Here are four ways the provision of anesthesia can help improve operations and save your ASC money.
1. Unclog post-operative rooms. Your ASC will be able to perform more cases — and therefore make more money — if your pre- and post-op processes are efficient. According to Rajiv Chopra, principal and CFO for The C/N Group, anesthesiologists are a major factor in how fast a patient recovers from anesthesia, and a skilled anesthesiologist can mean patients feel better faster and can free up the post-op recovery room for the next case.
"Your anesthesia can make a difference," Mr. Chopra says. "Once the surgery is done, how quickly are patients recovering so they can leave the facility? A lot of this ties back into anesthesia, and if you don't have an anesthesiologist with that skilled component, it can create challenges for you just from a recovery time perspective." He says safety and quality can be maintained without clogging up the post-op recovery room and delaying the process for other patients.
From: 3 Ways to Improve Your ASC's Processes and Overall Efficiency: Anesthesiologists, Room Turnover and Cash Cycle
2. Order necessary equipment only. According to Doug Yunker, MD, anesthesiologist and medical director of Upper Arlington Surgery Center in Columbus, Ohio, some equipment is absolutely necessary for anesthesia provision — and some is not. Anesthesiologists can perform their duties more effectively if they have a quality ultrasound system for regional blocks and an intubating device to intubate patients quicker.
However, he says a BIS monitor for brain waves may be an unnecessary use of funds for your ASC. "We've used it at the hospital and not found it to be helpful on a routine basis," he says.
From: 4 Ways to Improve ASC Profitability From an Anesthesiologist's Perspective
3. Avoid costly anesthesia drugs and supplies. According to Thomas Wherry, MD, principal of Total Anesthesia Solutions and medical director for Health Inventures, administrators and anesthesiologists should regularly assess whether cheaper, quality alternatives for expensive anesthesia drugs exist. He says if anesthesiologists are frequently opening bigger vials of propofol, single-use rules mean they will likely waste the drug. In addition, some drugs have less costly counterparts that provide the same effect. Bupivacaine costs significantly less than ropivaine and can often be used in its place, for example.
He says administrators should also look for cheaper versions of breathing circuits and IV tubing, especially for hospital-providers who may automatically reach for the "latest and greatest" product.
From: 6 Ways to Cut Anesthesia Costs in Your ASC
4. Improve pre-operative screening process. If your pre-operative screening process does not identify patients who are inappropriate for anesthesia, your ASC will be forced to cancel cases and therefore lose money. According to Dr. Wherry, anesthesiologists may cancel an ASC case because of high BMI, obstructive sleep apnea or respiratory problems, all of which could pose a risk for patients during surgery.
The pre-operative screening process should identify patients with any of these high-risk factors. If inappropriate patients are frequently missed, your ASC will be forced to have same-day cancellations, which Dr. Wherry says should never happen if the reason for cancellation could have been detected earlier. A same-day cancellation will leave your OR empty and your staff standing around, resulting in lost revenue.
From: 5 Reasons Anesthesiologists Will Cancel an ASC Case
Read more on anesthesia:
-Anesthesiologist Stops Practicing Following Negligence Accusations
-New Jersey CRNA Leader Calls for Anesthesia Provision Changes
-FDA Reconsiders Approval of Personalized Sedation System
1. Unclog post-operative rooms. Your ASC will be able to perform more cases — and therefore make more money — if your pre- and post-op processes are efficient. According to Rajiv Chopra, principal and CFO for The C/N Group, anesthesiologists are a major factor in how fast a patient recovers from anesthesia, and a skilled anesthesiologist can mean patients feel better faster and can free up the post-op recovery room for the next case.
"Your anesthesia can make a difference," Mr. Chopra says. "Once the surgery is done, how quickly are patients recovering so they can leave the facility? A lot of this ties back into anesthesia, and if you don't have an anesthesiologist with that skilled component, it can create challenges for you just from a recovery time perspective." He says safety and quality can be maintained without clogging up the post-op recovery room and delaying the process for other patients.
From: 3 Ways to Improve Your ASC's Processes and Overall Efficiency: Anesthesiologists, Room Turnover and Cash Cycle
2. Order necessary equipment only. According to Doug Yunker, MD, anesthesiologist and medical director of Upper Arlington Surgery Center in Columbus, Ohio, some equipment is absolutely necessary for anesthesia provision — and some is not. Anesthesiologists can perform their duties more effectively if they have a quality ultrasound system for regional blocks and an intubating device to intubate patients quicker.
However, he says a BIS monitor for brain waves may be an unnecessary use of funds for your ASC. "We've used it at the hospital and not found it to be helpful on a routine basis," he says.
From: 4 Ways to Improve ASC Profitability From an Anesthesiologist's Perspective
3. Avoid costly anesthesia drugs and supplies. According to Thomas Wherry, MD, principal of Total Anesthesia Solutions and medical director for Health Inventures, administrators and anesthesiologists should regularly assess whether cheaper, quality alternatives for expensive anesthesia drugs exist. He says if anesthesiologists are frequently opening bigger vials of propofol, single-use rules mean they will likely waste the drug. In addition, some drugs have less costly counterparts that provide the same effect. Bupivacaine costs significantly less than ropivaine and can often be used in its place, for example.
He says administrators should also look for cheaper versions of breathing circuits and IV tubing, especially for hospital-providers who may automatically reach for the "latest and greatest" product.
From: 6 Ways to Cut Anesthesia Costs in Your ASC
4. Improve pre-operative screening process. If your pre-operative screening process does not identify patients who are inappropriate for anesthesia, your ASC will be forced to cancel cases and therefore lose money. According to Dr. Wherry, anesthesiologists may cancel an ASC case because of high BMI, obstructive sleep apnea or respiratory problems, all of which could pose a risk for patients during surgery.
The pre-operative screening process should identify patients with any of these high-risk factors. If inappropriate patients are frequently missed, your ASC will be forced to have same-day cancellations, which Dr. Wherry says should never happen if the reason for cancellation could have been detected earlier. A same-day cancellation will leave your OR empty and your staff standing around, resulting in lost revenue.
From: 5 Reasons Anesthesiologists Will Cancel an ASC Case
Read more on anesthesia:
-Anesthesiologist Stops Practicing Following Negligence Accusations
-New Jersey CRNA Leader Calls for Anesthesia Provision Changes
-FDA Reconsiders Approval of Personalized Sedation System