Becker's ASC Review

18 ASC Transactions subscribe today free educational up-to-date Visit beckersorthopedicandspine.com or call (800) 417-2035 BECKER'S SPINE REVIEW E-WEEKLY Dr. Fred Davis And some hospitals are happy for the extra oper- ating room space as well. "If you can unburden the hospital from something that's costly and bring it to an environment where it costs less, it's beneficial," says Fred Davis, MD, president and co-founder of ProCare Systems. "e diseases of the aging population will have a huge impact over the next several years; orthopedic and neuromuscular conditions are number one with heart disease and cancer care right behind." e more progressive hospitals are joint ventur- ing with physicians on ASCs and aligning with the outpatient providers in their communities to build larger perioperative surgical homes and campuses that could transform the healthcare experience. ASCs traditionally focused on just the surgical ep- isode — physicians' offices coordinated pre- and postoperative care, and sent patients to separate providers for rehabilitation. But this is no longer acceptable in the age of integrated medicine. "e bigger picture is how ASCs are going to fit into the transformation of the perioperative surgi- cal home and systems of care covering the episode of care," says Dr. Davis. "How can ASCs best pre- pare themselves to integrate with the episodic and chronic care patients require?" Partnerships are one solution. ASCs are working with other independent provid- ers in their area, including physical therapy, reha- bilitation, home health services and skilled nurs- ing facilities to create medical campuses or virtual complexes addressing the continuum of care. e medical home can help with pre-procedure coun- seling, weight loss and smoking cessation. ey're also including non-traditional health services, such as nutritionists, psychological and behavioral care and fitness experts. "is embeds the ASC in the healthcare system and makes them more indispensable," says Dr. Davis. "You need a strategic vision for how the system will work and the leadership to bring all the parties to the table. You have to have enough clout within all the organizations involved. You need a champion, but also the decision-maker must be high enough in the organization to make the collaborations happen." e key elements for building a perioperative medical home include: 1. A strong leader with the right clinical skills and respect from their peers to take the helm. When physicians don't have the time or ex- pertise to lead, they'll work with management companies to organize all parties involved. "Now you are getting a whole class of physi- cians who are understanding the business world and bridging the gap between clinical and administrative functions," says Dr. Davis. 2. Becoming part of a larger organization, whether it's the perioperative medical home or part of a hospital system, gives the organi- zation negotiating power and leverage. "ese organizations will be viable if they can deliver an excellent work experience where they can work at the top of their license and others can handle the management side of the practice," says Dr. Davis. 3. e larger organizations allow physicians control over their clinical and professional life. "ere will always be physicians who want to work where they are appreciated, contribut- ing and adequately reimbursed where they are respected and have some control," says Dr. Davis. is is where ASCs and large indepen- dent physician organizations will thrive. 4. Health information technology is the foun- dation of the larger organizations. e infor- mation technology helps people collaborate and provides data portability to multiple lo- cations. "You can't do this without health IT, leadership and management," says Dr. Davis. "ere are more freedoms with more data collection and transparency. You can become more independent because information tech- nology disrupted the entire field." 5. e aging population will drive healthcare trends going forward, including the desire for integrated care in the perioperative medical home. e aging population will drive volume including orthopedic surgery, cataract sur- gery and colonoscopies. "We have a lot more information available about who our patients will be and we can tailor our operations to- ward them," says Dr. Davis. n Healthcare is Barreling Toward Integration— 5 Key Thoughts on Where ASCs Fit (continued from cover) SCA Partners With Surgery Center of Athens By Carrie Pallardy e 13 physicians of Surgery Center of Athens (Ga.) have formed a new partnership with Surgical Care Affiliates. Here are four things to know about the partnership. e new partnership went into effect Dec. 1. e Surgery Center of Athens is a multispecialty facility offering ENT, gastroenterology, general surgery, gynecology, ophthalmology, orthopedics, podiatry and urology services. With this new collaboration, SCA now has three locations in Georgia. "e addition of SCA as a partner strengthens our ability to continue to provide high quality surgical services to our patients for the long term. e changes in the healthcare system require that doctors have a strong management partner to continue to provide cost-effective alternatives to our patients," said John Dorris, MD, an orthopedic surgeon and founding physician of the Surgery Center of Athens. As of Sept. 30, SCA operated 194 facilities in partnership with 2,600 phy- sicians. n

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