1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:02,319 Are your patients looking for an easy way 2 00:00:02,319 --> 00:00:04,480 to pay for health care? Want to level 3 00:00:04,480 --> 00:00:06,639 up the way you do business? Then the 4 00:00:06,639 --> 00:00:09,199 CareCredit Health and Wellness card just might be 5 00:00:09,199 --> 00:00:09,859 the answer. 6 00:00:10,160 --> 00:00:13,539 For over 30 years, CareCredit, a Synchrony solution, 7 00:00:13,759 --> 00:00:16,454 has been providing patients with a modern, flexible 8 00:00:16,454 --> 00:00:18,375 way to pay for their health and wellness 9 00:00:18,375 --> 00:00:18,875 expenses. 10 00:00:19,414 --> 00:00:22,875 CareCredit seamlessly integrates with your business, helping minimize 11 00:00:23,015 --> 00:00:25,975 account receivable, all while your patients enjoy budget 12 00:00:25,975 --> 00:00:27,595 friendly financing options. 13 00:00:28,054 --> 00:00:30,214 To learn more about how CareCredit works for 14 00:00:30,214 --> 00:00:31,274 you and your patients, 15 00:00:31,679 --> 00:00:32,420 visit carecredit.comforward/beccarspodcast. 16 00:00:36,719 --> 00:00:38,799 This is Graceland Keller with the Becker's Healthcare 17 00:00:38,799 --> 00:00:40,960 Podcast, and we are live at the business 18 00:00:40,960 --> 00:00:44,475 and operations of ASC's events. I am joined 19 00:00:44,475 --> 00:00:46,395 right now by doctor Michael Rudler, who is 20 00:00:46,395 --> 00:00:49,515 an orthopedic surgeon at Connecticut Orthopedics. So, doctor 21 00:00:49,515 --> 00:00:51,674 Rudler, thanks for joining me today. We'd love 22 00:00:51,674 --> 00:00:53,754 to have you start off by introducing yourself 23 00:00:53,754 --> 00:00:55,354 and telling us a little bit more about 24 00:00:55,354 --> 00:00:57,579 your role in the ASC space. Well, thank 25 00:00:57,579 --> 00:00:59,100 you. And then you've you've already done a 26 00:00:59,100 --> 00:01:01,260 pretty good job introducing me. I'm I'm Michael 27 00:01:01,260 --> 00:01:04,000 Redler. I'm an orthopedic surgeon with Kinetic Orthopedics. 28 00:01:04,219 --> 00:01:06,859 I specialize in sports medicine and upper extremity 29 00:01:06,859 --> 00:01:09,979 surgery. But I also, very involved in the 30 00:01:09,979 --> 00:01:11,120 business of ASCs, 31 00:01:11,715 --> 00:01:14,034 both in terms of running them efficiently and 32 00:01:14,034 --> 00:01:16,614 watching their growth. And, it's been my pleasure 33 00:01:16,834 --> 00:01:19,075 not only to speak with you, but frankly, 34 00:01:19,075 --> 00:01:22,034 to have, now lectured here at Becker's Healthcare 35 00:01:22,034 --> 00:01:23,894 Meetings probably over 15 years. 36 00:01:24,540 --> 00:01:26,219 Wonderful. Well, thanks for taking the time to 37 00:01:26,219 --> 00:01:28,299 be on the podcast today. And let's start 38 00:01:28,299 --> 00:01:29,040 our conversation 39 00:01:29,340 --> 00:01:33,200 off with ASC volume. So this is increasing 40 00:01:33,340 --> 00:01:35,760 across the country, and it's expected to increase 41 00:01:35,819 --> 00:01:38,325 by 16 percent by the year 2032. 42 00:01:38,784 --> 00:01:40,865 So with this growth that we're seeing, what 43 00:01:40,865 --> 00:01:43,185 is the most pressing challenge to maintaining a 44 00:01:43,185 --> 00:01:44,484 positive patient experience? 45 00:01:45,344 --> 00:01:46,944 You know, I think that's a great question 46 00:01:46,944 --> 00:01:48,865 because, you know, if you go back 15 47 00:01:48,865 --> 00:01:50,545 years ago, the idea of doing some of 48 00:01:50,545 --> 00:01:53,430 these bigger surgeries in ASC was very foreign. 49 00:01:53,489 --> 00:01:55,569 Now it's mainstream, and this is now the 50 00:01:55,569 --> 00:01:56,629 desired location 51 00:01:57,090 --> 00:01:58,709 to do even major surgeries. 52 00:01:59,329 --> 00:02:01,729 The challenge is to make certain that as 53 00:02:01,729 --> 00:02:02,629 volume increases, 54 00:02:03,329 --> 00:02:05,584 that each patient still has a great experience. 55 00:02:05,584 --> 00:02:07,025 And what I mean by that is that 56 00:02:07,025 --> 00:02:09,185 they have a friendly staff that greets them. 57 00:02:09,185 --> 00:02:11,344 They don't feel like a number. They feel 58 00:02:11,344 --> 00:02:14,224 very confident in their anesthesia staff. They're allowed 59 00:02:14,224 --> 00:02:16,084 to recover in a comfortable way, 60 00:02:16,384 --> 00:02:19,025 and, they have all their questions answered. And 61 00:02:19,025 --> 00:02:19,925 I think that 62 00:02:20,319 --> 00:02:22,000 one of the things we that are in 63 00:02:22,000 --> 00:02:24,159 the ASC world have to do is make 64 00:02:24,159 --> 00:02:26,740 certain that regardless of the increased volume, 65 00:02:27,040 --> 00:02:29,280 that every patient that comes in gets that 66 00:02:29,280 --> 00:02:30,419 individual care 67 00:02:30,719 --> 00:02:32,960 and that every patient is known not just 68 00:02:32,960 --> 00:02:34,724 as a broken part or as a case, 69 00:02:34,724 --> 00:02:36,884 but as truly an individual. And if those 70 00:02:36,884 --> 00:02:39,125 patients are known as individuals and they feel 71 00:02:39,125 --> 00:02:41,125 that way, they're gonna do better with that 72 00:02:41,125 --> 00:02:41,625 care. 73 00:02:42,324 --> 00:02:44,425 Absolutely. And going off of that, 74 00:02:44,724 --> 00:02:47,219 what strategies have worked for your organization to 75 00:02:47,219 --> 00:02:49,460 tackle some of the challenges you're facing? And 76 00:02:49,460 --> 00:02:51,620 what's one recommendation you have for health care 77 00:02:51,620 --> 00:02:52,840 leaders to stay ahead? 78 00:02:54,020 --> 00:02:56,280 So I think that as we do 79 00:02:56,980 --> 00:02:58,680 higher acuity cases 80 00:02:58,980 --> 00:02:59,879 at ASCs, 81 00:03:00,574 --> 00:03:02,414 we need to make certain that we have 82 00:03:02,414 --> 00:03:05,055 the technology that we need, that we can 83 00:03:05,055 --> 00:03:07,534 do so, however, in a fashion that is 84 00:03:07,534 --> 00:03:08,354 still affordable, 85 00:03:09,534 --> 00:03:11,634 that we have the very best anesthesia. 86 00:03:12,094 --> 00:03:14,254 And that is so important for ASCs as 87 00:03:14,254 --> 00:03:17,370 higher acuity cases go because of the fact 88 00:03:17,370 --> 00:03:17,870 that 89 00:03:18,250 --> 00:03:20,189 you want these patients to go home comfortable. 90 00:03:20,409 --> 00:03:22,330 You don't want patients then having to be 91 00:03:22,330 --> 00:03:25,530 admitted to hospitals. And so that making certain 92 00:03:25,530 --> 00:03:27,290 that you make a priority to have the 93 00:03:27,290 --> 00:03:29,870 very best regional anesthesia, the best anesthesiologist, 94 00:03:30,844 --> 00:03:33,344 so they can have the most comfortable experience 95 00:03:33,405 --> 00:03:35,645 with their surgery. They're gonna wanna come back. 96 00:03:35,645 --> 00:03:37,324 They're gonna wanna have their families come back 97 00:03:37,324 --> 00:03:38,145 there as well. 98 00:03:38,764 --> 00:03:41,084 Absolutely. I mean, shifting gears just a little 99 00:03:41,084 --> 00:03:43,884 bit toward the financial side. How can leaders 100 00:03:43,884 --> 00:03:46,340 ensure their staff are well equipped to help 101 00:03:46,340 --> 00:03:49,539 patients navigate the financial aspects of care? And 102 00:03:49,539 --> 00:03:51,879 how does this benefit patient provider relationships? 103 00:03:53,379 --> 00:03:55,639 It's an interesting question because 104 00:03:56,659 --> 00:03:59,219 as health care providers, we're not that used 105 00:03:59,219 --> 00:04:01,694 to talking about the finances of health care. 106 00:04:01,855 --> 00:04:02,835 But it's a reality. 107 00:04:03,534 --> 00:04:06,754 And every patient will have some financial 108 00:04:07,375 --> 00:04:10,275 demands that will come with their surgical experience. 109 00:04:11,055 --> 00:04:12,355 Dealing with those upfront, 110 00:04:12,735 --> 00:04:14,895 not making that something else that's going to 111 00:04:14,895 --> 00:04:16,654 cause more stress is going to be really 112 00:04:16,654 --> 00:04:17,154 important. 113 00:04:18,550 --> 00:04:20,650 And we can't shy away from that discussion. 114 00:04:21,110 --> 00:04:23,509 We've got to help them to navigate that 115 00:04:23,509 --> 00:04:25,750 as well so they can concentrate just on 116 00:04:25,750 --> 00:04:26,410 the recovery. 117 00:04:26,790 --> 00:04:30,375 So making certain that everything has been cleared 118 00:04:30,375 --> 00:04:32,935 with their insurance company ahead of time, making 119 00:04:32,935 --> 00:04:34,935 certain that if they have a deductible, they'll 120 00:04:34,935 --> 00:04:37,194 anticipate what's going to happen ahead of time. 121 00:04:37,414 --> 00:04:39,735 And the good news for most patients is 122 00:04:39,735 --> 00:04:41,894 that ASCs generally are going to be the 123 00:04:41,894 --> 00:04:42,714 higher quality, 124 00:04:43,169 --> 00:04:45,649 lower cost alternative. So we're already headed in 125 00:04:45,649 --> 00:04:47,490 the right direction. But you have to have 126 00:04:47,490 --> 00:04:50,129 just frank discussions with it. It shouldn't be 127 00:04:50,129 --> 00:04:50,629 that 128 00:04:51,089 --> 00:04:53,089 foreign subject that no one wants to bring 129 00:04:53,089 --> 00:04:54,930 up. And if you do so and you 130 00:04:54,930 --> 00:04:56,769 do so in a non threatening fashion but 131 00:04:56,769 --> 00:04:57,990 in a helpful fashion, 132 00:04:58,294 --> 00:05:01,175 patients will feel more comfortable navigating that with 133 00:05:01,175 --> 00:05:02,314 you as their ally. 134 00:05:03,095 --> 00:05:03,595 Absolutely. 135 00:05:04,214 --> 00:05:06,615 And as we wrap our conversation, is there 136 00:05:06,615 --> 00:05:08,375 any closing remarks you'd like to share on 137 00:05:08,375 --> 00:05:09,514 the podcast today? 138 00:05:10,294 --> 00:05:12,459 Look. I I'm always so pleased to speak 139 00:05:12,459 --> 00:05:15,500 at Becker's Healthcare because it truly is at 140 00:05:15,500 --> 00:05:17,500 the forefront of care, and especially when it 141 00:05:17,500 --> 00:05:19,199 comes to the business of ASCs. 142 00:05:20,139 --> 00:05:22,319 The ASC market has changed tremendously, 143 00:05:23,035 --> 00:05:24,555 and part of that is because of the 144 00:05:24,555 --> 00:05:26,235 fact that we can do these cases are 145 00:05:26,235 --> 00:05:28,814 much more involved. Patients can go uncomfortable. 146 00:05:29,754 --> 00:05:32,555 The technology just keeps getting better and better 147 00:05:32,555 --> 00:05:33,915 in terms of what we can do to 148 00:05:33,915 --> 00:05:36,074 make patients comfortable. And if we can do 149 00:05:36,074 --> 00:05:38,520 that, we can ensure great outcome. We can 150 00:05:38,520 --> 00:05:40,620 ensure great patient satisfaction, 151 00:05:41,080 --> 00:05:42,839 and this can be a win win situation 152 00:05:42,839 --> 00:05:45,639 all the way around. Wonderful. Well, doctor Redler, 153 00:05:45,639 --> 00:05:47,240 thanks for joining me today on the Becker's 154 00:05:47,240 --> 00:05:49,800 Healthcare Podcast. Again, we're live at the business 155 00:05:49,800 --> 00:05:52,555 and operations of ASCs. Thanks so much. Thank 156 00:05:52,555 --> 00:05:54,555 you, Grace. It's always a pleasure. You're a 157 00:05:54,555 --> 00:05:55,615 fabulous interviewer. 158 00:05:55,995 --> 00:05:56,814 Thank you.