Dr. Lev will not perform your surgery without my first receiving the signed waiver that releases me from any responsibility should some unforseen circumstance occur.
Once you have decided to go to Costa Rica for any medical procedure, please read, print out, sign and date the waiver and mail it to Didi Carr Reuben, 16019 W. Sunset Blvd., Pacific Palisades, CA 90272*. The wheels of motion in the process of preparing for your journey can not begin to turn until we receive the signed waiver.
Secure a date for your surgery with Didi by emailing her at trlwd2@gmail.com
Take photos of whatever you want the doctor to take a look at (for facelift patients, take close-ups of front and side views of your face) and send them to Dr. Lev either by email to levplast@racsa.co.cr (this is preferable and much faster) or to his Miami address (this method takes at least two weeks) to:
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Dr. Alejandro Lev SJO 2789 P.O. Box 25331 Miami, Florida 33102-5331 |
With your photos, include a cover note introducing yourself and stating your scheduled surgery date. Make sure to send him your contact information so he knows how to get back in touch with you. If you are going on one of "Didi's trips", mention that in your cover note. This may get the doctor's attention a little faster.
*Please Note: Sending photos is optional, not mandatory and the final decision as to what you will have done in your surgery will ultimately be decided by both you and Dr. Lev after he sees you in person at your consultation the day before your surgery.
Make an appointment for your pre-op physical (click here to print out Dr. Lev's preop required tests list and bring it with you to your doctor when you go in for your tests)
from the website and bring it to your doctor when you go in for your tests). For L.A. people, if you don't have a regular doctor, you can use Dr. Laurie Musto in Pacific Palisades (310) 454-1212. Dr. Musto is familiar with the "drill" for people going to see Dr. Lev in Costa Rica. Please note that Dr. Lev suggests that you may want to bring your own meds with you so ask Dr. Musto or whatever doctor you see for your pre-op tests to give you prescriptions for pain, sleep and relaxation before you leave their office.
If your doctor prefers not to prescribe meds for you to take with you, don't worry. Dr. Lev will prescribe meds for you for pain and sleep upon request. You will actually automatically get pain meds in your little "take home packet" when you leave the hospital to be brought back to the Che Tica Ranch recovery retreat.
Your pre-op medical tests are usually not covered by insurance and can cost anywhere between $350 and $500 however there have been a number of Kaiser patients who have had most of their preop tests covered under their Kaiser plan. Also, ask the doctors if it's possible to get any of your visit covered under insurance.
Dr. Lev requires that the preop tests be taken within TWO months of your scheduled surgery date, preferrably around six weeks before.
Please make sure that you or your doctor scan and email your test results to Dr. Lev at levplast@racsa.co.cr as soon as possible. Add a little note to the tests that state your name, surgery date and the type of surgery you will be having. Mention that you are coming down in one of Didi's groups.
Please ask your doctor to read your tests and determine whether or not he feels you are okay to go ahead with surgery. If something shows up that precludes you from having surgery on your scheduled date it's best to find this out before you get to Costa Rica.
Make your airline reservations as early as possible to get the best fare. Although the fares change all the time so hopefully you will get lucky with a lower fare if you call on the right day. I recommend Taca Airlines over any american airlines because Central America is their main route, and Central America is what they do best in my opinion I'm always impressed at how new their airplanes are and how clean they keep them and I feel safe on their planes. I've been traveling nothing but Taca Airlines to Costa Rica for many years. If my child were flying to Costa Rica I would insist she fly on Taca. I think that says it all right there. Taca's 800# is 800-400-8222
Facelift and breast reduction/lift patients need to stay a full two weeks after their surgery. Patients having a tummy tuck need to stay three weeks after surgery. If you are having two surgeries, you'll need to extend your postop stay accordingly.
In some rare instances a tummy tuck patient will need to go home with the drain still in place even after three weeks and so tummy tuck patients are encouraged to arrange in advance someone in your local area at home who will agree to see you postop "just in case" to remove the drain. Of course, if you can be flexible with your return home, you might want to just extend your stay at the recovery retreat in Costa Rica until Dr. Lev can safely remove the drain.
Other minor surgeries, like nose, eyes, ears, breast implants need to stay for a week to ten or twelve days after surgery. Of course, Dr. Lev says that the longer you can stay after your surgery, the better it will be for you in the long run. The healing process for any procedure no matter how extensive takes a full six months even though you will most likely look presentable after just a couple of weeks.
Find the Patients' Guide Part 1 & 2 headings on the menu of the website. Read through everything carefully and thoroughly. This will give you suggestions for what to bring with you, how to handle payments, etc. This is an essential part of the "getting-ready" process.
Please note that Dr. Lev only accepts cash, cashier's checks or bank checks made out to Dr. Alejandro Lev as payment for his and the anesthesiologist's fees (the fee listed in the Price List on the website includes the anesthesiologist's fee). My suggestion to people who aren't sure about what they're having done (you won't know for sure until your one on one consultation with Dr. Lev the day you arrive in San Jose) is to have the cashier's or bank-drawn check made out to Dr. Alejandro Lev for a higher amount than you expect to pay. That way you will make sure to have enough to cover any surgery. If it ends up costing less, Dr. Lev will reimburse you the balance in US dollars. You can use those dollars to put toward your recovery retreat bill or to use for shopping or whatever. Better to have too much than not enough.
If you would like an appointment with the dentist, Dra. Telma Rubinstein, for a checkup, laser whitening or any other dental work, please let Didi know well in advance of your trip so she can set up an appointment for you for the day you arrive.
If you decide to have dental work done that requires preparation, like crowns, veneers, bridge work, etc., Dra. Rubinstein or her husband/partner, Dr. Josef Cordero can do the prep work the day before your surgery with Dr. Lev and then a couple of days before you leave Costa Rica you will go back to have all the finished work installed.
For your convenience you can click here and fill out this quick form and with the simple click of the "send now" button, your inquiry will be sent directly to Dra. Rubinsteins's office. Someone will get back to you within a week of receiving your form. This is a quicker way to get a response to your questions and check on availability.
Once you've set a date and time for your dental appointment, please notify Didi as to the time of your appointment so she can put it in with your file and in the schedule book as a backup.
Patients with breast implants please note: It is VERY important to note that if you have any sort of implants (facial, breast, etc.) you must consult with your dentist to see if you will need to "premedicate" before you have any invasive dental work done, including cleanings.
Great "Calling Home" news...You can now dial direct to the states and/or Canada directly from your room at the Villa Plenitud for absolutely no charge! In addition, all internet access is free. You can bring your laptop and Meredith, the V.P. Manager will help you set it up in your room for no charge.
AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST....
We are asking people to please not hang on to a date for surgery when you aren't sure you can go. This is not considerate of others who want to go and need time to plan their trip. Dr. Lev and I spend a great deal of time figuring these group trips into both of our busy schedules and so the dates we settle on are precious and few and it is important for each person who takes possession of a date to be serious about their intention and desire to go to Costa Rica for surgery with Dr. Lev..
We've had a few instances over the years where a person holds on to the date until a month or even three weeks before the surgery and then cancels out because of cold feet or "something popped up" thereby not leaving enough time for the next person to plan their trip.
Of course this message does not apply to people who have valid reasons for cancelling out at the last minute..obviously. This message is for people who don't take this seriously and just sign up for the heck of it...and then forget about it.
So, I need you to please exercise some basic courtesy about these dates. Only sign on if you're serious and if you're not perfectly sure, just go ahead and hold the date for a month while you think about it and discuss it with your family.
If you're still feeling unsure after you've held the date for a month, please just contact me to release the date so someone else who is sure about going can have a chance to go in your place.