Note that the title of this article is how to choose a “clinic” not just a hair transplant doctor. I say this because even the most miraculously gifted hair transplant doctor on the planet cannot provide a Hair Transplant on his own. He needs support. Support in the form of experienced staff and a physical plant big enough and equipped enough to allow him to provide the very best and modern hair transplant procedure possible.
Unfortunately, the hair transplant surgical field has become overpopulated with newbie doctors entering the field solely with an eye toward ADDING hair transplantation to their practices just as a means to increase their bottom line and not to specialize. Hair transplantation has never lent itself well to this model and is in fact the reason hair transplantation was referred to as a punch-line from the 1960s to the 1980’s.
It was only after the creation of the dedicated hair transplant clinic in the late 80s that hair transplantation ascended to the accepted industry it is today.
Simple Questions
When you search for a hair transplant doctor ask one simple question:
“Is hair transplantation all you do?” If the answer is no, walk away. Better yet, run away.
The next question to ask is: “Is your facility dedicated solely to hair transplantation?”. If it isn’t you should leave just as quickly. The best and most consistent results come from clinics that are dedicated solely to hair transplants. Remember, MOST hair transplant clinics are not dedicated to the specialty. It is a sideline !
The next question to ask is “Does your staff work full-time for you AS hair transplant technicians?” Be careful of wishy washy answers. You want a professional and dedicated team working on you. Do NOT just trust that your doctor is a “doctor” and will look out for you. There are plenty of clinics who employ their own in-house professional staff and you owe it to yourself to make sure that is who it going to be working on you. There is NO government regulation or requirement that the staff be trained and experienced, so you better make sure the the team working on you is the best you can find. Just ask the doctor about the particulars of the staff. Don’t be shy !
The next question to ask is “Can I see ONE HUNDRED examples of your work?” If you are shown a half dozen I recommend you leave quickly because this either means he’s done a lot of surgery and does not have enough good results to show or, more likely, he isn’t a full-time hair transplant practitioner and you are being misled. Doctors who can easily show you 100 before/after photos and videos of their results have likely refined the technique and the team to a sharp edge. You deserve that. Accept nothing less.
Team work
Hair transplantation is not a “turn key” procedure that can be performed by any individual. So do not look for nor rely on an individual. Look for an experienced team LED by an experienced doctor in a facility dedicated to hair transplantation. Also, make sure that facility has been in business for at least 5 years if not more so you know you are not entering a “fly by night” situation. There are many clinics in business for over 20 years like ours, you should avail yourself of them and accept nothing less. The problem with clinics in business less than five years is that they don’t know what they don’t know. You don’t want to be the patient they learn their lessons on.
It takes an “institute” to provide consistently good and top notch hair transplantation services. Not an individual doctor who decides to buy some equipment and throw it in a spare room of their unrelated medical practice. Dedication and specialization is obvious when you know what to look for. The office should be sizable, dedicated solely to hair transplantation, have a full time staff of at least 5 if not more. A good hair transplant requires a lot of people and a lot of room to perform properly. Shared offices do not lend itself well to this.
Don’t be shy
Do not be shy About asking these questions to your doctor. Or, keeping these questions in mind as you research clinics on the internet. Most of the information is right there if you know what to look for. It’s your head and it’s your money. You deserve the best available for your hair transplant and there are plenty of clinics out there that make the grade. Unfortunately, there are even more who don’t !
