The priorities would be:
- patient safety
- protection of our health care staff and employees
- obtaining adequate supply of personal protective equipment
- minimizing any impact of surgery on the hospital system or our surrounding community.
In early June, we were able to begin providing elective surgery to our patients. With many new policies in place, Dr. Brown felt that it was necessary to study how effective these were in maximizing safety for the patients. He spearheaded a study involving six free-standing surgical facilities providing aesthetic surgery in Ontario.
We are excited to announce that the study was published this week in the Aesthetic Surgery Journal.
We looked at 368 patients undergoing aesthetic surgery and followed them for a minimum of 30 days. The highlights of the study included the following:
- All patients screened before surgery for COVID-19 were negative
- No patients developed COVID-19 or symptoms of COVID-19 within 30 days following surgery
- No health care workers or employees developed COVID-19 or symptoms of COVID-19 during the study period
- Overall, patients did very well. There was a low number of minor complications that was consistent with outcomes prior to the pandemic
- There was minimal impact on the hospital system and other health care resources
The healthcare landscape is constantly changing. No one would have predicted the events of the past year. Our commitment to you is that we will always face these challenges thoughtfully and adapt as necessary to insure that we provide you with the highest level of safety and care.
We wish you a wonderful year ahead in 2021!
Dr. Mitchell Brown and The Team at Toronto Plastic Surgery
