Consulting Buzz Words Explained for Plastic Surgery Practices
When it comes to practice growth, the consulting world is full of buzzwords. Aesthetic consultant. Medspa consultant. Plastic surgery consultant. Each one sounds promising, but each comes with a different focus. For board-certified plastic surgeons, it’s worth asking not just what these consultants do but who they’re really helping.
At PS², we do it all: operations, financials, staffing, patient experience, and start-up practices. The difference is that we only partner with practices led by board-certified plastic surgeons. That’s not just a choice, it’s a commitment to protecting the profession and ensuring that the most qualified professionals stay at the center of patient care.
Consulting Buzzwords Explained
Aesthetic Consultants
Aesthetic consultants often focus on non-surgical growth, making them a natural fit for cosmetic or cash-pay practices. They help MedSpas or hybrid models optimize injector schedules, recommend new devices, and build recurring membership programs. Many also support practices in building their cosmetic surgical side by improving consult processes, patient pathways, and cash-pay revenue strategies.
The key question, however, is what type of physician they are helping grow in aesthetics. While their strategies can drive both non-surgical and cosmetic surgical success, their expertise is not always aligned with the specialized training, scope, and long-term goals of a board-certified plastic surgeon.
MedSpa Consultants
MedSpa consultants zoom in even further. Their expertise usually lies in menu design, spa flow, and maximizing non-surgical revenue. They can be fantastic for a stand-alone MedSpa but they may not have the depth of knowledge needed to manage the balance between surgical and non-surgical sides of a true plastic surgery practice.
Pro Tip: Device-company consultants can be insightful, but their advice is often sales-driven. True practice growth requires operational expertise, not just product recommendations.
Plastic Surgery Consultants
A true plastic surgery consultant is not just about the surgical side. This role actually encompasses what both Aesthetic and MedSpa consultants provide; analyzing non-surgical services, devices, memberships, injectables, and spa flow, but with the added expertise of integrating those elements into a surgeon-led practice.
Where Aesthetic and MedSpa consultants might focus solely on injectables, retail, or spa services, a Plastic Surgery Consultant ensures that growth on the non-surgical side complements, rather than competes with, the surgical side of the practice. That means considering surgical scheduling, OR utilization, credentialing, insurance, patient pathways, and long-term brand positioning.
In other words, plastic surgery consulting is not a different lane. It is the broader lane that includes Aesthetics and MedSpa strategy, but ultimately ties it back to the disciplined training and surgical expertise that sets board-certified plastic surgeons apart.
The Real Question: Who Are Consultants Helping?
Every type of consultant can help practices grow, and most can analyze operations and finances. The difference comes down to who they are helping.
Aesthetic Consultants help practices focused on cosmetic surgeries, injectables, devices, and retail sales.
MedSpa Consultants help spas and hybrid models build non-surgical revenue.
Plastic Surgery Consultants help plastic surgeons looking to grow their practice; both cosmetic and reconstructive.
Why PS² is Different
We help practices with one clear standard: you must be a board-certified plastic surgeon. That is where our expertise, strategy, and support shine.
We empower board-certified plastic surgeons to build practices that stand apart from less qualified providers entering the aesthetic market. We keep the surgeon at the center, while still helping practices grow their MedSpa and aesthetic services in a way that complements, not competes with, surgical care.
Our work spans:
Operations and workflow optimization
Financial planning and case mix analysis
Staffing and training
Long-term strategy that balances surgical and non-surgical growth
The Takeaway
Consultants come in many forms, and each has value depending on the type of practice. But if you are a board-certified plastic surgeon, the choice is clear. PS² is the partner that understands both sides of your business and is committed to keeping your training at the center of your practice identity.
Because your title isn’t “aesthetician” or “injector.” It’s “surgeon.” And that matters.