30 Predictions on the Future of Ambulatory Surgery Centers
Becker's ASC Review queried a number of ambulatory surgery center physicians, administrators and company executives asking them to make predictions pertaining to the immediate, short- and long-term future of ASCs and the ASC industry. Click to continue »
Will There Be Enough Physician-Investors in ASCs in the Future?
At a time when some physician-owners of surgery centers are entering hospital employment or contemplate retirement, there may not be enough physician-investors to take their place, some officials at ASC management companies say. Click to continue »
Finding the ‘New Spine’: 7 Procedures Moving Into the ASC Setting
If surgery center leaders can identify and add an up-and-coming procedure to their list of approved procedures prior to their competitors doing such, they may be able to corner the market and profit tremendously before the surgery becomes widespread. Click to continue »
135 of the Leading Ophthalmologists in America
Here are profiles of 135 leading ophthalmologists in the United States. They were selected for this list based on the awards they received from major organizations in the field, leadership in those organizations, work on professional publications and their positions of service. Click to continue »
From Surgery Center Administrator to Executive: 4 Industry Leaders Discuss Their Transition
Many of today's ambulatory surgery center management and development company leaders made a name for themselves as administrators before moving into the role of executive. Click to continue »
Top 10 Orthopedic Procedures in Surgery Centers by Volume
Here are the 10 most-performed orthopedic procedures in freestanding outpatient surgery centers in 2009, according to SDI's Free-standing Outpatient Surgery Centers Database (2009 data year). Procedures are listed by CPT code, long name description and total volume. Click to continue »
100 Surgery Center Benchmarks
Here are 100 benchmarking statistics on processes and outcomes at ambulatory surgery centers across the country. Data is compiled from ASC Association surveys, VMG Health's Multi-Specialty Intellimarker and SDI's Outpatient Surgery Profiling Solution. Click to continue »
10 Metrics for Measuring Physician Performance
Measuring physician performance in an ambulatory surgery center has become essential, says Sandy Berreth, administrator of Brainerd Lakes Surgery Center in Baxter, Minn. Click to continue »
10 Key Financial Metrics to Measure in a Surgery Center
John J. Goehle, COO of Ambulatory Healthcare Strategies in Albany and Rochester, N.Y., identifies 10 key financial metrics to measure in an ambulatory surgery center. Click to continue »
50 Benchmarks of 5 Top ASC Specialties
Here are 50 benchmarks of five top ASC specialties. Statistics come from various sources identified at the end of the column and specialties were chosen based on the top five most desirable specialties as ranked by HealthCare Appraisers. Orthopedic spine was excluded from this list due to lack of available data. Click to continue »
4 Things You Should Know About the ASC Quality and Access Act of 2011
In June, Reps. Pete Sessions (R-TX) and John Larson (D-CT) and Sens. Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Mike Crapo (R-ID) introduced the Ambulatory Surgery Center Quality and Access Act of 2011 into the U.S. Congress. Click to continue »
12 Important Questions to Ask Before Changing Anesthesia Care
As ambulatory surgery centers look for ways to maintain and grow their bottom line, more centers are changing their anesthesia care services to access more revenue. Click to continue »
6 Ways to Ensure Clinical Quality While Switching Anesthesia Providers
Thomas Wherry, MD, principal for Total Anesthesia Solutions and consulting medical director for Health Inventures, discusses six ways surgery center administrators can ensure clinical quality during a transition between anesthesia providers. Click to continue »
5 Traits to Look For in an Anesthesia Group
The right anesthesia group can keep your surgeons happy and your ASC running efficiently, while the wrong group can derail your schedule and endanger patient safety. Click to continue »
Adding a Total Joint Program to a Surgery Center: Q&A With John Brock of NorthStar Surgical Center
NorthStar Surgical Center in Lubbock, Texas, began offering total knee, uni-knee, total ankle and total shoulder procedures at the beginning of the year. Click to continue »
Future of the Freestanding Surgery Center: Q&A With Barry Tanner of Physicians Endoscopy
Barry Tanner is president and CEO of Physicians Endoscopy in Doylestown, Pa. Click to continue »
Top 5 Vulnerabilities of Surgery Centers in the Next Few Years
Nap Gary, COO of Regent Surgical Health in Westchester, Ill., lists the top five vulnerabilities of surgery centers in the next few years. Click to continue »
Who Can Pay More for a Surgery Center: Hospital or Management Company?
Like surgery center management companies, hospitals are restricted from paying above fair market value for a surgery center under the Anti-Kickback Statute because of the referral relationship between the physician-owners and the center. Click to continue »
9 Observations on the ASC Market
ASCs are seeing more uncertainty than at any time in the last decade. This article provides several observations related to the ASC market. Click to continue »
ASCs Take on Lap-Band Surgery, But Payors Still Have to Catch Up
Laparoscopic gastric band surgery, buoyed by an obesity epidemic and improved clinical outcomes, has become a viable option for ambulatory surgery centers, but payors have been slow in extending coverage to surgery centers. Click to continue »
Laparoscopic Bariatric Procedures Increased From 2003-2008
The number of laparoscopic bariatric procedures increased from 2003-2008, partly due to wider use of laparoscopic techniques and patients' greater acceptance, according to a report in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons. Click to continue »
Debridement Most Confusing ICD-9-CM Subcategory Among Coders
Debridement is the ICD-9-CM subcategory that causes the most confusion among coders, based on a study published in the summer issue of Perspectives in Health Information Management. Click to continue »
Trends & Developments Shaping IT in Surgery Centers: Q&A With Scott Palmer of SourceMedical
Scott Palmer, president and COO of SourceMedical's surgery division, discusses the effect of information technology on ambulatory surgery centers. Click to continue »
6 Out-of-the-Box Ideas to Cut Costs on Surgery Center Supplies
Tom O'Bannon, director western alliance value optimization at Amerinet, discusses seven out-of-the-box ideas for ambulatory surgery centers to cut costs on supplies. Click to continue »
MDs, CRNAs and Care Teams: The Ins and Outs of 4 Anesthesia Care Models
Surgery centers have several options for anesthesia provider models, depending on surgeon preference, local anesthesia market conditions, surgery center size and revenue and federal or state regulatory requirements. Click to continue »
New Regulations for Reporting Anesthesia Time Start Jan. 2012
A universal system for reporting anesthesia time to payors will go into effect Jan. 1, 2012, as part of the transition to HIPAA 5010, according to an ASA release. Click to continue »
What Management Companies Want: 10 Statistics on Surgery Center Owners and Operators
Here are 10 statistics on surgery center management companies, according to HealthCare Appraisers' 2010 ASC Valuation Survey. Click to continue »