Running an ambulatory surgery center (ASC) is not for the faint of heart. ASC leaders are navigating tight margins, stricter-than-ever quality reporting, lean staffing resources, payer squeeze, and a relentless push to be profitable without proper support. And yet, the ASC market is booming. The number of Medicare-certified ASCs has…

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Editor's Note Although health system layoffs so far involve mostly non-clinical staff, the cuts nonetheless threaten both hospital operations and patient safety, according to a May 21 article in Modern Healthcare. As detailed in the article, thousands of nonclinical workers—such as those working in nutrition, janitorial, and sterile processing—have been…

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Editor's Note In this session, Deb Yoder, MHA, BSN, RN, CNOR, CASC, vice president of facility development, Compass Surgery Partners, provided a comprehensive overview of selecting, implementing, and managing service lines in ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) while considering factors such as block time utilization, staff readiness, equipment needs, financial viability,…

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Editor's Note Negotiating pay rates in the ambulatory surgery center (ASC) setting is a complex and evolving process that requires strategic planning, data-driven decision-making, and strong payer relationships, noted the speakers Amy Coletti, principal, ASC practice, and Matt Kilton, partner, at ECG Management Consultants at this year’s OR Business Management…

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Takeaways • Interdepartmental collaboration and standardized communication are essential to quickly identifying and addressing supply chain challenges. • Just-in-time inventory strategies have gained traction since the pandemic. Successful strategies involve leveraging data, rethinking preference card management, and shifting to a demand-planning model. • Resiliency is essential to cope with the…

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Ensuring safe, quality care requires precise alignment among inventory levels, delivery schedules, storage solutions, and every other element of the supply chain. A single missing piece of this puzzle—say, a delayed shipment or a storage issue—can disrupt the entire picture. Making the pieces fit can be difficult for any healthcare…

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Editor's Note Cybersecurity threats in healthcare are increasingly driven by third-party vendors, affecting millions of patients and hospital systems globally, experts John Riggi and Richard Staynings emphasized at the HIMSS Healthcare Cybersecurity Forum. Healthcare Finance News reported on the experts’ testimony November 5. According to the article, cyberattacks have surged…

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Editor's Note “There's nothing worse than putting a contract together, only for the anesthesia providers to say, ‘Oh, no, we're not going to do that,” Mindy Gingery, MSN, CRNA, ARNP, president of Heartland Anesthesia & Consulting, said, opening this morning session on anesthesia contract best practices for ambulatory surgery centers…

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Editor's Note Capacity issues persist within the anesthesia workforce, leaving perioperative leaders tasked with maintaining efficient operations and safe practices for patients through surgery. We spoke with leaders from SCA Health, Stormont Vail Health, and Heartland Anesthesia & Consulting to find out other challenges anesthesia providers are facing, and how…

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Is working with a healthcare vendor a necessary evil? For leaders in the perioperative space, where vendors abound, it may be tempting to answer “yes.” The relationship between vendors and nurse leaders is a delicate balance between give and take, but sometimes the take seems to outweigh the give. Nonetheless,…

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