KEY POINTS:
A young woman has told of her heartache at spending thousands of dollars on a nosejob in Thailand - only to be told by a Kiwi plastic surgeon that in his opinion the operation was a "scam".
The 24-year-old, who declined to be named, said she wanted her nose made smaller and a bump removed but in her opinion there was no difference after her operation.
"I went over there, I paid the money, I made it very clear what I wanted and the surgeon didn't speak English very well.
"He performed very unsatisfactory surgery. My nose looked pretty much the same ... there's very little done."
She said she "immediately knew that something was wrong" after the procedure, when she woke up vomiting and in pain.
"I kept asking the nurses for medicine but none of them knew what I was saying.
"I asked repeatedly, I made it very clear that I was sick, I threw up about seven times. They kept saying 'no understand, no understand'."
The woman claims the agency that arranged the operation - Beautiful Escapes - has ignored her complaints and she is taking it to the disputes tribunal. But agency director Jane Horgan said the woman got the operation she asked for.
"She hasn't had a botch-up. With plastic surgery, especially nose surgery, obviously expectations can be different, but in this particular case what she asked for is just what she got."
Horgan said Beautiful Escapes sent about one patient a month to Thailand for surgery and she advised all her clients to consult a plastic surgeon in New Zealand before booking surgery overseas.
No other clients had reported problems and she was "looking forward" to the tribunal because there was a "night and day" difference in her client's nose.
The woman said she spent $4000 for the surgery and another $3500 on extras such as accommodation. She said the procedure would have cost $10,000 in New Zealand.
Auckland plastic surgeon Dr Glenn Bartlett, who examined her nose on her return, said he believed the Thai surgeon was "out of his depth" and, in his opinion, "she's just had a scam operation, basically".
Bartlett performs private operations but also works in the public sector at Middlemore Hospital.
He said four patients had arrived at the hospital in the past three months after botched operations overseas and warned Kiwis to be wary of "cosmetic tourism".
Three were admitted with infections that could place them at risk of a flesh-eating bug or septicaemia and the fourth needed reassurance about their surgery.
Bartlett said based on some of the cases he had some, it seemed that some overseas surgeons had inadequate training and performed operations that were unsuitable for the patient.
He said the public hospital system had to "mop up" after problems overseas and "that's not fair on everyone else who's paying their taxes.
"They have to come to hospital because they're sick and we cannot deny them treatment but is that appropriate?"
He said patients could be left in the lurch if anything went wrong because overseas doctors didn't have the same follow-up procedures as qualified surgeons in New Zealand.
"I am worried that someone will be sent back with serious infection and either die in transit or arrive at hospital moribund - it's possible. Here we are stuck at the bottom of the cliff, waiting."
The woman whose Thai nosejob was assessed by Bartlett said it would cost $10,000 to have the work redone in New Zealand. She was saving for a second operation and would not recommend her experience to others.
"It's not worth it, it's a lot safer to have the cosmetic surgery done in New Zealand."
An ACC spokeswoman said complaints about overseas operations would be considered on a case-by-case basis. She added that for a payout, the doctor who performed the surgery would need qualifications comparable to a registered surgeon in New Zealand.
The Medical Council of New Zealand said Hong Kong was the only Asian country with a health system considered comparable to here.
