performing total
joints at
UnaSource
Surgery Center in
Troy, Mich. He
says patients
requiring these
procedures are
also becoming
ideal for outpa-
tient surgery.
"There are more young people needing the surgery," says Dr. Kohen,
who has performed outpatient total joints for about a year. "Most of
these people are healthier than the traditional population."
Additionally, ambulatory surgery centers can offer freedom and
accommodations surgeons can't always get at a hospital, driving
demand for these programs, says Dr. Berger. "On the inpatient side,
it's becoming more and more cumbersome, and more and more
restrictive on what you can and cannot do," he says. "This is a way to
get control back into the surgeon's hands."
While Medicare hasn't yet authorized payments for total joint
replacements performed in an ASC, that doesn't mean private insurers
aren't taking note of same-day joints' big financial benefit. With costs
about one-third of hospital inpatient care, more insurers are working
with centers to offer the procedure to their members. Dr. Kohen notes
that while his center can currently only offer total knees, due to insur-
ance constraints, he sees the tide turning. "I think it will change over
time," says Dr. Kohen. "We do it at such a lower cost than inpatient
procedures at a hospital."
As these factors continue to work together, total joint replacements
will increasingly favor an outpatient environment, experts say. "It's
going to skyrocket," says Dr. Berger. "It's on the brink of exploding."
8 8
O U T P A T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E O N L I N E | M A R C H 2 0 1 5
z RIGHT TECHNIQUE
Having the right tools
and techniques makes it
possible for patients to
go home just a few
hours after their joint
replacement procedure.
John
A.
Scarfone
(Starfleet
Productions)
