Patient Safety

Dr. Gordon defined himself as an early leader in patient advocacy and patient safety. Beginning in the 1990’s, Dr. Gordon was one of the first cosmetic surgeons to recognize the need for consistency and safety in the outpatient operative environment. His private facility, New England Surgical Center, at The Retreat at Split Rock, where he serves as Medical Director, was one of the first, fully accredited outpatient surgery centers in the New York metropolitan area.

In the year 2000, Dr. Gordon took on an additional national leadership role as one of the first surgeons to report outcome data regarding outpatient surgical procedures and delivered his findings to the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery’s annual conference in Washington, D.C. This important study is used to define risk factors and safety protocols for the growing trend of cosmetic surgery performed in outpatient surgery centers.

Because of these efforts, in 2005 Dr. Gordon was asked to create and Chair the first national committee that would define issues and parameters on all aspects of patient care. He then created the Committee on Patient Safety and Accreditation for the international organization, The American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.

In 2006-2009, Dr. Gordon published the peer reviewed paper “Is Case Duration An Indicator Of Morbidity And Mortality In Office Based Facial Plastic Surgery; A Review Of 1,200 Consecutive Cases”. This groundbreaking research was the first study to scientifically evaluate the length of time a facial plastic surgery procedure takes and that relationship to risks or bad outcomes. The study showed that because facial plastic surgery procedures are not invasive, the length of a procedure does not create risk and it also defined what specific factors create a safe environment. This remains the largest study to date to reveal how facial plastic surgery procedures can be accomplished safely and consistently in an outpatient setting. Dr. Gordon’s study was published in the prestigious J.A.M.A. Journal, Archives of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.

From 2006 and culminating in 2009, Dr. Gordon continued his international leadership role in patient safety as Chairman of The Committee on Patient Safety and Accreditation. He then created and instituted the patient safety policies of the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. During his Chairmanship, Dr. Gordon supported the Academy’s policy of mandatory accreditation of all out-patient surgical facilities that utilize certain levels of anesthesia in order to ensure patient safety. He is also responsible for the creation of the Academy’s position statement on public safety in dealing with medi-spas, lasers, Botox, injectable fillers, and outpatient surgical centers.

In recognition of his valuable and necessary contributions to patient safety in facial plastic surgery, Dr. Gordon remains Special Advisor to the sitting Chairman of the Committee On Patient Safety and Accreditation. He is currently active in the continuation of his work on data-based policies defining the best methods of patient care and safety in all areas of medicine and surgery.