Sunny Uppal, MD, of Riverside, Calif.-based Glenwood Surgical Center, outlines considerations for ASCs before diving into the spine service as well as which spine procedure he believes will shift to the outpatient arena next.
Dr. Uppal will be speaking at the Becker's 16th Annual Future of Spine + The Orthopedic, Spine and Pain Management-Driven ASC Conference. To learn more and register, click here. Contact Maura Jodoin at mjodoin@beckershealthcare.com or Kristelle Khazzaka at Kkhazzaka@beckershealthcare.com for further information about sponsorship and exhibitor opportunities.
Question: What should an ASC consider before adding spine surgery to its services?
Dr. Sunny Uppal: The type of spine cases done at an ASC is based on:
• Safety of the patient in doing the case in an ambulatory environment. This includes the comorbidities of the patient, skill of the surgeon and quality of the surgery center and staff member competence.
• Case cost and reimbursement ratio
• Acceptance of the procedure by the community as the medical standard of care of an ambulatory procedure.
Q: Which spine procedures do you think will move outpatient next?
SU: The limiting factor in cases done at ASCs is soft tissue dissection and pain control. The next type of case that will move to the ACS will include any case in which soft tissue dissection can be minimized. This will include minimal invasive techniques to place posterior pedicle instrumentation for lumbar fusions.