Planning Your Visit from Out of Town

Contact the practice early enough to allow for consultation, any requested medical clearance and travel planning. Confirm availability, your arrival date and the expected local stay with the team before committing to flights or accommodation.

For your visit to our Manhattan practice, we recommend bringing:

Essential Items:

• Photo ID and insurance card (if applicable)
• List of current medications and supplements
• Medical records from any relevant previous surgeries or treatments
• Photos of your desired results or aesthetic goals

For Your Comfort:

• Comfortable, loose-fitting clothing for your surgery day
• Button-front tops (especially helpful for breast procedures)
• Slip-on shoes or sneakers
• A small bag for personal items

Post-Surgery Essentials:

• Any prescribed compression garments (we'll provide specific guidance)
• Someone to accompany you home after surgery
• Comfortable accommodation arrangements for your recovery period
• Any medications you may need

We'll send you a detailed pre-operative checklist after your consultation to ensure you're fully prepared.

Dr. Smith will clear you for travel based on your procedure and recovery progress. A suggested local stay is a planning estimate, not permission to fly on a particular day.

Before booking your return trip, confirm your follow-up appointments and discuss the length of your journey, help with luggage and any assistance you may need. Follow your individual instructions about movement, garments and other travel precautions.

Desk work, exercise, social activities and air travel are separate recovery milestones. Feeling ready for one does not establish readiness for the others.

Your safety matters to us after you return home. Here’s how we support you:

Immediate Support:

• Urgent concerns: Dr. Smith and our team can be reached about urgent concerns after you travel home
• Direct communication: You'll have phone numbers and emails for immediate contact
• Telemedicine follow-ups: Virtual check-ins to monitor your healing progress

Coordination with Local Care:

• We can coordinate with your local physician if follow-up care is needed
• Detailed post-operative notes provided to your referring doctor
• A plan for handling problems remotely where that is possible, and for getting you seen in person when it is not

When to contact us immediately:

• Excessive swelling, bleeding, or drainage
• Signs of infection (fever, increased pain, redness)
• Any unexpected symptoms or concerns
• Questions about your recovery timeline

Long-term follow-up:

• Scheduled virtual appointments at key recovery milestones
• Access to our patient portal for sharing photos and updates
• You are welcome to return to Manhattan for in-person follow-up visits

Dr. Smith has extensive experience caring for out-of-town patients, and the practice has set routines for following your recovery once you travel home. Distance does add limits, and he will go through those with you before you book.

Yes, absolutely. We can work with your local physicians where they are willing to be involved in your care.

How coordination works:

• Pre-surgery: We can communicate with your local doctor about medical clearance and any health considerations
• Post-surgery: Detailed operative notes and recovery instructions shared with your physician
• Follow-up care: Your local doctor can monitor healing and remove sutures if needed
• Emergency situations: Established protocols for local medical support if complications arise

What we need from you:

• Contact information for your local physician
• Permission to share your medical records
• Their willingness to provide follow-up care

Dr. Smith's approach: We provide comprehensive post-operative instructions for both you and any medical professionals involved in your care. Many out-of-town patients successfully manage their recovery with support from their local healthcare team, while we remain available for guidance and virtual check-ins.

Note: For routine post-operative appointments like suture removal or wound checks, having a local physician familiar with your case can be invaluable.

Return to desk work, exercise and travel are separate recovery milestones. Timelines depend on the procedure and your individual plan; the examples below are not clearance for unrestricted activity.

Use the breast augmentation recovery guide, Preservé recovery guidance, mommy makeover recovery guide or tummy tuck page for the relevant procedure. Your individual instructions take precedence.

Office work/Sedentary activities:

• Nonsurgical treatments: downtime depends on the treatment; ask for treatment-specific instructions.
• Breast augmentation alone: Dr. Smith’s patients generally plan about two days before desk work, or the next day after Preservé, depending on their recovery and job demands.
• Combined or more extensive surgery: plan time off around the complete operation, including any tummy tuck or breast lift. A breast-only timeline does not apply to a combined mommy makeover.

Physical activities/Exercise:

• Light walking: Encouraged same day for most procedures
• Moderate exercise: requires procedure-specific instructions and clearance; there is no single two-week rule for every operation.
• Full workout routine: resume gradually according to your surgical plan and Dr. Smith’s clearance, rather than a universal four-week deadline.
• High-impact activities: timing depends on the operation, healing and the demands of the activity; obtain individual clearance.

Procedure-specific guidelines:

• Liposuction: Many patients plan about two days before desk work after liposuction alone. Treatment extent and combined procedures may change the plan; exercise requires separate guidance.
• Tummy tuck: Desk work and abdominal exercise have different milestones. Follow your tummy tuck recovery plan and clearance for lifting and exercise; do not use a breast-only timeline.
• Breast procedures: For augmentation alone, desk work is generally planned after about two days. In Dr. Smith’s practice, upper-body training generally begins gradually at two weeks after Preservé versus four weeks after conventional over-the-muscle augmentation, for patients recovering as expected. A lift or other combined procedure changes the plan.
• Facial procedures: Social downtime, desk work and exercise are different milestones. Obtain instructions for your specific facial procedure before booking your return trip or resuming activity.

Factors affecting your timeline:

• Your specific procedure and extent of surgery
• Your overall health and healing capacity
• Nature of your work (physical vs. sedentary)
• Your commitment to following post-operative instructions

During your consultation, Dr. Smith will provide a personalized recovery timeline based on your specific procedure and lifestyle needs. Many of our busy Manhattan professionals plan their surgeries around work schedules, and we'll help you create a realistic recovery plan.