STUMP » Articles » Deaths in the Dominican Republic: Westchester Woman Dies » 10 July 2019, 13:59

Okay, it’s obviously not me.

Let’s go to the story!

Westchester Woman Dies In Dominican Republic, Report Says

A Westchester woman has reportedly become the third American to die in the Dominican Republic this month when she stopped breathing while on the operating table during liposuction.

New Rochelle resident Alexandra Medina stopped breathing during a procedure at a Dominican Republic clinic on Friday, July 5, according to a CBS News report. The Dominican health ministry has now opened an investigation, though Medina’s family reportedly doesn’t know if they’ll actually get any answers.

Okay, this is not about bad booze, and, well, it’s not the first cosmetic surgery casualty in the DR this year. (Sorry, this is the third in a month.)

According to the report, Medina, whose age was not released, was unhappy with her appearance, and doctors stateside told her she needed to lose weight before getting liposuction, prompting her to seek cheaper, alternative options in the Dominican Republic and elsewhere.

Doctors are not always correct, but… perhaps she should have considered losing the weight first? Because doing lipo by itself is not a long-term solution.

There is no mystery behind cut-rate surgical deaths (especially cosmetic surgery), and then there was another two people from Westchester who died… in a car crash. While the cheap cosmetic surgery deaths do not happen so often in the U.S. (not among legal practicitioners, at least), car crashes do occur quite a bit.

Neither one is a deep mystery.

Some deaths need to be explained. Others, not so much.

Another American dies from cosmetic surgery in Dominican Republic:

A Westchester mom died while getting a tummy tuck at a medical clinic in the Dominican Republic — just weeks after an Alabama teacher passed away while undergoing surgery at the same facility, according to local reports Tuesday.

Alexandra Medina, 33, traveled to the Doctor Urenea Arias clinic in Santo Domingo last Wednesday for the medical procedure, which also included liposuction, despite her family’s pleas to stay home, Dominican news outlet El Nuevo Diario reported.

….
Her death comes after an Alabama teacher died last month at the clinic, which was briefly shuttered by the Ministry of Public Health, according to Noticias Sin.

Alicia Renette Williams, 45, suffered blood clots and died from undergoing an elective procedure June 2 with the same doctor, El Nuevo Diario reported.

DON’T GO TO THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC FOR CHEAP PLASTIC SURGERY.

In most instances, these cosmetic clinics in Mexico, Dominican Republic or Philippines do not follow the same strict safety guidelines like the ones in Portland, Oregon or any other city in the US. The result is higher complications with less than desired outcomes. Additionally, since the clinic is located thousands of miles away, most patients miss out on the essential follow up evaluations after their procedure.

I think that’s an easy piece of advice.

Also, drink the beer, not the clear.