Your Lasik eye surgeon - don’t forget the credentials check

The first step is simple - talk to the people you are considering. Use the telephone or make a personal visit, but talk.

And after the conversation, check out how you feel. Did the surgeon inspire confidence? Did you feel that if there are any problems your surgeon will be able to handle or repair them?

Did you feel any sense of empathy? It may be old-fashioned word, but was the surgeon personable? Did the conversation feel honest? Did you get straight talk or sales talk?

Trust your feelings; intuition can be surprisingly accurate - particularly if you are a woman.  If you’re not, and you have a female partner, it could be worth taking her along!

When you have the conversation, is it a genuine discussion? Does your surgeon describe the procedure and tell you what you are going to go through?   Did your surgeon take an honest approach to the problems that might occur?

While you don’t need information overload, you do need to feel that you are getting all the information you need to consider before making your decision.

Be wary of any attempt to minimise the procedure itself, or to gloss over the potential problems both during and after surgery.

Talk to past patients

Still on the talk theme, see if you can locate any past patients of the lasik eye surgeon you are considering. What do they say?

Did anything go wrong? If it did, was the problem immediately fixed - or at the very least, was the solution satisfactory?

Word of mouth is exceedingly powerful, and you will soon be able to judge how your surgeon’s is rated by previous patients.

If the clinic and/or surgeon you are considering has a website, take a look at it.  Does it also inspire confidence? See if you can find any references to your surgeon on the Internet or in forums. You might find references through online journals or other reference sites.

Then wash, rinse, and repeat.

Repeat the procedure with at least one other surgeon - more is better if they are available and you have the time.  Choosing the first lasik eye surgeon you talk to is not a good idea, even if Number 1 ends up your final choice anyway.

Time spend checking is time well spent. You may save money, you may save time, and most important, you may save problems.   So take the trouble to check the credentials of anyone you are considering trusting as your lasik eye surgeon.