Becker's ASC Review

23 Executive Briefing: Sponsored by: A cross the country, ASCs are preparing for an unprecedented influx of patients as an aging population looks to outpatient facilities for a growing number of procedures 1 . Chief among these are outpatient joint replacement surgeries which are expected to grow 73 percent from 1.1 million in 2020 to nearly 2 million by 2026 1 . Becker's ASC Review recently spoke with an expert on connected healthcare technology to understand major trends affecting the industry and how ASCs can overcome key challenges related to the entire orthopedic episode of patient care. Liane Teplitsky, vice president and general manager of technology and data solutions, Zimmer Biomet, discussed how ASCs can access needed solutions to many of their most prevalent needs. Key site-of-care shift challenges that have proven difficult to address in ASCs The immediate challenge facing ASCs is how to scale to meet the growing patient demand for same-day surgeries without sacrificing quality of care, value and patient satisfaction, explained Ms. Teplitsky. "In other industries, the challenges that come with a significant uptick in demand and volume, have been met by leveraging technology to automate and simplify complex and time-intensive processes to boost efficiencies," Ms. Teplitsky said. "In the healthcare industry, however, taking on these challenges has very real and very human consequences." Ms. Teplitsky went on to explain that for ASCs, where talented surgeons, nurses and care teams bring passion, expertise and — most importantly — a human element to the work they do, technology needs to be adopted with some careful considerations. For instance, how well will it integrate with existing workflows? Does it empower surgeons and care teams to make smarter, more informed choices? Does it create efficiencies that allow more patients to get care while raising the overall standard of patient experience explained Ms. Teplitsky. "Zimmer Biomet has been at the forefront of developing integrated digital and robotic technology solutions to address the unique needs of orthopedic surgeons, especially those working in outpatient facilities like ASCs," Ms. Teplitsky said. "In March 2020, we introduced our ASC Solutions offering, that delivers a portfolio of technologies, services and support to help ASCs enhance efficiencies and lower costs across the episode of care, as well as leverage data-driven insights to optimize care and the patient experience." Last month, Zimmer Biomet announced ZBEdge, the company's suite of integrated technologies designed to work in concert to support informed decision-making and help customers deliver greater value. ZBEdge connects and enhances surgical robotics platforms, remote care and patient engagement systems, clinically proven digital tools and guidance solutions, and data analytics. Working together, each of these pieces can share data across each patient's journey and deliver actionable clinical insights that can guide care decisions and personalize care. For ASC customers this could also help with key needs such as payer contracting and negotiation, and more. Important differences that integrated technologies have made for ASC customers To better understand the potential value of ZBEdge in an ASC setting from a clinician's perspective, James Ballard, MD, a board-certified orthopedic surgeon who specializes in outpatient joint replacement at an ASC also provided his perspective. Dr. Ballard has been one of the early adopters of a few components of ZBEdge to streamline his workflow and apply data-driven insights into everyday patient care. "For me, it was important not just to adopt technology for its own sake, but because it would make a real difference. Many of us in the surgical community fully appreciate the potential that data holds in terms of helping us make better decisions, but we also know that it's far easier to collect data than to use it. I was looking for a system designed to take that data and make sense of it quickly and easily — and that's where ZBEdge impressed me most," Dr. Ballard said. "I didn't want to fall into the trap of mistaking activity for achievement," Dr. Ballard added, highlighting the difference between collecting data and creating actionable insights. "If I was going to integrate technology into my workflow, it needed to be an improvement over the processes and systems that I already had in place." In his practice, Dr. Ballard uses multiple ZBEdge components: • ROSA® Knee System, which provides data-driven assistance, enhanced accuracy 2 and clinical insights in the operating room. Putting data to work to improve the patient experience: How connected technologies are empowering surgeons and enhancing orthopedic procedures in ASCs

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