Ambulatory Surgery

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Study shows large shift in cataract surgery from hospitals to ASCs

Editor's Note National data show a large shift in cataract surgeries from hospitals to less expensive ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs), where care can be delivered faster and closer to home, this study finds. From 2001 to 2014, the proportion of cataract surgeries performed at ASCs increased steadily from 43.6% to…

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By: Judy Mathias
November 27, 2017
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Peer review inspires high performance from providers

Peer review is a hot topic in the quality arena as many ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) strive to create meaningful and sustainable evaluation of their providers. “As a surveyor, I can tell you peer review trips everybody up,” says Ann Geier, MS, RN, CNOR, CASC, chief nursing officer of Surgical…

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By: Leslie Flowers
November 15, 2017
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CMS finalizes outpatient PPS, ASC payment system, quality reporting changes for 2018

Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on November 1 announced it will update the hospital outpatient prospective payment system rates by 1.35%. The final rule also removes total knee arthroplasty from the inpatient only list along with five other procedures and adds one procedure to the…

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By: Judy Mathias
November 2, 2017
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AAAHC develops new Orthopaedic Certification for ASCs

Editor's Note The Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAHC) announced on November 2 that it has developed a new Orthopaedic Certification program for ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs). After an ASC achieves overall accreditation, it can acquire the Orthopaedic Certification to demonstrate excellence in the specialty of orthopaedics by meeting…

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By: Judy Mathias
November 2, 2017
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Standardized ambulatory surgery protocol reduces postop pain, ED visits

Editor's Note Standardizing clinical processes for outpatient hernia repairs reduced postoperative pain and unplanned returns to the emergency department (ED), finds this study presented October 23 at the American College of Surgeons 2017 Clinical Congress in San Diego. Researchers developed a standardized eight-step protocol that incorporated best practices and enhanced…

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By: Judy Mathias
October 25, 2017
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Track ASC metrics to produce a healthy bottom line

Each day seems to bring new tasks for leaders of ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs), adding to their already overflowing plate. One task that can easily fall off that plate is collecting and analyzing metrics, yet failing to do so can have serious financial consequences. OR Manager recently asked ASC leaders…

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By: Cynthia Saver, MS, RN
October 19, 2017
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Walk the talk: Words matter when it comes to patient safety

Every week Ann Shimek, MSN, BSN, RN, CASC, hits the road to communicate about communicating. Shimek is senior vice president of clinical operations at United Surgical Partners International (USPI) in Addison, Texas. She and her team of six clinical nurses travel among USPI’s 21 hospitals and 260 ambulatory surgery centers…

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By: Leslie Flowers
October 19, 2017
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Frailty linked to increased morbidity after ambulatory general surgery

Editor's Note Frailty was associated with postoperative morbidity in patients having ambulatory general surgery procedures, independent of age, type of anesthesia, and other comorbidities, this study finds. In this study of 140,828 patients older than 40 years of age, frailty was associated with increased adjusted odds of 30-day morbidity after…

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By: Judy Mathias
October 16, 2017
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Risk assessment system from private industry identifies SSI risks in ASCs

Editor's Note A risk-assessment system designed to avoid harm in private industry (ie, Socio-Technical Probabilistic Risk Assessment [ST-PRA]), was used by Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)-funded researchers to identify practices likely to pose infection risks in ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs). The ST-PRA ranks failure points (events) according to…

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By: Judy Mathias
September 20, 2017
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ASC leaders like their jobs despite stagnant salaries

Despite the turmoil in healthcare, leaders of ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) are a highly satisfied group, with 83% having a favorable view of their current position, according to the OR Manager 2017 Salary/Career Survey. But ASC leaders are markedly less satisfied when it comes to their compensation, with 60% viewing…

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By: Cynthia Saver, MS, RN
September 20, 2017
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