Medical Credentials- What do all these terms and letters mean?
Fellowship Training
This means that your surgeon has completed additional training after becoming a fully trained plastic surgeon. The area of this added expertise will depend on the focus of the fellowship training program. Dr. Soto completed a fellowship in Advanced Techniques for Breast Enhancement and Reconstruction.
"Board Certified by The American Board of Plastic Surgery"
This means that your surgeon has not only completed an accredited residency program, but that this training program was specifically in plastic surgery. It also means that your surgeon has passed a comprehensive review of his education, training, skills, judgement, and practice. The following is from The American Board of Plastic Surgery Website:
The mission of The American Board of Plastic Surgery, Inc.® is to promote safe, ethical, efficacious plastic surgery to the public by maintaining high standards for the education, examination, certification and recertification of plastic surgeons as specialists and subspecialists.
"FACS"
The American College of Surgeons is a scientific and educational association of surgeons that was founded in 1913 to improve the quality of care for the surgical patient by setting high standards for surgical education and practice.
Members of the American College of Surgeons are referred to as "Fellows." The letters FACS (Fellow, American College of Surgeons) after a surgeon's name mean that the surgeon's education and training, professional qualifications, surgical competence, and ethical conduct have passed a rigorous evaluation, and have been found to be consistent with the high standards established and demanded by the College.
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