The doctor harvests, too
In FUE the doctor usually punches and a nurse takes over the harvesting. Almost no clinic has the doctor punch and extract the follicles as well.
At Mowoolim the doctor does all of it personally.
Extracting follicles without damaging them matters just as much as the punch itself.
A practised nurse can produce a good result, but however seriously they take it, they cannot carry the responsibility a doctor carries.
There is also a difference between extracting with a working knowledge of follicular anatomy and extracting purely as a technique.
The slit method, where a nurse places grafts into pre-made slits, is widely used because it makes efficient use of clinical staff. With a highly practised nursing team it can produce excellent results, and it certainly reduces surgeon fatigue and frees up time, which has clear advantages from a management point of view.
Mowoolim still insists on placing FUE grafts with an implanter. It is more troublesome and more difficult, but the doctor being involved in and checking every part of the graft is one of the things we refuse to give up.
Process matters to us as much as outcome. Grafting FUE follicles without trimming the epidermis produces what is often called the cobblestone look, where untrimmed skin sits proud of the surface.
It does not change the final result, but the few days of recovery matter to us too. We add the extra work of trimming so that even the recovery period looks tidy.
