Becker's ASC Review

25 JOINT VENTURES Health system adding 4 ASCs in Arizona: 6 details By Alan Condon Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Apricus Health plans to add four ASCs in the state this year, the Phoenix Business Journal reported Feb. 15. Six details: 1. Two of those surgery centers are expected to open this summer — a $6.7 million development in Avondale and a $5 million facility in Surprise. 2. The ASCs will be equipped to serve 5,000 patients a year in the West Valley region, which is projected to grow at twice the national rate over the next five years, according to the report. 3. Apricus Health Surgery Center of Avondale will have three operating rooms, two procedure rooms and 16 patient care bays staffed by 40 clini- cians and administrative employees. 4. Apricus Health Surgery Center of Surprise, a joint venture with Peak Heart & Vascular, will employ 60 staff and include three operating rooms, one catheterization lab and 13 patient care bays. 5. The health system said it also plans to add two ASCs in Flagstaff and Mesa by the end of 2023. 6. Apricus Health's network includes 20 medical groups and 1,400 provid- ers in Arizona. It was founded by cardiologist Kishlay Anand, MD, in 2019, according to its website. n USPI, GI Alliance ink deal for 2 Texas endoscopy centers By Riz Hatton G I Alliance and United Surgical Partners International formed a joint venture for two Texas en- doscopy centers, according to a Jan. 25 press release. The partnership includes GAB Endos- copy Center in San Antonio and South Plains Endoscopy Center in Lubbock. Both are co-owned by GI Alliance's physi- cian partners. GI Alliance serves nearly 60 physicians from 24 practices in San Antonio and Lubbock and supports more than 665 independent gastroenterologists across 12 states. USPI is a subsidiary of Tenet Healthcare Corp. with more than 430 facilities across the U.S. n Sine ASC completed in North Carolina By Marcus Robertson R aleigh Neurological Clinic and Compass Surgical Partners opened a joint venture ASC in Raleigh, N.C., where both organizations are head- quartered. Raleigh Neurosurgical and Spine Surgery Center is an 8,500-square-foot facility with one operating room, four preopera- tive bays, seven post-anesthesia bays and two procedure rooms, construction firm Danis said Jan. 6. Compass said June 17 that the ASC is the first spine-focused surgery center in North Carolina's Triangle region. n Mississippi joint venture surgery center marks 20 years of success By Marcus Robertson T he Oxford (Miss.) Surgery Center is celebrating 20 years of provid- ing care for the region, Hotty Toddy News reported Jan. 26. The freestanding multispecialty ASC remains the area's only sur- gery center, the report said. The center's surgeons have performed more than 68,000 surgeries since it opened in October 2001 as a joint venture between area physicians and Memphis, Tenn.-based Baptist Memorial Health Care. "The Oxford Surgery Center has accomplished a lot during its first 20 years and has positively impacted the healthcare community by offering additional options for those who are in need of surgery," said Bill Hen- ning, administrator and CEO of Baptist Memorial Hospital-North Missis- sippi in Oxford. "The partnership between Baptist and OSC has been a natural one, as our goals align, of providing high-quality, value-based care for our patients." The ASC partnered with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Mississippi for total hip and knee replacements, the report said. The center has performed 316 total joint surgeries since October 2020, and as of Jan. 1, 2021, it has been the only BCBS provider of outpatient total hip and knees in North Mississippi. n

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