Ambulatory surgery centers more efficient, affordable

Ambulatory surgery centers provide a lower-cost, more efficient alternative to hospitals for outpatient surgeries, according to a new study published in Health Affairs. Researchers from the University of Louisville and the University of Minnesota examined data for 52,000 surgical visits at 437 facilities over four years and found procedures performed in ambulatory surgery centers take 31.8 fewer minutes than those performed in hospitals--a 25 percent difference in the mean procedure time, according to the Courier-Journal. With the number of outpatient procedures rising dramatically over the past 35 years, ambulatory surgery centers are an efficient way to meet future growth in outpatient surgery demands, researchers concluded. Article