The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) issued a press
release announcing that Dr. Phillip Haeck, MD, with Plastic Surgery
Associates of Seattle, was announced as the new president of the group
at the Society's annual scientific meeting last week. Inducted on
Monday, October 4, Dr. Haeck took the reigns of the world's largest
plastic surgery association for a year-long term. As president of the
world's primary authority on cosmetic and reconstructive plastic
surgery, Dr. Haeck will deal with issues involving patient safety and
also continuing member and public education.
Dr. Haeck remarked, ?With more physicians trying to enter the cosmetic
surgery market and more patients looking for ?discounted? procedures,
public education on who is best qualified to perform plastic surgery is
important now more than ever. Over the next year, ASPS will continue its
ongoing effort to inform the public about the benefits of plastic
surgery, as well as the overwhelming advantages in seeking a
board-certified plastic surgeon.?
Dr. Haeck was currently serving as a partner at PSAS and is a member of
the editorial board for the Society's medical journal, Plastic and
Reconstructive Surgery (PRS), and has been a Member Surgeon of the
Society since 1990 when he received his American Board of Plastic
Surgery certification. He has held board positions such as ASPS/PSEF
Treasurer and Historian, served as chair of several ASPS committees
including Patient Safety and Health Policy and Public Education and
Government Affairs, and served as ASPS/PSEF Vice President of Finance
and Treasurer.
A 24 years seasoned surgeon, Dr. Haeck received his medical degree from
Michigan State University and started his surgical training in Seattle
at Swedish Hospital. Following that, Dr. Haeck spent three years of
plastic surgery training at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.
Having completed his training, he opened his Seattle-based practice.
The ASPS describes Dr. Haeck's scholarly interests as "editorial in
nature" and his recently authored contributions to PRS include a piece
entitled "Evidence Based Patient Safety Advisory for Outpatient
Surgery." He was also the editor of Plastic Surgery News for six years,
and has spent the past eight years writing the "On Legal Grounds" column
for that publication.
As a further part of his personal outreach, Dr. Haeck has traveled
across three continents with Healing the Children, providing free
surgical care to children with cleft palates and burns. His wife is also
a healthcare professional, working as an oncology nurse.
The American Society of Plastic Surgeons is the largest group of
board-certified plastic surgeons in the world. With over 7,000 physician
members, ASPS is world-renowned as the leading authority and source of
information about cosmetic and reconstructive plastic surgery. Over 94
percent of all board-certified plastic surgeons in the U.S. are part of
ASPS.