“Certified” or “Board Certified” but what are they certified in?

In Canada, all Surgeons must be Certified to practice Surgery within their area of specialty. It is the law. In Ontario, the College of Physicians and Surgeons has mandated that only Surgeons certified in a surgical specialty with five years of training may call themselves Surgeons. This has gone a long way in helping protect the public. All Surgeons will have the letters FRCSC at the end of their names and stands for Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of Canada. It does not mean they are certified in Plastic Surgery – all Surgeons are entitled to this
 designation.

However, Surgeons can be certified in General Surgery, Orthopaedic Surgery, Vascular Surgery, Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, Ophthalmic Surgery (eye) or Plastic Surgery for example.

Thus, do NOT assume that someone is a Plastic Surgeon because they proclaim they are “board certified”. Ask what they are board certified in and make sure they are certified in Canada. Also be cautious of “Academies”. Academies are not board certification agencies affiliated either with the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (www.royalcollege.ca) or the American Board of Medical Specialties (www.abms.org) in the United States. To be a member of an academy often requires the payment of a fee only and does NOT imply any board certification by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada or the American Board of Medical Specialties in Plastic Surgery.

Our Surgeons are certified by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada in Plastic Surgery, the only recognized certification for Plastic Surgery in Canada.

As well, the American Board of Plastic Surgery is the only recognized certification process for Plastic Surgeons in the United States.