Administrator to Know: Robert McDavitt of Spring Surgery Center

Robert McDavitt, RN, MBA, CASC (Spring Surgery Center, Montgomery County, Texas). Mr. McDavitt is the administrator of the Spring Surgery Center in Montgomery County, Texas. The center, scheduled to open in May 2009, will be multi-specialty and offer GI, followed by pain management, orthopedics, plastics and spine as the center becomes established.

Prior to joining Spring Surgery Center in Feb. 2009, Mr. McDavitt worked in many aspects of the ASC industry. He has been an administrator since 2003, and has worked with National Surgical Care and assisted a center enter into a corporate partnership with AmSurg. Mr. McDavitt is also a registered nurse and worked in the emergency department and ICU. Before coming to the ASC industry, he was a COO assistant administrator for a long-term acute care hospital chain. "I guess you could say I have worked with the longest- and shortest-stay patients," he says.

Part of what Mr. McDavitt thinks makes him a strong leader is his willingness to examine other industries for examples of effective business practices.

"I usually try to look outside of healthcare to other business models for inspiration," Mr. McDavitt says of his leadership style. He has attended several training programs offered by Disney and has applied what he learned to the ASC industry. "The other thing that I have figured out is that building strong partnerships with credible, qualified vendors and great physician relationship skills are critical to success in the surgery center business."

Mr. McDavitt appreciates the bonds he has created with physicians, staff and companies that he has worked with, especially while building Spring Surgery Center. This appreciation has carried over into his management style. "I try to stay humble and help others whenever I can because, goodness knows, I have been blessed with people helping me," he says.

Most of all, Mr. McDavitt enjoys working with the patients, employees and physicians. "I try to take my clinical knowledge, use good financial judgment and make decisions as a team, rather than an individual," he says. "You are close enough to the delivery of care that you can make a difference in patient's, employee's or physician's life."

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