Plastic Surgery Articles

When I graduated from my residency training, there were two major things I was happiest about. First and foremost was not having to be on call in the hospital every third day anymore. The second was the fact that I had only two exams left to take for the rest of my life. Those two exams were for my board certification.
The ultimate examination that any surgeon ever has to take is their board certification exams. Every specialty is slightly different but in plastic surgery there are two exams we have to take to become board certified.
The first exam is a written exam that only tests knowledge. The second part is an oral exam. The oral exams consist of sitting in front of a panel of expert plastic surgeons whose purpose is to test our judgment in surgery. Passing these two exams is an honor and rite of passage. Becoming board certified means that you have achieved everything you can in plastic surgery and that you have proven your ability as a surgeon to your professors and colleagues.

Becoming board certified was the proudest moment of my life because it represented the culmination of 20 years of education and training. It was by far the most stressful and challenging exam I had ever taken. It was a profound moment in my career because I knew that I had faced the best plastic surgeons in the world and I had been given their stamp of approval as a surgeon.

Being a plastic surgeon is an honor and privilege. We possess the ability to operate on the human body in order to repair it or improve it. It is an incredible skill that we dedicate our lives to learn. Becoming board certified means that we have earned that privilege and have the talent to take excellent care of our patient’s lives.

To spend all of these years to become a plastic surgeon and NOT become board certified is inconceivable to me. It displays either a lack of ability or a lack of dedication to your craft. We are privileged to be able to have the skills to help people lives. We are obligated to strive for excellence in our careers in order to earn that privilege. Board certification is an honor which I proudly hold. It is an honor which we must have because we owe it to the patients whose lives we touch.

Contact Beverly Hills, Los Angeles Plastic Surgeon – Dr. John Diaz Today to setup a consultation.

Written by: John Diaz M.D.