The physical environment of your ASC can have a significant impact on your bottom line, patient satisfaction, and efficiency. Consider how your ASC facility is working—or not working—for you.
Efficient patient flow
The traffic flow in your ASC needs to work for your staff and your patients. A clearly laid out, clean environment can have a significant impact on a patient’s satisfaction. Consider how much space you need for surgery prep versus post-op recovery. If your ASC performs outpatient joint replacements, you’ll need an OR of at least 500 square feet. Consider how your equipment needs will impact the size of your facility.
You also need to consider how your layout affects infection control. The design of your ASC should limit traffic flow from dirty to clean areas so that contamination is less likely. ASCs should also be built with the ability to expand without shutting down. For example, experts recommend putting patient care areas against outside walls so that you can continue running in the event of future construction.
Reduce your overhead by maximizing storage
ASCs are positioned perfectly to grow exponentially in the coming years. However, be wary of over-building. If you end up with a facility that you can’t fill, the overhead costs may be larger than your revenue.
One of the areas ASCs often over-build is storage space. Unlike a hospital, you don’t have unlimited space for inventory. Consider how you can maximize storage space. Can you build in storage outside the OR? You must effectively and regularly manage inventory to avoid storage getting out of control. Also, remember that you will need to account for receiving and distributing deliveries.
Go digital
One of the most significant ways to maximize your storage space is by going digital with your patient charts. This approach has multiple benefits, including improved efficiency, reduced courier costs, and more in-house space. When you go digital, you can also combine charting software with scheduling software. This way, patients can fill out medical history and pre-admission paperwork at home that integrates directly into their charts. The result is less busy work and decreased redundancy for your clinicians, improved accuracy, and a lowered reliance on physical storage space.
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