The Plastic Surgery Group of Memphis (PSG) is celebrating 50 years as a leader and trusted voice in cosmetic and reconstructive surgery. Founded in 1973 by the late Dr. Robert C. Reeder, this solo practice has since evolved into Memphis and the Mid South’s most established group surgical clinic. Currently, PSG has five board-certified surgeons dedicated to carrying on the legacy of high-quality care and state-of-the-art technology, and today, the team is covering 50 years of PSG history to celebrate!
Dr. Robert Reeder & the Early Years
Reeder finished his residency in San Francisco and, in 1960, got into a Volkswagen Beetle, drove from San Francisco to Memphis and PSG was born shortly after that.
He quickly established PSG as a leader not only locally but nationally. Reeder wrote the textbook Sourcebook of Medical Communication in 1981, became President of the Southeastern Society of Plastic Surgery in 1984, President of the American Society of Plastic Surgery in 1987 and became a Clinical Associate Professor of Plastic Surgery at the University of Tennessee.
In 1997, Dr. Reeder passed away from brain cancer. He left behind an enduring legacy that would continue to this day.
Dr. Allen Hughes, Co-Founder of PSG Memphis
Reeder founded the practice alongside Dr. Allen Hughes, a Board-Certified Surgeon who still attends the clinic at PSG once a week to see Botox and filler patients. Dr. Hughes grew up in Memphis and is the son of James G. Hughes, M.D., former Physician and Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Tennessee/Memphis Medical School. He graduated from East High School and, from there, went to Southwestern, now Rhodes College.
After medical school and a general surgery residency in 1964, Hughes was chosen from a field of 100 applicants to be part of an intensive two-year plastic surgery residency program in Kansas City, Mo.
He then returned to Memphis to go into practice with Dr. Robert Reeder, where he continued to build the reputation of PSG and served as President of the Southeastern Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons in 1991.
Growing Throughout the 80s and 90s with Dr. Lou Adams, Dr. Karen Quigley and Dr. George Burruss
The practice continued to grow when Dr. Lou Adams, a fifth-generation physician, joined the practice in 1987. His leadership roles include previous service as President of The Plastic Surgery Group of Memphis and Medical Director of the East Memphis Surgery Center.
He served on a national quality assurance committee for safety in performing surgeries in freestanding surgery centers. During Adams’s 35 years in plastic surgery, he saw patients from areas throughout the broad Mid-South region. He had a storied career specializing in aesthetic surgery of the face and body and breast surgery, both aesthetic and reconstructive.
The addition of Dr. Karen Quigley marked a first for PSG. Dr. Karen Quigley completed her residency in 1988 and became a Board-Certified Plastic Surgeon at PSG in 1990, making her the first female surgeon at the Plastic Surgery Group. Quigley’s career at PSG opened doors for the future female surgeons who currently comprise 60% of the PSG surgeon team.
While a surgeon at PSG, Quigley was appointed at Vanderbilt University and Nashville General from 1985-1986. She also was a member of several esteemed societies, including the Memphis and Shelby County Medical Society, the Tennessee Medical Association, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, the Southeastern Society of Plastic & Reconstructive Surgeons and The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Society.
Dr. George Burruss joined the PSG team in 1994 and spent 28 years practicing plastic surgery with PSG. Burruss continued to establish a name for PSG in the Mid-South community with not only his reputation as a surgeon but also as he served as Assistant Professor of Plastic Surgery at the University of Tennessee, Memphis and Acting Chief of Plastic Surgery at the Veterans Administrative Medical Center.
As a director of the local Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Team, he enjoyed the challenges of pediatric cleft care and how that work could truly change the outcome and trajectory of someone’s life. Burruss considered it a privilege and great responsibility to be entrusted with providing this specialized surgical care for his patients.
Burruss considered it a privilege and great responsibility to be entrusted with providing this specialized surgical care for his patients.
Meet the Current Team Carrying the PSG Legacy Forward
Dr. Robert Chandler
PSG continued its expansion when Dr. Robert Chandler joined the practice in 2004. Now, as the President of PSG with 27 years of surgical experience, he shares Reeder and Hughes’ commitment to top patient care.
A Tennessee native, Chandler graduated from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Air Force upon his commencement in 1984. Robert Chandler advanced to Lieutenant Colonel and became Chief of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at the Air Force’s largest medical center.
Chandler has extensive experience in cleft lip and palate reconstruction, burn reconstruction, facial plastic surgery (including blepharoplasties, brow lifts, and facelifts), breast surgeries (including breast reconstruction, breast reduction, and breast augmentation), and body contouring procedures.
Dr. Ellis Tavin
Dr. Ellis Tavin joined the Plastic Surgery Group in 2006 after ten years in solo practice in Charlotte, NC. Tavin built his North Carolina practice on the principles of attending to the individual patient’s needs and striving to create natural-looking results. Tavin continues to expand the PSG reputation on a national and international level. In point of fact, Tavin was one of only 125 doctors invited to present a paper during the scientific session of the 2013 meeting of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons in San Diego.
Tavin graduated cum laude with his Bachelor of Science in Biology from Yale University. He then attended medical school at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City. After a general surgery internship at Einstein and Montefiore Hospitals, he completed a four-year residency in Otolaryngology (Ear, Nose and Throat). He is now board-certified in both Plastic Surgery and Otolaryngology. He performs the full range of plastic surgery with special interests in short scar breast lift and breast reduction, body contouring after pregnancy or weight loss, Brazilian butt lift, nose reshaping, and male breast reduction.
Dr. Melissa Kath
Dr. Melissa Kath was brought on board the PSG team as a Board-Certified plastic surgeon in 2018. Kath was a biology major at Colorado College before attending medical school at the University of Minnesota. For her general surgery residency, she headed to our nation’s capital and the Washington Hospital Center in Washington, D.C. Kath made Memphis her next home as she completed her plastic surgery residency at our very own University of Tennessee Health Science Center. After a fellowship in Aesthetic and Reconstructive Breast Surgery with Dennis Hammond in Grand Rapids, MI, Kath again headed south to join the Plastic Surgery Group of Memphis.
Dr. Kath is proud of her work as a plastic surgeon, recognizing that every patient has their own unique set of challenges. She gives each patient she works with individualized care that takes into account their needs, goals, and desires. Kath knows that plastic surgery can be a life-changing experience, and as a plastic surgeon, she feels it is a privilege to be able to work with patients to give them the kind of care and results they deserve.
Dr. Carey Campbell
Dr. Carey Campbell put down her practice roots at the Memphis Plastic Surgery Group in 2018. Her interest in plastic surgery developed early in her life when her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer and was treated at the Plastic Surgery Group. This led to a high school internship at PSG under Dr. Lou Adams.
Her residency was in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at UT Southwestern, ranked multiple times by the U.S. World Report and Doximity as the country’s #1 Plastic Surgery training program. Her mentors were world-renowned surgeons, and she was appointed administrative chief resident in her final year.
Dr. Campbell provides state-of-the-art surgical and non-surgical facial rejuvenation, including facelifts, neck lifts, blepharoplasty, rhinoplasty, fillers and Botox and also specializes in body contouring with procedures like breast surgery, including augmentation, breast lift, and reduction, as well as breast cancer reconstruction, while putting an emphasis on the total patient experience. Plastic Surgery allows her to express her artistic eye to enhance a patient’s natural beauty.
Dr. Sarah Hammond
Dr. Sarah Hammond was welcomed to the team in 2019. Dr. Hammond graduated magna cum laude from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. She then moved to Memphis to earn her M.D. at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. She stayed in Memphis to complete a General Surgery residency at UT. She completed a residency in Plastic, Aesthetic, Reconstructive, and Transgender Surgery at the University of Miami, and she was appointed as Administrative Chief Resident during her final year.
She has a special interest in cleft lip and palate care, which was the original impetus for her desire to become a plastic surgeon. Dr. Hammond views the complexity of plastic surgery as a beautiful opportunity to have a more meaningful connection with her patients. Plastic surgery’s many possibilities allow her to get to know her patients’ desires and needs.
Going Above & Beyond with More Providers
To accommodate every patient and elevate their experience, PSG has two physician assistants (PAs) on the team. PAs are licensed clinicians who practice medicine in every specialty and setting. Trusted, rigorously educated and trained healthcare professionals, PAs are dedicated to expanding access to care and transforming health and wellness through patient-centered, team-based medical practice.
Allyn Farmer, PA-C
Allyn Farmer, PA-C, is a Physician Assistant who has been with PSG for ten years. Farmer grew up in Santiago, Chile, as a child of missionary parents. She earned an International Baccalaureate Diploma prior to returning to the United States to continue her education. She received her Bachelor of Science in Biology from Samford University in 2009, was accepted into the Surgical PA program of the University of Alabama at Birmingham and completed her training in 2011, earning her master’s degree.
At PSG, Allyn assists in surgery and helps with pre and postoperative care. She performs minor procedures in our office under local anesthetic and performs our nipple/areolar tattoos for women undergoing breast reconstruction. She enjoys working on our skincare side, helping run our Sciton laser and InMode Radiofrequency technologies for age spots, fine lines, and wrinkles.
Heather Draper, PA-C
Heather Draper, PA-C, joined PSG in 2021. Draper began her career as a Registered Dietitian and then went on to become a Physician Assistant. Draper worked in cardiovascular surgery before transitioning to plastic surgery. She has previously worked in plastic surgery at Regional One. That is where her passion for plastic surgery grew, and she loves collaborating with physicians, nurses, and healthcare teams to provide the highest quality of care to patients with PSG.
At PSG, Heather assists in surgery and helps with the preoperative and postoperative care of the patients. She also performs minor office procedures and enjoys working on our skincare side, helping run our Sciton laser and InMode Radiofrequency technologies for age spots, fine lines, and wrinkles.
New & Upcoming at PSG
PSG has dedicated time to growing the patient experience and surgical practice in Memphis. They are looking towards the future of aesthetics and patient care by creating the PS Skincare and Laser Center.
In 2020, PSG expanded its services and created its new PS Skincare and Laser Center. It has established itself as a Memphis aesthetic hub by offering various services, including Botox and dermal fillers, facial treatments and the latest in laser and radiofrequency technologies.
Having a team of highly trained and experienced board-certified surgeons, physician assistants, and registered nurses working together in one practice provides patients with the absolute best care and a catalog of options to fit their needs, goals and budget.
Celebrate 50 Years of PSG with Our Team
No milestone is complete without a celebration! Come celebrate 50 years of PSG history with our team on September 28th at 6:00 p.m. and enjoy special offers, shopping experiences, product and service giveaways, and visits with our doctors. See our website for more information.