Three ASC administrators answer the question: what headwinds are you preparing for next year?
Taylor Cera. Administrator of Orthopaedic Surgery Center (Boardman, Ohio): I think it's the continued pressures we are seeing in healthcare. There's no new secret coming, I don't think. Continued consolidation, decrease in reimbursements, maintaining referrals. We will continue to be proactive, innovative and not afraid to change and move forward in finding ways to produce solutions to these issues. I think ambulatory care is at the top of most executives' minds, so we're already in a good spot there. Looking at partnerships could be a valuable opportunity.
Myra Eleby-Hankerson, RN, MSN. Administrator of Midtown Surgery Center (New York City): Perceived reimbursement for procedures that have limited supported data to prove its effectiveness over time with 'new and improved technology.'
Christine Yoder, MSN, RN, CASC. Senior Vice President of Operations at U.S. Digestive Health (Exton, Pa.): No headwinds! We are expecting a great year in 2020. Looking forward to payers recognizing the value in ambulatory surgery centers and their engagement to shift the market.
Q: What are you looking forward to in 2020?
Fiona Stephen. Administrator of Vanguard Surgical Center (Maywood, N.J.): I am looking forward to becoming an in-network center. With our partnership and going in-network our volume will increase and we will be able to grow all our service lines.
TC: I'm looking forward to getting into our new center and offering the highest quality orthopedic care to our community.
From a business standpoint, it will be interesting to see what CMS decides to do with total knee replacements in ASCs. It's an interesting time. This will be a game-changer in orthopedics. I can tell you we're ready for whatever they decide. Secondly, as we begin to use more data-analytics for decision making and efficiently running our operations, I'd like to see what data our new software puts out and how we will use this to continue to streamline operations.
To participate in future thought leadership opportunities, contact Laura Dyrda at ldyrda@beckershealthcare.com.