**3. Hernia physicians**

Abdominal wall reconstruction, proper care of recurring hernias, pain prevention, treating hernias with enterocutaneous fistulas, complex mesh-associated infections, and mesh reconstructions require specialized treatment plans that can be established by team members using laparoscopic and modern hernia repair techniques.

The fear of patients and inexperienced surgeons is mainly focused on how to deal with the complications that occur after surgery. Recurrence after primary hernia repair or the complexity of the case due to its particularities highlights the need for hernia experts. A surgeon has many qualities but being patient and calm can be reflected in the way patient is treated: to be listened and understood, to receive all the required answers, and to understand the treatment options they have so that they will fulfill all the recommendations received.

Multidisciplinary experts work in a team environment to serve each patient's unique needs with an individualized care plan. The physicians not only treat patients but conduct scientific research and teach the next generation of medical professionals.

The aim of these departments/centers will be focused on finding personalized solution to help the patient to return to an active, pain-free life. The surgeons are particularly skilled in assessing hernias and determining their appropriateness for open or laparoscopic surgery.

The hernia center will offer the full range of surgical options to repair hernias. Most hernia repairs are, by surgeons' standards, relatively straightforward and uncomplicated. Some, however, are more complex because of their size or because they occur at the site of a previous surgical incision that has not healed adequately. The hernia team will repair all types of hernias, including inguinal hernia, femoral hernia, umbilical hernia, incisional hernia, spigelian hernia, obturator hernia, epigastric hernia, hiatal hernia, and diaphragmatic hernia. Minimally invasive surgery such as laparoscopy is generally better for patients—less pain, faster recovery—but it demands additional training for the surgeon. Open inguinal hernia repairs will be possible to perform as an outpatient procedure under local anesthesia.

Surgical team should include general surgeons and plastic surgeons, as well as clinical and support professionals collaborating to provide a comprehensive care to patients. Surgeons will carefully plan surgery for each patient depending on the characteristics of the hernia and the comorbidities of the patient. Specialists are mastering the laparoscopy technique and are prepared to manage complications: hernia recurrence, pain after previous repair, hernias with enterocutaneous fistulas, mesh reconstruction, and complicated mesh-related infections.

Complex or not, all patients wish their hernia to be treated by practitioners who perform more than 200 such procedures a year, instead of, say, 20 or 30? It is this type of experience that gives to patients a greater likelihood of an uncomplicated operation and a successful outcome.
