Plastic Surgeon Albury Wodonga | Dr Peter Laniewski (FRACS)

Dr Peter Laniewski is a Specialist Plastic Surgeon (FRACS, AHPRA MED0001155003) who consults in Albury at The Gardens Medical Suites, Level 4, 470 Wodonga Place, Albury NSW 2640, and operates at Albury Wodonga Private Hospital. To book a consultation, call 1300 322 337 or make an online enquiry. For most procedures, Border district patients can have both their consultations and their surgery in Albury, without travelling to Melbourne or Sydney.

Dr Laniewski has over 20 years of surgical training and practice, and consults at five locations across New South Wales. Albury patients see him for skin cancer and reconstructive surgery as well as face, breast, body and male procedures, with every surgical plan tailored to the individual after a face-to-face consultation.

Surgery performed locally in Albury

Dr Laniewski operates at Albury Wodonga Private Hospital, 1125 Pemberton Street, West Albury. That means that for most procedures, your consultation, your surgery, and your follow-up can all take place in Albury.

This is worth stating plainly, because many regional patients assume that seeing a Specialist Plastic Surgeon means travelling to a capital city, taking time off work and arranging accommodation. For a large proportion of the procedures Dr Laniewski performs, that is not necessary here. You stay in your own home to recover, your family is nearby, and your follow-up appointments are a short drive rather than a day’s travel.

Some procedures may still be better performed in Sydney. Complex or lengthy cases and procedures requiring particular post-operative support are the usual reasons. If your procedure falls into that group, Dr Laniewski will tell you at your consultation and explain the options, which include his Bella Vista, Woollahra, Erina, and Narellan locations, as well as the accredited Sydney private hospitals where he operates.

Do I need to travel to Melbourne or Sydney?

For most procedures, no. Dr Laniewski consults in Albury and operates at Albury Wodonga Private Hospital, so the standard pathway for a Border district patient is entirely local: two consultations in Albury, surgery in Albury, and follow-up in Albury.

There are two situations where travel may be involved. The first is timing: because Albury clinics run on scheduled days, a patient who needs to be seen sooner than the next Albury clinic may prefer to attend one of the Sydney locations. The second is complexity, as set out above. In both cases the choice is discussed with you rather than assumed.

If you do choose to travel to Sydney for surgery, Dr Laniewski’s practice sees regional and interstate patients regularly, and the team can talk you through consultation sequencing, timing and what to plan for.

Patients from Victoria and the Riverina

Albury sits on the Murray River directly opposite Wodonga, and the practical catchment for the clinic spans both states. Patients travel from across north-east Victoria and southern New South Wales.

Victorian patients

Victorian patients can consult and have surgery with Dr Laniewski in Albury. Medicare is a federal scheme, so a rebate for an eligible, medically indicated procedure is not affected by crossing the state border, and your Victorian GP can refer you to a Specialist Plastic Surgeon in New South Wales in the ordinary way.

Two practical points are worth checking before you proceed. Private health insurance cover is generally national, but confirm with your fund that Albury Wodonga Private Hospital is an agreement hospital under your policy, because that affects your out-of-pocket cost. And if you hold a Victorian concession or use Victorian public services, be aware that those arrangements do not automatically transfer; ask our reception team if you are unsure how your particular situation works.

Travel and accommodation assistance (IPTAAS and VPTAS)

If you live a long way from Albury, you may be eligible for help with travel and accommodation costs when attending a specialist appointment.

• New South Wales residents may be able to apply through the Isolated Patients Travel and Accommodation Assistance Scheme (IPTAAS).
• Victorian residents may be able to apply through the Victorian Patient Transport Assistance Scheme (VPTAS).

Both schemes are for medically necessary specialist treatment, not for cosmetic procedures. So they may be relevant if you are seeing Dr Laniewski for skin cancer surgery, a reconstructive procedure, a hand condition, or a functional problem, and they will not apply to purely cosmetic surgery. Eligibility depends on how far you live from the nearest appropriate specialist service and on the scheme’s current rules, which change from time to time. Your GP’s practice or our reception team can point you to the current application process, and you should confirm eligibility with the scheme itself before relying on it.

Areas we serve across the Border district

Patients travel to the Albury clinic from across southern New South Wales and north-east Victoria, including:

• Albury, Lavington, Thurgoona and West Albury (local)
• Wodonga, Victoria (around 10 minutes)
• Howlong, Jindera, Culcairn and Henty (around 25 to 45 minutes)
• Corowa, Rutherglen, Beechworth, Yackandandah and Chiltern, Victoria (around 45 minutes to an hour)
• Holbrook, Tumbarumba, Tumut and Wangaratta (around one to one and a half hours)
• Wagga Wagga, Deniliquin, Benalla, Myrtleford and Mount Beauty (around two hours)
• Shepparton, Griffith and Bright (further afield, often combined with air or rail travel)

Patients elsewhere in New South Wales can also choose Dr Laniewski’s Bella Vista, Woollahra, Erina or Narellan locations.

Procedures available in Albury

Each linked page explains the procedure, who it may suit, and its risks in detail. All surgery carries risks; please read the surgical and non-surgical risk information on this website before proceeding. Availability of individual procedures in Albury depends on the facilities at Albury Wodonga Private Hospital:

Skin cancer and reconstructive surgery

• Skin cancer surgery: excision of skin cancers with reconstruction where needed. This is common work in a regional district with high cumulative sun exposure, and it is usually medically indicated, which means a Medicare rebate generally applies.
• Breast reconstruction: reconstructive surgery, including after cancer treatment.
• Photodynamic therapy (PDT): a treatment for sun-damaged skin.

Face

• Facelift (rhytidectomy/meloplasty): surgery to address sagging and volume loss in the lower face and jawline.
• Eyelid surgery (blepharoplasty): surgery to address excess skin or puffiness of the upper or lower eyelids. Upper eyelid surgery is sometimes medically indicated where excess skin obstructs vision.
• Rhinoplasty (nose surgery): surgery to reshape the nose for appearance, breathing, or both.
• Neck lift (platysmaplasty), brow lift, otoplasty (ear surgery)and cheek and chin implants.

Breast

• Breast reduction (reduction mammoplasty): surgery to reduce breast size and relieve related symptoms. Often medically indicated where criteria are met.
• Breast augmentation (augmentation mammaplasty): surgery to increase breast size or restore volume using implants.
• Breast lift (mastopexy)and breast implant revision surgery.

Body

• Liposuction: surgery to remove localised fat deposits.
• Abdominoplasty (tummy tuck): surgery to remove excess abdominal skin and tighten the abdominal wall.
• Arm lift (brachioplasty), thigh lift (thighplasty), body liftand post-pregnancy surgery: contouring surgery, often after significant weight loss or pregnancy.
• Labiaplastyand lipoedema assessment and management.

Male

• Gynaecomastia (male breast reduction)and male body lift.

Hand and non-surgical

• Hand and finger surgery, including carpal tunnel syndrome, Dupuytren’s contractureand finger fractures. These are usually medically indicated procedures.
• Non-surgical options including wrinkle treatment, facial volume treatment, non-surgical rhinoplastyand LED Healite. Please confirm availability in Albury when you book.

Why choose Dr Peter Laniewski

Dr Peter Laniewski is a Specialist Plastic Surgeon and a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (FRACS) , registered with AHPRA (MED0001155003). In Australia, only a doctor with specialist surgical registration may lawfully use the title “surgeon”, and specialist plastic surgeons complete accredited surgical training that covers both operating and the management of complications. Checking a practitioner’s specialist registration before booking is worth doing anywhere, and particularly where local options are limited.

• Qualifications and registration: FRACS; AHPRA registration MED0001155003 (verifiable on the AHPRA public register).
• Training: undergraduate medicine at the University of New South Wales, followed by advanced training in general surgery and in plastic and reconstructive surgery. Dr Laniewski completed an international fellowship at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London, a recognised centre for complex reconstructive surgery, with further study alongside plastic surgeons in London’s Harley Street and at international courses in New York, Germany and France.
• Professional memberships: Australasian Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (ASAPS), Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) and Board Certified Plastic Surgeons.
• Experience: over 20 years of surgical training and practice.
• Where he operates: accredited private hospitals only, including Albury Wodonga Private Hospital in West Albury, and Sydney Adventist Hospital (Wahroonga), Lakeview Private (Bella Vista) and Westmead Private in Sydney.
• Access: five NSW consulting locations, including Albury.

You can also read Dr Laniewski’s profile on RealSelf and verify his registration on the AHPRA register.

What to expect at your consultation

Australia regulates cosmetic surgery tightly, and the process is designed to make sure your decision is well informed. Before your first consultation for a cosmetic surgical procedure, you will need a referral from your GP. Your pathway then includes:

• At least two pre-operative consultations, with at least one in person with Dr Laniewski. For Border district patients, both can usually be arranged in Albury, though the scheduling depends on clinic days.
• A psychological assessment for suitability, including screening for body dysmorphic disorder (BDD). If significant concerns are identified, you will be referred to an independent GP, psychologist or psychiatrist before any surgery.
• A mandatory 7-day cooling-off period for adults, following your consultations, before surgery can be booked or a deposit paid.
• For patients under 18, a minimum 3-month cooling-off period and assessment by an independent GP, psychologist or psychiatrist. Cosmetic surgery that is not clinically necessary is generally discouraged for minors.

Medically indicated procedures, such as skin cancer excision, hand surgery or a reconstructive procedure, follow the standard specialist referral pathway rather than the cosmetic surgery process.

At your consultation, Dr Laniewski will discuss your goals, examine you, explain the realistic options and their risks, and provide written information. All surgery carries risks, and results vary between individuals.

Fees, Medicare and private health insurance

Fees depend on the specific procedure, its complexity and where it is performed, so a fully itemised written quote is provided after your consultation. A typical surgical fee estimate covers the surgeon’s fee, the anaesthetist’s fee, the hospital or theatre fee and post-operative care.

A Medicare rebate and a private health insurance contribution may apply when a procedure has a documented medical or functional component. In a regional practice, this covers a substantial share of the work: skin cancer excision and reconstruction, hand conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome, breast reduction that meets criteria, breast reconstruction, and nasal surgery to correct breathing. Purely cosmetic procedures do not attract a Medicare rebate or a health fund contribution.

Victorian patients should confirm with their health fund that Albury Wodonga Private Hospital is an agreement hospital under their policy. Payment and finance options are explained on the payment options page. We do not publish fixed prices, because an accurate figure requires an individual clinical assessment.

Frequently asked questions (Albury and the Border district)