Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1479222
36 THOUGHT LEADERSHIP Why private equity is bettering orthopedics, 3 physician leaders say By Carly Behm P rivate equity investment is an evolving force in orthopedics and can give practices an advantage in the market, according to physicians part of the July merger of two management services organizations. United Musculoskeletal Partners and Novum Orthopedic Partners merged, and Denver-based Panorama Orthopedics and Dallas-based Arlington Orthopedic Associates joined as founding partners. Raj Bhole, MD; Eric Wieser, MD; and Mark Conklin, MD, are leaders of the founding partners, and they spoke with Becker's about private equity and their outlook for orthopedics. Note: Responses were edited for clarity and length. Question: What's your outlook for private equity in orthopedics? Do you think it's doing more good or harm to the specialty overall? Dr. Raj Bhole. UMP Board Member and Chair of Resurgens Orthopedics (Atlanta): Private equity has successful roots in healthcare. Private equity in orthopedics is in an early stage, and it will certainly continue to evolve and mature. But the core principles of physicians maintaining leadership, decision authority and equity ownership are sound. As these markets continue to consolidate amongst hospitals, healthcare systems and managed care organizations, it is essential that patients seeking high-quality, cost-effective care, and physicians striving to practice medicine in an independent, private practice setting, have choices. UMP provides that choice. Dr. Eric Wieser. UMP Board Member and Vice President of Arlington Orthopedic Associates (Dallas): I think private equity is good for the specialty because it allows physicians to really focus on what's important — practicing medicine and giving our patients the best care possible. Private equity gives us the advantage of having access to the capital that we need to expand and having people with business training take care of running our groups efficiently and growing the business. Dr. Mark Conklin. UMP Board Member and President of Panorama Orthopedics (Denver): I think private equity is a great opportunity for orthopedics to really solidify our future. We compete against health systems and in some cases, managed care companies that are coming in and have really deep pockets. is is our way to solidify our future in the market and be able to grow with the capital that we need. Healthcare is a business, and it becomes complicated when we're trying to practice medicine to also focus on growing our business in order to compete in the market. Private equity provides expertise and experience in the business side, which is a huge plus. Establishing value-based care is also very important, but is a very expensive thing to try to do. It involves a large number of physicians and a larger geographical area to accomplish that. Consolidation has been around for a long time. ere are lots of large orthopedic groups around the country. In a lot of cases they're just a merger of smaller groups and probably not as integrated as we plan on becoming. So I see private equity being here to stay, and I think it will continue to grow. n Hoag's joint replacement chief on the future of orthopedic robots By Carly Behm I rvine, Calif.-based Hoag Orthopedic Institute has grown its robotic arsenal in 2022, installing its fourth system in August. Nader Nassif, MD, HOI's division chief of joint replacement, told Becker's about his outlook for robots in orthopedics. Note: Responses were edited for clarity. Question: What considerations do you weigh when deciding to try new surgical technology? Dr. Nader Nassif: I think the biggest considerations when deciding on any new technology is value. We need to consider how this is going to make a real impact in the outcome of a patient's procedure versus the cost, including capital purchase, additional operating room time, disposables. There are some really "cool" technologies out there right now that are just fancy gadgets and provide no improvement in patient care. Those technologies cost the healthcare system. Q: What aspects of orthopedic robots need more development? NN: Robots continue to improve in the way they are being implemented both in the tools used as well as the software. Improved efficiency of the tools as well as improved robotic intelligence will be important in the next generation of robotically assisted tools. Q: How do you think orthopedic robots will change in the next five years? NN: In the next five years, I believe that the data currently being gathered by robots will be able to be fed back into the systems for improved decision support to the surgeons. Q: What advice do you have for students and early- career surgeons who want to use robots without becoming over reliant on the tech? NN: Robots do not make surgeons better, but robots can help good surgeons execute plans they have otherwise been unable to do with traditional analogue instruments. For early-career surgeons it is paramount that they learn to operate without the assistance of technology first to hone their skill, perfect basic principles. In real life, surgeons may not necessarily have a robot for every case. What if the robot is not functioning? Surgeons cannot be entirely reliant on technology. n