Surprisingly, plastic surgery in Germany is a taboo. Physicians strive to achieve a natural, un-operated look for their patients.

Name: Dr. Simone Hellmann
Location: Cologne, Germany
Clinic: The H-Practice
Website: h-praxis.de

Can you tell us what is it like practicing cosmetic surgery in Germany?

In Germany, cosmetic surgery is not highly accepted – unlike in Brazil for example. Most patients –at least in my practice - are female and they are not very open to talk about that topic with their friends and family. They mainly gather their information on the internet and we are all aware that not every written word is true and that one should hardly trust all of those reports, forums or blogs. Therefore, you have to be very discreet as a doctor and you really have to thoroughly inform and educate your potential patients. Only if you are consistently showing excellent results and offer highly qualified services you are able to build up a pool of loyal patients who will refer you to their best friends. At this level you can create a solid patient base, but it will take you quite a while.

Cosmetic surgery patients in Germany are very much afraid of what they see in magazines and on tv – celebrities with unnatural looking faces or breasts. So it is my assignment to convince those patients that these looks are avoidable and once they will trust you and your skills, German people can be very decisive for ‘getting it all done’.