How COVID-19 Is Changing Plastic Surgery

There’s been changes to practically everything in our everyday lives, including industries such as plastic surgery. With practices having to close with strict lockdown measures and drive-thru medispa procedures, there are plenty of changes happening around us within the industry. Whether it’s positive or negative change, COVID-19 and plastic surgery is looking different to what we normally associate with it. Here are some common changes that have occurred recently.

Demand has lowered

Ever since the pandemic broke out back earlier in the year, we’ve seen a change in demand for plastic surgery procedures. Naturally, we normally expect the demand in plastic surgery procedures to rocket around April and June as patients prepare for the Summer season, but with the Summer season being cancelled, demand has plummeted.

There have been two reasons for this; the first reason is that plastic surgery practices had to close as they were considered non-essential business. On top of that, financially people will be less likely to spend with uncertainty about what could happen in the future. 

Virtual consultations are mainstream

Considering patients are no longer able to visit their cosmetic surgery Manchester practices for their consultations, virtual consults have perhaps been the biggest trend of 2020 for the plastic surgery industry.

This has been convenient in most cases for plastic surgeons, as they’ve found that they’re having far less no-shows with everyone being at home and conversations are far more productive online. Saying this, however, it’s most likely that patients won’t be fully comfortable with going through a plastic surgery procedure until they’re able to visit in person.

Alterations to office visits

In recent months, we have seen some businesses begin to open as lockdown measures have eased. However, the expected scheduled visit to the practice will be a lot different compared to what you might have expected normally.

Practices have had to put in place measures to reduce the risk of Coronavirus spreading such as no longer allowing more than one person to visit the practice, conducting temperature checks and having the enforcement of hand sanitizers and asking patients to wear a mask. 

Med spa treatments becoming a focus

Plastic surgery treatments tend to require a large amount of downtime and recovery. This can be overwhelming for patients to think about when they have children at home or work from home priorities. Fortunately, medspa non-invasive treatments don’t come with the same worry. As a result, the interest in injectable and non-surgical treatments have been relatively steady with demand. In some cases, some practices are focusing on pushing these treatments for patients. 

Final thoughts

Ultimately, the industry of plastic surgery has changed dramatically in recent months and it’s likely to remain like this for the long haul until it’s safe to do so.  It’s fair to say though, that many of these changes have been direct benefits and innovations that have been implemented for benefits in the future. Perhaps it could be considered that 2020 is the year when many patients take the plunge and opt for procedures that could benefit them in the long term.