At the 10th Annual Orthopedic, Spine and Pain Management-Driven ASC Conference in Chicago on June 14, R. Blake Curd, MD, board chairman of Surgical Management Professionals, shared three business issues for hand surgery in ASCs.
1. Implant costs. Dr. Curd suggested ASCs work with payors to get carve-outs for hand surgery. "You might be surprised at how willing payors are in some instances to pay some of those costs," Dr. Curd said. "They'll be resistant at first, but it's definitely worth the battle."
2. Anesthesia. To provide appropriate anesthesia services to hand surgery patients, ASCs need to partner with and engage the anesthesia team. Premedicating hand surgery patients can decrease post-surgery narcotic use, according to Dr. Curd. "Stopping pain before it occurs makes a big difference in pain perception and drug utilization [post-surgery]," he said.
3. Cost per case. ASCs should calculate cost per case for hand surgery procedures and share the results with physicians to drive down costs. "Education with physicians about what the cost is of what they do is important, especially the younger ones right out of training," Dr. Curd said.
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1. Implant costs. Dr. Curd suggested ASCs work with payors to get carve-outs for hand surgery. "You might be surprised at how willing payors are in some instances to pay some of those costs," Dr. Curd said. "They'll be resistant at first, but it's definitely worth the battle."
2. Anesthesia. To provide appropriate anesthesia services to hand surgery patients, ASCs need to partner with and engage the anesthesia team. Premedicating hand surgery patients can decrease post-surgery narcotic use, according to Dr. Curd. "Stopping pain before it occurs makes a big difference in pain perception and drug utilization [post-surgery]," he said.
3. Cost per case. ASCs should calculate cost per case for hand surgery procedures and share the results with physicians to drive down costs. "Education with physicians about what the cost is of what they do is important, especially the younger ones right out of training," Dr. Curd said.
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