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Dr. Banis Plastic Surgery COMPASSION AND EXPERIENCE BRING TOGETHER AN EXTRAORDINARY PAIR By MARIAH KLINE | Photo by ANDREA HUTCHINSON
U
ndergoing plastic surgery means putting an indescribable amount of trust in a doctor and their abilities. Thousands of patients have placed their faith in Dr. Joseph Banis and the results have spoken for themselves. In his nearly 40-year career, Banis has played instrumental roles in important research projects and performed incredibly complex reconstructive surgeries. This month, the board-certified surgeon is welcoming board-eligible surgeon and all-around powerhouse Dr. Tathyana Fensterer to the practice, making them a dynamic duo of caring and experienced physicians. Fensterer’s career began in her home country of Brazil, where she completed medical school and general and plastic surgery residencies, leading to board certification in both specialties. She was engaged in her own private practice of plastic surgery in Brazil for three years when in 2005, her trajectory shifted. She met her husband Will, a Louisville native, during a vacation in France and the two were married in 2007. Though she had already completed full specialty training in Brazil, Fensterer was not qualified to practice in the U.S. She has now completed a total of 12 extra years – including full repeat training in general and plastic surgery – to allow her to practice here. With her time in research, residency and internships, Fensterer has accumulated 19 years of experience in medicine. While completing her medical education and preparing for her return to Louisville, she has also welcomed a one-year-old son. As she returns to the city’s surgery scene, she looks forward to sharing her compassionate approach with patients and emphasizes her desire to serve the female population.
“Being a female, I know how hard it is to go to a doctor – a complete stranger – to open your heart and tell them all of the defects and things you don’t tell anyone else,” she explains. Fensterer also has a strong commitment to assisting patients with gender confirmation surgery and has been contacted by the University of Louisville to work with them in this role. She has already been part of facial feminization surgeries in other parts of the world and wants to bring these kinds of procedures to our community. “People have come to me and said how hard it is to go to a doctor,” she states. “I read their whole chart and you see the difficulties they’ve had to go through as teenagers and in dealing with their family. I feel really happy to help them.” Fensterer and Banis have already operated together on multiple occasions and know that their skill sets and personality traits make for an excellent working dynamic. In their new location in East Louisville, their current busy practice is primarily cosmetic focused and their philosophy is similar. Sharing the love for their work has bonded the pair and even more significant is their shared goal to help others. They focus on the patient as a whole – listening to their desires and educating them on the pathway to get the best outcome while maintaining patient safety. “I love surgery,” says Fensterer. “I get to discuss the risks and benefits with the patient and analyze the problem. I always like to involve the patient and in some other specialities you cannot do that.” “When people ask me what my favorite operation is, I always say it’s the one that the patient needs,” says Banis. “Too many things in medicine are focused on the doctors and the system when they really need to be focused on the patient.”
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2507 Bush Ridge Dr., Suite B, 40245 / aesthetics.com / 502.589.8000
JUNE 2019
VO I C E -T R I B U N E . C O M
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THE VOICE OF LOUISVILLE
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