Healthcare providers have given Becker's insight on a number of topics ranging from COVID-19 to leadership to ASC independence.
Here are 11 insights shared with Becker's in July:
The tech changing the ASC industry: Leaders weigh in
Jennifer Myers. Business Office Manager at Pacific Surgical Center (Longview, Wash.): I think with the pandemic we have seen great strides in remote access technology. From Zoom meetings to televisits, it forced people to use this technology. Patients now are used to being told to either remote in or use an app to access their provider and records. And in turn, providers give information in a more timely and secure manner.
Will ASCs mandate COVID-19 vaccines for staff?
Christina Holloway. Administrator of ASC Bala Cynwyd (Pa.): Our centers have not yet instituted an employment requirement for COVID-19 vaccination but are paying close attention to the country's majority response as many of the large health systems trend in that direction. As clinicians, we want to offer the safest environment of care possible for those needing and choosing to integrate medical interventions on every level. The community should feel less stressed when actively pursuing any level of health management, and requiring vaccines for those in practice is a realistic way to accomplish that goal.
ASC leaders on the future of the payer market
Andrew Lovewell. Administrator of the Surgical Center at Columbia (Mo.) Orthopaedic Group: A truly bold thing that could happen would be that the insurance (commercial) payers come out and actually launch steerage programs to centers of excellence across the nation. This can't be a race to the bottom, though. It has to be a focus on quality work with possibly a tiered approach for outcomes. For years, ASCs have been doing total joint and spine cases but haven't been as handsomely rewarded as they need to be.
7 physicians share their worst investments, decisions
Gordon Tang, MD. Neurosurgeon at Sutter Health (Sacramento, Calif.): [For] investments, thinking that I could pick stocks. Turns out next to no one can. While I convinced myself for years that I was doing a good job, picking Apple at $16/share or other occasional home runs, I still didn't come close to the returns of a simple passive index fund like the Vanguard S&P 500. [In medicine], trying to be all things to all people. Even in something as scientific as medicine, people come in all shapes and sizes, and my skills, especially personal ones, are not ideally suited to every type of person. Understanding that has helped me reverse much of the wasted time, frustrations and inefficiencies earlier in my career. [For] life, [it was] thinking that making the most rational decision is the best decision. Reality isn't that simple.
Will Biden's exec order spark a flurry of ASC acquisitions or more independence?
Tracy Helmer, BSN, RN. Administrator of Seven Hills ASC (Henderson, Nev.): Hospital systems acquiring ambulatory centers will become more prominent as they will want to have control over the number of competitive entities that threaten their elective surgical volume. The ASC will always remain the cost-conscious, and in some cases, significantly safer alternative than the hospital setting. The only option that hospital systems have is to scoop up the competition, if possible.
What's the ideal leadership model for ASCs?
Gabriel Figueroa. Administrator of Manhattan Reproductive Surgery Center (New York City): Leadership is something that must happen at every level. Fostering an environment where everyone on the team understands how they impact the success or failure of reaching the objective, whatever that may be, is essential to achieving it. Leaders must be willing to check their egos, be humble and listen to what the team has to say. This doesn't mean decisions are made by committee, it means empowering your people to learn to have ownership of what they're doing. You don't get that by saying, "It's my way or the highway." You get that by saying, "That's an interesting perspective, I hadn't thought of it like that." Lastly, you must do, not just talk. It's great to say all of the above, but without action, it's meaningless.
4 bold predictions for the ASC industry
Shane Ricks, RN. Administrator of Millennium Surgery Center (Meridian, Idaho): The ASC industry will continue to grow by leaps and bounds. The consolidation of the Medicare hospital outpatient departments and ASC fee schedules will play a major part in the movement of surgeries to the ASC space. The ability to perform more complex cases in the ASC space will continue to increase opportunities for growth. COVID-19 revealed a fragile health system. Ambulatory services have the ability to quickly and safely adjust to disruptions to the system. ASCs proved this throughout the pandemic. I can only see exponential growth over the next five years and beyond.
What will PE do to GI care? 4 physicians weigh in
Larry Schiller, MD. Digestive Health Associates of Texas (Dallas): Private-equity organizations will continue to vacuum up private practices throughout the country as older gastroenterologists see the potential to cash out. The challenge for PE organizations will be to use their scale to build value, but expenses can only be cut so far without impacting the quality of services. Competition from hospital or medical school-based practice groups eventually will limit the growth of PE organizations in larger communities. Consolidation of PE organizations will be the next stage of growth for these businesses with disposition of these larger entities uncertain at present. Possible outcomes include going public with an initial public offering of shares once a critical size is reached, or sale to health care systems or private insurance companies. For gastroenterologists individually, salaries should be stable for the near term, but opportunities to profit from ancillary services may be limited.
What 8 ASC leaders learned in the past year
David Bittner. CEO of OAA Orthopaedic Specialists (Allentown, Pa.): 2020 was a year of pandemic crisis that came with challenges and opportunities. The challenges were the constant adaptation needed to continue to provide excellence in care — to provide both safety to our team members and patients, while still providing a patient experience that is second-to-none. The mission is safe patient care, so it was, and always is, "all hands on deck." Most importantly, we focused on family — here at OAA we treat each other and our patients like family. I am confident everyone would agree that there is no task too grand to accomplish on behalf of your family. We executed the year with precision and a steadfast focus of safety and adaptation to change. The lesson here is that together, as an independent family, our internal relationships can lead us to accomplish anything we set our minds upon.
How important is independence to ASCs?
Alfonso del Granado. Administrator of Covenant High Plains Surgery Center (Lubbock, Texas): Although we are a joint venture with a national management company and a regional hospital system, the majority of the shares are divided among 44 physician partners who value their independence above all. The result is a strong governing board that carefully balances the interests of the center with the realities of the society in which we operate. We provide an outlet for physicians who do not feel the local hospitals are allowing them to meet their patients' needs adequately, physicians who want their voices heard and those who value a strong sense of pride of ownership.
3 biggest threats to ASCs
Raghu Reddy. Executive Administrator at SurgCenter of Western Maryland (Cumberland): The most significant external threat is marketplace competition and/or domination by the hospital systems or its affiliates, mainly by physician employment and through hospital-owned ASCs or joint ventures. The hospital JVs are on the rise in many states, especially when physicians are selling their practices to the hospitals or joining supergroups that may affiliate with a hospital to minimize the politics. The health systems could make it hard if you plan to have a 100 percent physician-owned ASC or even in partnership with a management company, depending on the ASC location.