#YoMeQuedoEnCasa: Dr Richard M Fakin, Director of Ocean Clinic Madrid & Zurich

Ocean Clinic is closed during Spain's state of alarm but our team is still keeping busy. The #YoMeQuedoEnCasa blog series looks at what they're up to.

What is your role at Ocean Clinic?

I'm a plastic surgeon and Director of Ocean Clinic in Zurich, Switzerland, and in Madrid, Spain. Both the clinics are closed right now. We cannot operate any elective surgery, only emergency surgery.

What are you doing with your time while Ocean Clinic is closed?

On a personal note, I’m spending a lot of time with my family and my kids. It's something that we're not used to so there’s a lot of bonding. I think in every crisis, there are also positive things too.

On a professional note, I am writing original articles for scientific publications. It’s something I used to do a lot in the past but haven’t had time to do recently. Now that I have time I’m writing about my experience and my surgical techniques. One of the articles is about gender reassignment surgery and another is about breast augmentation.

How are you staying in touch with the industry and your peers during this time?

We have a lot of Zoom meetings and lots of WhatsApp groups, so there is a lot of interesting and interactive discussions. We call each other much more than we used to. It's nice to see and hear my colleagues. I’ve also been reading more scientific literature and staying up to date with all the data that has been published. 

How are you staying motivated?

I think all of us agree that this crisis will eventually go away. It will pass over and life will come back and this is the light at the end of the tunnel. I am still calling my patients by Zoom or they call me. It's a different media but it's a huge motivation to see them.

We’ve also done some first consultations online with people who are interested in reconstructive or plastic surgery. It does have its limitations - it's always different to see someone on the computer and not talk in person but I think the most important things can be discussed. And actually, I think it's worked out much better than I thought it would at the beginning. 

Do you think the coronavirus crisis will have any long term impact on your role or field of specialism?

I think there will be things that will change after the crisis in all parameters of our lives and also in our industry. I think we'll be seeing far fewer patients simply due to the fact that a lot of people are losing a lot of money and aesthetic surgery is not essential. It's a luxury. 

In the longterm, I think there will be a shift back to high-quality aesthetic providers. I think people are being much more sensible in regards to health in general now. They're looking more for facts, for experience, for high quality and experienced surgeons. In my opinion, before the crisis, there was some banalising of aesthetic surgery. There was a lot of advertising, too much on social media and on television and in magazines. I think influencers on Instagram will lose a lot of influence and they'll be a shift back to professionalism, to transparency and quality. 

What are you looking forward to when you return to work?

I'm looking forward to what I enjoy the most, which means to operate and be in the surgery room. I look forward to seeing my patients again in my clinic; to talk to people, to see people and have this human contact. It's something I miss very much.