great deals available
for mobile units, and
that's a perfect way
to see if it's an eco-
nomical option for
your facility, or per-
haps a way to get a
program off the
ground in order to
someday purchase
your own laser," she
says.
Her facility hosts
5,000 cases a year, so
she had the volume
to justify investing in a femto laser. She pulled the trigger on a unit
that costs around $600,000, but that doesn't mean the 16 ophthalmolo-
gists who have ownership stakes in the center were initially onboard
with the decision. She felt plenty of pushback from hesitant surgeons
who told her they achieved excellent outcomes by operating manually
and they weren't convinced a laser would provide any clinical benefit.
That was a problem, because Ms. Vecchio needed their support to
make the laser work financially.
"The selling of the technology doesn't happen at the surgery center
— we're the end point," says Ms. Vecchio. "Use of the laser is generat-
ed in the surgeons' offices when they talk to patients about laser-
assisted surgery. The patient education piece is essential, so you must
work with ophthalmologists who believe in the technology."
Ms. Vecchio realized the only way to get the word out about the cen-
ter's new laser was through the physician-owners, so she scheduled a
7 4 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • J a n u a r y 2 0 1 7
• IN AND OUT Outsourcing companies set up a laser platform on the day of surgery and remove it when the cases conclude.
Sightpath
Medical
