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He can simply be referred to as the �Surgeon of Surgeons.� This is because of his professional skills that can transform, create and reshape the human face and body. To him, cutting the human body in any type of medical condition is not a big deal; after all, a Plastic Surgeon works the same way that artists ply their trade. He is Dr Opoku Ware Ampomah, the current Director of the Reconstructive Plastic Surgery and Burns Centre (RPS&BC) at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra. Dr Ampomah is one of the eight Consultant Plastic Surgeons in the country who are working hard to correct various deformities among the young and the old. Basically,Plastic Surgeons are medical doctors who specialise in surgeries that improve a person's appearance or functionality. Examples include surgery for a birth defect such as cleft palate, or surgery following an injury or the removal of cancer, such as breast implant surgery after breast removal (mastectomy). Dr Ampomah can be described as a simple man with a tight-working schedule. On Monday, The Mirror team visited the centre to interact with him and find out more about his job. At the consulting room, he was seen attending to a baby with a birth defect. Reconstructive Plastic Surgery Burns Centre At the Outpatients Department (OPD) of the centre, patients with various birth defects or varying degrees of burns were waiting to be attended to, while new cases kept coming in. At the wards, some of the children on admission included babies with their entire bodies bandaged, crying and screaming in pain. Some of the victims said they had been on admission for close to three months, and they were all seeking the attention of the director and his two other colleagues. With 17 years of experience, Dr Ampomah appears to be a classic epitome of a person who has fulfilment in his work because despite the large number of people who had queued to see him, he did not look stressed. �We the Plastic Surgeons are just like body workers. We perform reconstructive plastic surgery to correct functional impairments caused by burns; traumatic injuries such as facial bone fractures and breaks; congenital abnormalities such as cleft palates or cleft lips; developmental abnormalities; infection and disease; and cancer or tumors,� he explained, smiling. According to him, his outfit works with all the surgical disciplines. That is �as a Plastic Surgeon, my services could be needed at the Cardio Centre, Accident Centre, Eye Clinic, or any other department,� he added. Daily routine When asked how a typical day for the director and Plastic Surgeon looks like, Dr Ampomah said that depending on the day and what he has to do, he leaves home early in the morning and drives straight to the office. �Sometimes I have early morning meetings by 8:00am, which is a must for me to attend. In fact, I know when I leave home but not when I close because I don�t have a closing time. Until the last patient and surgery is performed when I�m on duty, I can�t leave,� he laughed. As the director of the centre, he has both administrative and lecturing work to do, besides his normal medical duties. For instance, when there are no morning meetings, he does his ward rounds to check up on patients who are on admission, have discussions with some of the Residents in case they need a further clarification on a particular condition, have a clinic session to see to both new and old cases, and also teach medical students and postgraduate students. In spite of this daunting schedule, the major task of conducting plastic surgeries stares at him. �We are only three Plastic Surgeons; Dr Anthony Laing, Dr Albert Paintsil and myself, against numerous cases to which we have to attend. Therefore, we are always on the run,� he noted. Yet, he engages in outreach programmes which had been sponsored by institutions or philanthropists to offer free services to people with various deformities. �Sometimes, the centre is so jammed that you can barely get up to do anything because people from all walks of life have travelled far and near to see us for their problems to be solved. Therefore, you feel pity leaving them to do other things,� he said with a hint of sadness. But he brightened up. For him, the challenges of work are normal. That is just a working day in the life of a busy and committed plastic surgeon. Educational background Dr Ampomah completed his primary education at the Ministry of Health Basic School at Korle-Bu in 1982. He had his secondary education at the Presbyterian Boys Secondary School, Legon where he won an award as the Best O� Level Science Scholar in 1987. He completed his GCE A� Levels at the same school in 1989, did a year�s national service as a tutor at his alma mater, and proceeded to the University of Ghana Medical School in October 1990. He graduated from the University of Ghana Medical School in April 1997 and started work at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital as a Houseman in the same month. He has served in several clinical departments. In May 1999, he formally commenced postgraduate training and obtained a Fellowship in Plastic Surgery from the West Africa College of Surgeons in April 2005, finishing as the Overall Best Candidate in West Africa for the Final (Part II) Exam in Plastic Surgery. With sponsorship from International Reconstructive Plastic Surgery (now Resurge Africa), a Scottish charity that aims at training and equiping surgeons in West Africa to carry out Reconstructive Surgery without the need of overseas financial or personnel help, he undertook further postgraduate training in Plastic Surgery from December 2005 to March 2008 at the renowned Canniesburn Plastic Surgery Unit of the Glasgow Royal Infirmary in Scotland. In November 2006, he passed rigorous examinations and obtained his Membership of The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons, Glasgow. In March 2008, in record time, he became the first West Africa-based practitioner to obtain the Intercollegiate Fellowship of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons, UK, in the Speciality of Plastic Surgery, and one of only a handful of Africans to obtain this distinction via examination. Dedicated to his country, he returned to Ghana in April 2008 and has been at post since. In December 2011, he was elected a Fellow of the Ghana College of Physicians and Surgeons. Although he has a wide scope of practice, his interests are Burns, Trauma, Microsurgery and Cosmetic Surgery. Family and interests Dr Opoku Ware was born and bred in Accra. His parents are Madam Jemima Sackey, a retired nurse, and Mr Osei Ampomah, a retired civil servant. He is a Christian and married to Phyllis. They are blessed with three children. He enjoys reading extensively and loves eating anything that is prepared for him. However, he has a soft spot for gari and soup. At the community level, he is a director of CHEERS (Ghana and Scotland), a child welfare charity established in 2001, which has since been equipping children in the local Ghanaian community with Christian principles, giving them informal education and life skills through the establishment of libraries, playgrounds and children�s clubs.