Emotional Health Responsibility

EMOTIONAL HEALTH RESPONSIBILITY

Tiffany Preer

Emotional Health ResponsibilityPlastic surgery is supposed to enhance a person’s physical features and provide the person with some sense of physical comfort. An article in the New York Times (www.nytimes.com/2006/09/26/health/26impl.html) explained the results of a Canadian study on breast implants and suicide which I found to be very interesting but quite disturbing at the same time. It states that women who opt for breast implants have a higher rate of suicide due to feelings that stem from low self-esteem. Honestly, I cannot see a direct correlation between breast implants and suicide but I do see a connection between suicide and low self-esteem. If the woman has low self-esteem when she decides to have the implants then there might be an increased risk of suicide but all women who get breast implants are not suicidal.

Women choose breast implants to physically “enhance” themselves which should result in a better feeling about one’s physical appearance and perhaps, increase a person’s self-esteem. If the surgery did not go as expected, I can see how the implants could affect her self-esteem. It is a good idea to have a psychological evaluation before plastic surgery is considered to make sure that the patient is mentally and emotional capable of safely undergoing the surgery. However, prospective patients that have been admitted to psychiatric facilities or those who have psychiatric disorders should not be deemed as poor candidates for surgery. In this case, the plastic surgeon should consult with the psychiatrist or treating physician. Should a surgeon share some of the responsibility for the patient that commits suicide after receiving breast implants? A surgeon that has addressed all of the mental and emotional complications of the procedure and has cleared the patient for surgery, does not have any responsibility to the suicide. On the other hand, a surgeon that hastily clears a patient without investigating their mental and emotional status, should share some of the responsibility toward the suicide. In my opinion, this case is like that of a physician who places a patient of a drug that knowingly affects their liver and neglects to monitor the affects on the liver which may result in serious damage to the liver and a decreased liver function. Isn’t the physician responsible then? Shouldn’t the physician have monitored the affect that the drug had on the liver on a regular basis to avoid such a result? In the latter case, the physician is definitely responsible and will probably find themselves in a malpractice suit. In the case of the plastic surgeon, I am not sure what consequences they should face but I don’t think that their medical license should be suspended or anything like that, maybe a fine would be good.