Patients Wanting Correction of Aesthetic Work Done Elsewhere

She walks in wearing a mask and does not take it off until the door is closed. Then she says, very quietly, "I had lip filler at a salon-clinic three months ago. Look at it. Can you fix this?" Her voice is shaking. She is angry with the other clinic, angry with herself, and not sure she can trust you either. Halfway through her story, she asks, "You won't do the same thing to me, na?"

Correction consultations are some of the hardest in aesthetic practice. The patient is upset, wary and often embarrassed. She may be hoping you will agree the other provider was terrible. And you may be tempted to. Please don't. How you handle this consultation decides whether she trusts you, whether you can actually help her, and whether you protect yourself in the process.

How should you run a correction consultation?

Slow down. This patient needs more time than a normal consultation, not less.

1. Let her tell the whole story first. Do not interrupt to examine. She needs to be heard before anything else. From Good Doctors Go Broke: a patient who had a bad experience before needs to be listened to fully, and then shown exactly how your process is different at the point where things went wrong last time.
2. Ask specific questions. What was done, when, where, by whom, and which product if she knows? Has she been back to the original provider? Has anything been done since?
3. Ask what bothers her most and what she hopes for. "What would you like to change?" and "What would feel like a good outcome to you?"
4. Examine carefully and narrate in neutral words. Describe what you see, not who caused it.
5. Explain what may be possible, and what may not. Honestly.
6. End with a definite next step. A plan, a test or investigation if the doctor feels it is needed, a review slot, or a clear "this isn't right for me to treat".

How do you avoid criticising the other provider?

This is harder than it sounds when the patient is clearly unhappy and wants you to agree.

Why does it matter? Because you do not know the whole story. You did not see the original face, the conversation, the product or what the patient was told. Criticising another clinician can also come back to you, professionally and legally. And it does not help the patient. She needs a plan, not a judgement.

Useful lines:

• Instead of "Who did this to you?" say "Let's look at where things are now."
• Instead of "This was done badly" say "Here's what I'm seeing today."
• Instead of "They used the wrong product" say "It would help to know which product was used, if you can find out."
• If she asks "Was it their fault?" say "I can't judge what happened then. I can tell you what I see now, and what we might do."

If she wants to complain about the other provider, that is her right. You can explain how she might request her records. But do not become a witness to a story you did not see.

How should you document a correction case?

More carefully than any other case. Record:

• Her full account in her own words, with dates.
• Everything she knows about the previous treatment: provider, date, product, amount, and any records she has.
• Your examination findings, in neutral clinical language.
• Clinical photographs, taken on a clinic device with your standard set-up, stored strictly as private medical records. Never used for promotion, even after a good outcome.
• What you explained about possible outcomes and limits.
• Her consent for any treatment, specific to the correction, signed before you start.
• What you decided and why, including if you declined.

If this case ever turns into a dispute involving the other provider, your notes from the first visit matter.

How should you price correction work?

Correction is usually more complex than first-time treatment. It needs more assessment time, more caution and sometimes more visits. Price it as its own assessed plan, not as your standard treatment fee.

Do not discount correction work because "she has already suffered". Do not inflate it because she is desperate. Quote the plan fairly, the same way you would for any patient with that complexity, and explain what it includes.

When should you decline the case?

Saying no is sometimes the most professional thing you can do. Decline, kindly and clearly, when:

• The case is outside your training or experience. Refer her to a doctor you trust who handles that kind of correction.
• Her expectations are unrealistic, and after a careful explanation she still expects a result you cannot honestly offer.
• She wants you mainly as a witness against the other provider, rather than as her doctor.
• Important information is missing, and treating without it would not be safe in your judgement.
• She is too distressed to make a calm decision today. Book a follow-up instead.

When you decline, write down why, tell her honestly, give her a copy of your assessment, and suggest a next step. Patients remember the doctor who was honest with them at a bad moment.

What does handling this well do for your clinic?

Correction patients who are treated with care often become your most loyal patients. They know what bad care feels like, so they notice good care. They may come back for years.

But never use their story or their face to promote your clinic. Not before-and-afters, not "we fixed what another clinic ruined" posts, not anonymised stories with recognisable details. Under the NMC guidelines on ethical advertising dated 6 October 2026, that is firmly out. Read them yourself.

Handling hard consultations calmly is part of the consultation training in our conversion systems work. If your clinic sees many complex aesthetic cases, our plastic and cosmetic surgery and aesthetics pages cover how those practices grow.

The short version

• Give correction patients more time. Let them tell the whole story before you examine.
• Describe what you see now. Never criticise the other provider or guess at what happened.
• Document everything carefully, with private clinical photographs and specific consent.
• Price correction as its own assessed plan. Do not discount it or inflate it.
• Decline when the case is outside your skill, expectations are unrealistic or you are wanted as a witness.