Towson, Md.-based SurgCenter Development started 2019 off in full-on growth-mode, with the company entering into several new partnerships to begin the year.
With more than 200 facilities developed since its inception, SurgCenter currently touts a portfolio of 119 operational facilities across 25 states, with 12 under development.
Now, halfway through 2019, SurgCenter Development's COO Greg Fox, MD, offered Becker's ASC Review several insights into the company and its future.
Note: Responses were edited for style and clarity.
Question: How would you describe SurgCenter Development to someone who hasn't heard of it before?
Dr. Greg Fox: SurgCenter empowers surgeons. We are the most prolific and effective de novo surgery center developer in the industry, creating high-quality, low-overhead patient- and surgeon-centric ASCs with long-term sustainability. Our model allows physicians to focus on what they do best, patient care, while we focus on the success of the partnership.
Q: What's in store for the rest of 2019?
GF: We've already opened nine new facilities this year and will continue this trend with 12 centers currently under development. We will also remain the industry leader in outpatient joint replacements, hitting 40,000 joint replacements performed at our facilities in the next few weeks. When it comes to rapid growth and maximizing value through complex service lines, SurgCenter is out front.
Q: Three years down the road, what will the company become?
GF: We have always been and always will be, first and foremost, a surgery center development company. While payer strategies, operational efficiencies and patient engagement are always evolving, we will continue to focus on what we do better than anyone else: develop surgery centers.
Q: What is one trend emerging in the ASC space that you've taken notice of and think others should notice?
GF: Patients are really paying attention and becoming more educated about their surgical care, which is a good thing. Years ago, physicians had to explain the concept of an ASC to their patients. These days patients are reluctant to have surgery in hospitals and are requesting the ASC setting, an indicator that patients are better informed of the quality and cost benefits of different sites of service.