other good clinics we cd go to. Otherwise, I think we're gona have to start learning korean! lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bonniec Posted January 25, 2007 Share Posted January 25, 2007 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msthugalot Posted January 25, 2007 Share Posted January 25, 2007 If I were in her shoes I'd rather go to Korea or Japan to get my nose done. But I don't want to hurt myself intendedly and splurge on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bonniec Posted January 26, 2007 Share Posted January 26, 2007 Another thing about credentialing... 1. Find out if the doctor has had any disciplinary actions against him at the current/past hospitals. 2. Active/past lawsuits. Also, ask... 3. What happens if you have a complication and need more acute care than their overnight hospital room? Will this doctor take care of you, or since you are a foreigner (who doesn't qualify for national health insurance), will you be shipped to a hospital where your doctor happens to not have privileges? AND, who will foot the bill for complications??? ASK ASK ASK There is a doctor in Beverly Hills (sorry no names) who has a very fancy website and does medical abortions. You pay cash up front and get things done in the fancy office. HOWEVER, if there are complications and you happen to not have health insurance, SORRY you go to LA County Hospital. And don't let the door hit you on the way out... I remember taking care of these patients from Dr.Fancypants' office... it's criminal that these doctors abandon their patients when the money tree runs dry. In the US, there is a slightly more protective mechanism against patient abandonment (Dr. Fancypants' knows them and gets around them), but in a foreign country who's going to watch out for you??? One patient was bleeding out so badly that Dr. Fancypants couldn't get any local hospital to even take her (because she was so unstable). So he put her in his fancy car and drove her to the County Hospital. Dropped her off and left. On arrival, she was bleeding out from below, from her gums, eyes, IV site. She is lucky to be alive. My two cents worth, based on experience... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keropijennifer Posted January 26, 2007 Share Posted January 26, 2007 But Bonniec, how can we find out if the doctor has had any disciplinary actions against him at the current/past hospitals? I mean, it's unlikely that the surgeon is going to tell u even if he did, and also, because we all live like miles away fm S. Korea, its not easy getting information like that. Have u any suggestions as to where we can find these details online? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jas3n Posted January 26, 2007 Share Posted January 26, 2007 hey bonniec..thanks 4 sharing ur thoughts with us, its helpful to have someone else in the medical profession share her wisdom on this whole plastic surgery business.. what you said in your first post about making sure the Dr has full credentials, good references and is respected locally and/or nationally puts me into a much more cautious state of mind. so as you said in ur 2nd post, finding out the following is important: 1. disciplinary actions @ current/past hospitals 2. active/past lawsuits 3. what they do in case of complications req. more acute care like keropi i'd like to know how do we find out this sort out information usually? are doctors bound by law to tell us such things? in general do you know much about the sth korean medical profession? like are doctors there as well trained as in the US/Aus/western europe. e.g. 6 yrs of med school, stringent regulations etc? sort of a big ask for you to be familiar with overseas practice..but who knows :s keropi you and quite a few others seem quite interested in Ozclinic, dont worry im going to go there next!! i've got a few days free next week to do visits, and that clinic is my priority! i'll go there with a much more prepared frame of mind than b4. meowgirl lol. you were wondering if i;d heard about where any actors/actresses and i guess celebrities had gone. unfortunately i havent. i read the english korean herald paper everyday but so far no news. i bet that sort of info is in korean somewhere, like on some forum like ours heheh. i think forums are likely to have less biased info than a clinic's website. any korean speakers out there know about where celebs get their faces/bodies done? i'd really love to know some korean right now. anyway so far my visits are convincing me to go with Dr Park whom i saw at Dreamclinic (::: µå¸²¼ºÇü¿Ü°ú - ¿©·¯ºÐ °ç¿¡ ´Ã ÇÔ²² ÇÏ°Ú½À´Ï´Ù:::) unless i find someone better, e.g. Dr Park @ OZclinic. i'll write about dreamclinic next. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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