Finding a LASIK M.D. to perform your LASIK eye surgery is not a task which you should take likely. You should be able to go into your surgery confident that your doctor has both the knowledge and skills necessary to complete your procedure quickly, painlessly, and correctly. You’ll want a LASIK M.D. with as much experience as possible, so there’s track record you can use to deduce your chances of having an optical disaster. But how can you find a qualified LASIK M.D?

You won’t learn anything from advertisements for LASIK eye surgery; they are designed to appeal to your pocketbook, and will not tell you nothing about the surgical qualifications of the LASIK M.D. who will be performing your procedure. You’ll have to do better than that!

If you have any acquaintances who have experienced LASIK eye surgery, don’t hesitate to ask them for their opinions of their LASIK M.D.s . It’s one of the best ways to get an objective review of an eye surgeon’s competence and approach to his or her patients.

Professional Organizations
You can also get information on a prospective LASIK M.D. form the American College of Surgeons, which will give you a much fuller picture of a surgeon’s credentials and background. The ACS is extremely demanding in its credential issuing process.

The American Academy of Ophthalmology, whose website is www.aao.com, will help you find a LASIK M.D. thought their “Find an eye MD” section. The site will give you an idea of what qualities you should look for in Your LASIK M.D. And the Council for Refractive Surgery has a list of questions for you to print out and present to the surgeons you are interviewing before you select one of them as your LASIK M.D.

Questions To Ask A LASIK M.D.
The questions will cover the amount of experience your LASIK M.D. has; the more the better. You should ask the surgeon specifically about how many times she or she has performed the procedure you’ll be undergoing, with the same kind of laser which will be used on you.

Ask the doctors how high a percentage of their patients have had their vision improve to at least 20/40 following their surgeries. But if you receive an answer greater than 90%, be cautious; the industry average is 90%. And the average for patients gaining 20/20 vision following LASIK surgery is only 50%. Any LASIK M.D. who indicates he or she has a better record should be willing to back it up with some sort of documentation.

Ask your potential LASIK M.D.s to provide you with a list of their patients who have been treated for the same visual defect which you have by undergoing the same procedure you will be undergoing. If you really want to press the point, inquire as to the state of the LASIK M.D.’s malpractice insurance. Is it still in force, or has it been denied? The same applies for the surgeon’s medical license--has it ever been suspended for any reason?

You may even, if you are really determined to uncover everything about your LASIK M.D. inquire whether he or she has ever been charged with a felony. If your questions get you tossed out of an office, fine. You have the right to ask anything you want about a doctor’s experience and professional background, if knowing the answer will make you comfortable with the LASIK M.D. you choose.