Plastic surgeons must have skills in hand-eye coordination, spatial awareness, organization, communication, and teamwork. This career also requires a bachelor's degree in a premedical major and completion of a four-year M.D. and a surgical residency. Those who choose this career path perform reconstructive plastic surgery in order to restore form and function following illness or trauma and/or perform cosmetic surgery for simple alteration of appearance.

Plastic Surgeon Responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real plastic surgeon resumes representing typical tasks they are likely to perform in their roles.

  • Manage insurance authorization and hospital bookings for surgery.
  • Develop x-rays, foot and ankle therapies, including hydrotherapy, ultrasound and hot wax.
  • Assist with surgery scheduling, casting/removing, & casting for orthotics.
  • Check patient in/out, collect co-payments/deductibles that apply for orthotics, enter charges/post payments.
  • Perform administrative tasks regarding origination paperwork for patients, preoperative paperwork, medical clearance, financing and payment.
  • Complete knowledge of military and DOD protocols pertaining to network and computer systems.
  • Supervise and establish duty assignment procedures including the update and implementation of the DoD policies.
  • Manage insurance authorization and hospital bookings for surgery.

Plastic Surgeon Skills and Personality Traits

We calculated that 55% of Plastic Surgeons are proficient in Patients, Patient Care, and Hand Surgery. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Dexterity, and Leadership skills.

We break down the percentage of Plastic Surgeons that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Patients, 55%

    Provide exceptional customer service to patients.

  • Patient Care, 9%

    Assisted Dr. Busch, as well as the team in ensuring optimal patient care.

  • Hand Surgery, 6%

    Specialized in cosmetic and reconstructive surgery, microsurgery and hand surgery.

  • Private Practice, 6%

    Front Desk Coordinator * Assisted Dr. with starting private practice.

  • Medical Procedures, 5%

    Prepare rooms for medical procedures.

  • Surgical Procedures, 4%

    Scheduled and coordinated surgical procedures with doctor, anesthesia group and nursing staff for both in-house and hospital-based surgeries.

"patients," "patient care," and "hand surgery" aren't the only skills we found plastic surgeons list on their resumes. In fact, there's a whole list of plastic surgeon responsibilities that we found, including:

  • The most important skills for a plastic surgeon to have in this position are communication skills. In this excerpt that we gathered from a plastic surgeon resume, you'll understand why: "physicians and surgeons need to be excellent communicators" According to resumes we found, communication skills can be used by a plastic surgeon in order to "assisted in the or, as well as office and phone communications with our patients. "
  • While it may not be the most important skill, we found that many plastic surgeon duties rely on dexterity. This example from a plastic surgeon explains why: "physicians and surgeons may work with very precise and sometimes sharp tools, and mistakes can have serious consequences." This resume example is just one of many ways plastic surgeons are able to utilize dexterity: "gained invaluable knowledge of the medical industry and patient care; developed diagnostic and problem-solving skills through hands-on clinical experience. "
  • Plastic surgeons are also known for leadership skills, which can be critical when it comes to performing their duties. An example of why this skill is important is shown by this snippet that we found in a plastic surgeon resume: "physicians who work in their own practice must manage a staff of other professionals." We also found this resume example that details how this skill is put to the test: "delivered advice to surgeon general and executive leadership on public health policies, project implementation, and milestone establishment. "
  • A plastic surgeon responsibilities sometimes require "physical stamina." The responsibilities that rely on this skills are shown by this resume excerpt: "physicians and surgeons should be comfortable lifting or turning disabled patients, or performing other physical tasks" This resume example shows how this skill is used by plastic surgeons: "performed physical examinations and pre-op evaluations. "
  • Another common skill for a plastic surgeon to be able to utilize is "problem-solving skills." Physicians and surgeons need to evaluate patients’ symptoms and administer the appropriate treatments a plastic surgeon demonstrated the need for this skill by putting this on their resume: "solved many problems with patients accounts if any. "
  • While "compassion" is listed last on this skills list, don't underestimate its importance to plastic surgeon responsibilities. The skill is described by this resume snippet, "patients who are sick or injured may be in extreme pain or distress" Here is an example of how this skill is used, "provided and directed patient care in an appropriate and compassionate manner. "
  • See the full list of plastic surgeon skills.

    The three companies that hire the most prestigious plastic surgeons are:

    Choose From 10+ Customizable Plastic Surgeon Resume templates

    Build a professional Plastic Surgeon resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Plastic Surgeon resume.

    Plastic Surgeon Resume
    Plastic Surgeon Resume
    Plastic Surgeon Resume
    Plastic Surgeon Resume
    Plastic Surgeon Resume
    Plastic Surgeon Resume
    Plastic Surgeon Resume
    Plastic Surgeon Resume
    Plastic Surgeon Resume
    Plastic Surgeon Resume
    Plastic Surgeon Resume
    Plastic Surgeon Resume
    Plastic Surgeon Resume
    Plastic Surgeon Resume
    Plastic Surgeon Resume
    Plastic Surgeon Resume

    resume document icon

    Don't Have A Professional Resume?

    What Eye Physicians Do

    Optical lab technicians, also known as ophthalmic laboratory technicians, create prescription eyeglasses and contact lenses. They work together with optometrists, opticians, and ophthalmologists. They received orders from optometrists and opticians to create prescription eyeglasses or contact lenses as per requirement. They also do the cutting, polishing, and grinding lenses as per prescription for products like microscopes, binoculars, or telescopes. They do their work by a computer program and automated tools to make the prescribed lenses before it is sent off to the customer.

    We looked at the average plastic surgeon annual salary and compared it with the average of an eye physician. Generally speaking, eye physicians receive $115,703 higher pay than plastic surgeons per year.

    While the salaries between these two careers can be different, they do share some of the same responsibilities. Employees in both plastic surgeons and eye physicians positions are skilled in patient care, in-office procedures, and exam rooms.

    These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. A plastic surgeon responsibility is more likely to require skills like "patients," "hand surgery," "private practice," and "medical procedures." Whereas a eye physician requires skills like "eye drops," "field testing," "consent forms," and "ehr." Just by understanding these different skills you can see how different these careers are.

    On average, eye physicians reach similar levels of education than plastic surgeons. Eye physicians are 1.5% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 3.8% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

    What Are The Duties Of an Optical Technician?

    Now we're going to look at the optical technician profession. On average, optical technicians earn a $135,559 lower salary than plastic surgeons a year.

    While the salary may be different for these job positions, there is one similarity and that's a few of the skills needed to perform certain duties. We used info from lots of resumes to find that both plastic surgeons and optical technicians are known to have skills such as "patients," "patient care," and "scheduling appointments. "

    But both careers also use different skills, according to real plastic surgeon resumes. While plastic surgeon responsibilities can utilize skills like "hand surgery," "private practice," "medical procedures," and "surgical procedures," some optical technicians use skills like "chrome," "dexterity," "manual dexterity," and "cnc."

    Optical technicians may earn a lower salary than plastic surgeons, but optical technicians earn the most pay in the technology industry with an average salary of $47,206. On the other side of things, plastic surgeons receive higher paychecks in the professional industry where they earn an average of $194,121.

    On the topic of education, optical technicians earn lower levels of education than plastic surgeons. In general, they're 6.8% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 3.8% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

    How a Surgeon's Assistant Compares

    Let's now take a look at the surgeon's assistant profession. On average, these workers make higher salaries than plastic surgeons with a $195,490 difference per year.

    Using plastic surgeons and surgeon's assistants resumes, we found that both professions have similar skills such as "patients," "medical procedures," and "surgical procedures," but the other skills required are very different.

    As mentioned, these two careers differ between other skills that are required for performing the work exceedingly well. For example, gathering from plastic surgeons resumes, they are more likely to have skills like "patient care," "hand surgery," "private practice," and "breast reconstruction." But a surgeon's assistant might have skills like "ortho," "emr," "epic," and "general surgery."

    Additionally, surgeon's assistants earn a higher salary in the health care industry compared to other industries. In this industry, they receive an average salary of $199,491. Additionally, plastic surgeons earn an average salary of $194,121 in the professional industry.

    When it comes to education, surgeon's assistants tend to earn similar education levels than plastic surgeons. In fact, they're 2.6% less likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 4.9% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

    Description Of a Foot And Ankle Surgeon

    Now, we'll look at foot and ankle surgeons, who generally average a higher pay when compared to plastic surgeons annual salary. In fact, the difference is about $268,305 per year.

    While their salaries may vary, plastic surgeons and foot and ankle surgeons both use similar skills to perform their jobs. Resumes from both professions include skills like "patient care," "private practice," and "surgical procedures. "

    Each job requires different skills like "patients," "hand surgery," "medical procedures," and "breast reconstruction," which might show up on a plastic surgeon resume. Whereas foot and ankle surgeon might include skills like "cme," "emr," "physical therapy," and "hospital surgery."

    Foot and ankle surgeons reach similar levels of education when compared to plastic surgeons. The difference is that they're 3.5% more likely to earn a Master's Degree less, and 18.7% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

    What a Plastic Surgeon Does FAQs

    How Many Hours Do Plastic Surgeons Work?

    Most plastic surgeons work 40 to 60 hours per week. During residency, they work around 80 hours weekly, so this is much lower than how they first began their careers.

    Most plastic surgeons work shifts that are either 8 hours or 12 hours long. These shifts can be during the daytime, evening, or overnight depending on the location of where they work and their specific availability.

    What Degree Do You Need To Be A Plastic Surgeon?

    You need a bachelor's degree from an accredited college and a medical degree to become a plastic surgeon. There are additional steps after earning these degrees that must be completed before someone can practice as a plastic surgeon.

    Search For Plastic Surgeon Jobs