Franchise medicine: how I avoid being a commodity in a global market.

As facial plastic surgery becomes more global, pressures for practices to become commoditized will increase. Commoditized practices are those in which price drives the quality of the product. Franchised surgical practices have also recently increased within the United States and abroad. These are always commoditized by their corporate philosophies. There are better ways to create value than to lower price to compete with a neighboring practice. By establishing a Transcendent Relationship of growth, both the surgeon and the patient are more satisfied with their facial plastic surgical experiences. Key tools helpful in predicting future directions for a practice, the Four Compass Points and the Average Best Patient, will be introduced.