In the modern day and age, patients — as consumers in everyday life — are highly digitally empowered. As their digital skills evolve and demand for digitalization grows, healthcare providers must make an effort to keep up with the times and adapt to meet patient expectations.

Healthcare consumerism refers to the recent movement in the United States toward patients taking a more significant part in choosing their healthcare. With more options available and individuals taking the time to better educate themselves, Ambulatory Surgery Centers feel the impact. As patients become more involved in seeking cost-effective, safe, and efficient methods of treating medical conditions, ASCs have to find ways to ensure patients choose their facility. New ASCs open every year, and the competition for patients is fierce.

Anticipating the installation of new ASC software can create anxiety for surgeons and staff. Everyone worries if the software will be too complex to learn, whether it will make work life more difficult, and how it will impact patient care. Ambulatory Surgery Centers always have a lot going on and overlapping tasks that need to be handled.

No one likes feeling like they are just a number of a statistic. When patients use your ASC for a procedure, they want to feel like they are valued as individuals, not part of a treatment conveyor belt. You should strive to make sure every patient receives personalized care and leaves your facility feeling that they were treated with dignity and individualized attention to ensure their health and satisfaction.

Transitioning from paper records to cloud software offers multiple advantages to your ASC. Records are more secure, efficiency is increased, paperwork is minimized, problems with misfiling and lost forms are eliminated, and you no longer have to store vast amounts of paper. Despite the many advantages of ASC cloud software, staff can be resistant to the change. In a hectic Ambulatory Surgery Center, individuals may resist changing the way they've been doing things for years. How do you get your staff on board with a change from paper to cloud software solutions?

"It is the technology our patients expect. Most [patients] love being able to do this online. We have even won over many of our older, more hesitant patients."

-Joyce White, Administrator at Cypress Surgery Center

With an average of over 900 cases per month, Cypress Surgery Center sought a solution to help them work as efficiently as possible. The center prides itself on its commitment to quality patient care and looked to One Medical Passport to help deliver this level of care while saving time, money, and frustration.

The Ambulatory Surgery Center Association (ASCA) has released a checklist to help ASCs consider what they need to do to begin caring for non-COVID-19 patients. The full list is available for ASCA members, and we’ve outlined some of the most crucial factors below.

In the fast-paced world of healthcare, the right technology can improve your efficiency in crucial ways. What’s more, choosing technology solutions that work together and integrate seamlessly gives you the most bang for your buck. When evaluating new software, consider how all the parts work together to create the whole.

As ASC clinicians, we get used to surgery. But for patients’ family members, sometimes this is their first time in the waiting room. Communicating with family members effectively and regularly is key to keeping high satisfaction scores and providing top-quality care.