Becker's ASC Review

17 THOUGHT LEADERSHIP Cherise Brown. Administrator of Andover (Kansas) Ambulatory Surgery Center: ere are many reasons patients choose an ASC over the hospital setting. Patients generally have anxiety when a surgery is scheduled. ASCs aren't as institutionalized, and being in a smaller environment is more desirable. A lot of ASCs are freestanding, and there aren't several floors to navigate and check-in is readily available when they enter the building. ASCs are less expensive and they pay less co-insurance for their pro- cedure. e upfront transparency of what the patient will owe out of pocket is another big reason patients prefer an ASC. In ad- dition, patients are able to schedule their procedure much quicker versus having to work around the OR schedule of a hospital as emergency cases take priority. Debbie Smith. Administrator of Heart of Texas Surgery Center (Woodway): I believe what draws patients to ASCs is cost and convenience. Brandon ompson, RN. Administrator of CarePlex Orthopaedic ASC (Hampton, Va.): I think that it's the surgeons that are driving this. When COVID-19 was at its height, the only option for most was to per- form procedures within the ASC. rough this, surgeons discovered that the processes that ASCs have in place for efficiency, cost containment and consistent staffing provides a much more stress-free environment for them to work in. Kathleen Hickman, RN. Administrator of Dutchess Ambulatory Surgical Center (Poughkeepsie, N.Y.): I think the CO- VID-19 pandemic has certainly contributed to patients moving to the ASC setting as they look for environments where transmis- sion may be reduced. I also feel that the efficiencies of an ASC setting are becoming more apparent to patients and, as consum- ers, they look for a "quicker" way to manage their surgical care. ey do not want to wait in the hospital for long periods of time when they can have a scheduled time for admis- sion and discharge, which can generally be achieved. Amy Fox. Administrator at ORA Orthope- dics (Moline, Ill.): Cost and healthy patients being served in ASC settings. Allison Stock, BSN, RN. Administrator of Lenox Surgery Center (Lenox Town- ship, Mich.): Patients are becoming much more insurance savvy. Patients' deductibles keep climbing, and they are looking for the best low-cost care. I believe patients are seeking out ASCs over hospitals because they recognize the more personalized and efficient care that they receive in the ASC setting. When the pandemic hit, patients were afraid to go to the hospital because of fear of the virus. e pandemic helped push even more patients to the ASC space, and now they don't want to return to the hospital unless necessary. David Horace. Administrator and Owner of Bel-Clair Surgical Center (Belleville, Ill.): Getting procedures done in a per- ceived "safe environment" due to lack of COVID-19 patients and lower Medicare coinsurance than the hospital setting. Andres Duran. Administrator of Browns- ville (Texas) Surgery Center: Faster turnaround times, and that all the cases are outpatient procedures. Less expensive, high- quality outcomes. n ASCs operating at 'breakneck' speed to compete with HOPD staffing By Armani Washington S andra Berreth, RN, director of the Foothill Surgery Cen- ter at Sansum Clinic in Santa Barbara, Calif., spoke to Becker's about solutions to the biggest challenges in ASCs today. Editor's note: This piece was edited lightly for clarity and length. Question: What are the solutions to the biggest challenges you're seeing for ASCs today? Sandra Berreth: Truthfully, if I had the answer I would be the most sought out person in the ASC industry. Here are the challenges that I hear every day from ASC managers: staff- ing, staffing and staffing. Do you see a trend? … An ASC can- not do anything without staff. Employees are registered nurses (these are talented people who are well-trained to deliver a superior product on a daily basis); surgical technologists (again, these wonderfully tal- ented people, just like the nurse, can never have a bad day, make a mistake or just be tired). Surgeons expect surgical technologists to know their every move; in fact, sometimes the surgeons depend on that knowledge. There's also ma- terials management (these folks are the people that have to get what everyone wants when they want it.) Next is the sterile processing department. Infection control is their middle name… If they make a mistake, infection con- trol is at risk, and with ASCs having less than 1 percent infec- tion reports, these people have a lot to live up to. There's also office personnel and support staff. Just think, they have to greet the patient at what might be one of the scariest moments of a person's life. They are often the first vi- sual impression of the entire organization; it is up to them to be welcoming and friendly while asking for signatures, lots of signatures and … deductibles and copays. All healthcare personnel are being challenged to be better and do more. It doesn't matter if you are in an ASC (where it is hard work) or teaching in a major medical center. No one wants to do the hardest, most difficult jobs there are, and ASC personnel are expected to perform daily with only thanks from their administration. ASCs cannot compete with hospital wages, as our reim- bursement is less than 50 percent of what a hospital out- patient department reimbursement is. Here is the issue: HOPDs offer the same hours as the ASC, with the added hospital benefits and increased wages. How can ASCs com- pete with that? Simply, we can't, so every day, we work at breakneck speed and efficiency, employing everything we know to maintain the cleanest environment and safest work- ing conditions, and above all, we keep the patient safe, with the highest patient satisfaction rate in the industry. n

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