1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:02,319 Hi everyone. This is Erica Spicer Mason with 2 00:00:02,319 --> 00:00:04,480 Becker's Healthcare. Thank you so much for tuning 3 00:00:04,480 --> 00:00:06,740 into the Becker's Healthcare podcast series. 4 00:00:07,279 --> 00:00:09,439 So today we're going to talk about clinical 5 00:00:09,439 --> 00:00:12,880 excellence, economic value, and operational support in the 6 00:00:12,880 --> 00:00:13,380 ASC. 7 00:00:14,134 --> 00:00:16,554 And joining me for this conversation is Patrick 8 00:00:16,695 --> 00:00:17,195 Magellanis, 9 00:00:17,574 --> 00:00:20,155 the president and CEO of Steinler Orthopedics. 10 00:00:20,695 --> 00:00:22,454 Patrick, so glad to have you with us 11 00:00:22,454 --> 00:00:24,375 for the podcast. Thank you again for being 12 00:00:24,375 --> 00:00:27,175 here today. I'm delighted to, participate. Thank you 13 00:00:27,175 --> 00:00:28,074 for having me. 14 00:00:28,420 --> 00:00:30,260 Yeah. We're we're really happy to have you 15 00:00:30,260 --> 00:00:32,020 and to learn a bit more about your 16 00:00:32,020 --> 00:00:32,520 center. 17 00:00:32,979 --> 00:00:34,899 But before we get into that, would you 18 00:00:34,899 --> 00:00:36,500 mind sharing just a little bit more about 19 00:00:36,500 --> 00:00:38,280 yourself and your work in healthcare? 20 00:00:39,219 --> 00:00:41,700 Sure. So I've been with Steiner Orthopedics for 21 00:00:41,700 --> 00:00:43,320 seven years, now. 22 00:00:43,664 --> 00:00:46,065 I worked in community oncology for five years 23 00:00:46,065 --> 00:00:47,445 before I joined Steiner. 24 00:00:48,945 --> 00:00:51,104 I think that when I joined Steiner, what 25 00:00:51,104 --> 00:00:53,664 we were really looking toward was the future 26 00:00:53,664 --> 00:00:56,145 of what Steiner would look like. Steiner started 27 00:00:56,145 --> 00:00:57,204 in 1950 28 00:00:57,710 --> 00:00:59,869 and really was a group practice through all 29 00:00:59,869 --> 00:01:02,030 those years, never owning an ASC or a 30 00:01:02,030 --> 00:01:03,649 percentage owner in an ASC. 31 00:01:04,189 --> 00:01:06,510 And what's really changed for us is trying 32 00:01:06,510 --> 00:01:08,189 to get on the path of orthopedic self 33 00:01:08,189 --> 00:01:08,689 determination. 34 00:01:09,229 --> 00:01:10,989 And for us that meant moving into an 35 00:01:10,989 --> 00:01:13,064 ASC environment. So we opened our first ASC 36 00:01:13,545 --> 00:01:15,625 ASC in March. We have a six room 37 00:01:15,625 --> 00:01:17,165 ASC that we think is, 38 00:01:17,625 --> 00:01:20,505 the future for our own self determination. I'm 39 00:01:20,505 --> 00:01:23,305 excited now to expand my responsibilities in ASC 40 00:01:23,305 --> 00:01:23,805 management. 41 00:01:24,905 --> 00:01:26,745 Patrick, great to learn a little bit more 42 00:01:26,745 --> 00:01:28,765 about you, and congrats on opening, 43 00:01:29,359 --> 00:01:31,599 Steindler opening the first ASC in March. That's 44 00:01:31,599 --> 00:01:32,340 really exciting. 45 00:01:32,879 --> 00:01:34,560 And I wanna go back just to for 46 00:01:34,560 --> 00:01:36,239 a moment and talk a little bit more 47 00:01:36,239 --> 00:01:37,060 about Steindler. 48 00:01:37,680 --> 00:01:39,280 Can you share a little bit more about 49 00:01:39,280 --> 00:01:39,939 the organization's 50 00:01:40,319 --> 00:01:42,799 inception and really the vision and goals for 51 00:01:42,799 --> 00:01:43,700 it as well? 52 00:01:44,555 --> 00:01:47,355 Well, Arthur Steinler started the University of Iowa's 53 00:01:47,355 --> 00:01:50,234 orthopedic department in the nineteen twenties. He retired 54 00:01:50,234 --> 00:01:51,055 from the University 55 00:01:51,594 --> 00:01:54,234 of Iowa in the late forties and started 56 00:01:54,234 --> 00:01:55,055 Steinler Orthopedic 57 00:01:55,515 --> 00:01:57,995 Clinic in conjunction with the Sisters of Mercy 58 00:01:57,995 --> 00:01:58,655 at Mercy 59 00:01:59,140 --> 00:02:00,920 Hospital in downtown Iowa City. 60 00:02:01,299 --> 00:02:03,780 So, our beginnings really started with one of 61 00:02:03,780 --> 00:02:06,980 the founders of orthopedic medicine in The United 62 00:02:06,980 --> 00:02:07,480 States. 63 00:02:08,740 --> 00:02:10,580 Just yesterday, I ran across a stat that 64 00:02:10,580 --> 00:02:12,599 I wasn't aware of that the first orthopedic 65 00:02:12,819 --> 00:02:14,354 female surgeon in The United States 66 00:02:15,235 --> 00:02:17,715 trained under Doctor. Steinler. So we have a 67 00:02:17,715 --> 00:02:20,114 rich tradition. I have a number of the 68 00:02:20,114 --> 00:02:23,074 textbooks that Doctor. Steinler authored in the thirties 69 00:02:23,074 --> 00:02:23,814 and forties. 70 00:02:24,275 --> 00:02:26,775 So we have this rich tradition. Steinler Orthopedic 71 00:02:26,834 --> 00:02:29,290 Clinic, when he started it, it was you 72 00:02:29,290 --> 00:02:31,389 know, was a swan swan to his career. 73 00:02:31,770 --> 00:02:33,610 And we've been in Iowa City and serving 74 00:02:33,610 --> 00:02:35,450 Eastern Iowa since 1950. 75 00:02:35,450 --> 00:02:35,950 Currently, 76 00:02:36,330 --> 00:02:37,150 we have 18 77 00:02:37,530 --> 00:02:38,030 physicians, 78 00:02:39,210 --> 00:02:39,710 numerous, 79 00:02:40,810 --> 00:02:43,849 mid level extenders and a fantastic clinical care 80 00:02:43,849 --> 00:02:44,349 team. 81 00:02:44,765 --> 00:02:48,125 We're extremely well known for orthopedic excellence going 82 00:02:48,125 --> 00:02:49,425 back to Arthur Steinler. 83 00:02:49,885 --> 00:02:52,365 And, you know, our our footprint now is 84 00:02:52,365 --> 00:02:53,825 is expanded to include 85 00:02:54,444 --> 00:02:57,569 a ambulatory surgery center. And we are, I 86 00:02:57,569 --> 00:02:59,569 think, putting the finishing touches on putting a 87 00:02:59,569 --> 00:03:01,669 community hospital right next door to us. 88 00:03:02,610 --> 00:03:04,530 Really exciting. And it sounds like such a 89 00:03:04,530 --> 00:03:07,330 growth period for Steinleer. So, Patrick, thank you 90 00:03:07,330 --> 00:03:08,949 again for sharing a bit more. 91 00:03:09,585 --> 00:03:12,784 And as it stands now, what procedures is 92 00:03:12,784 --> 00:03:15,504 your center currently specializing in? I know you 93 00:03:15,504 --> 00:03:17,604 talked about ortho excellence here. 94 00:03:18,145 --> 00:03:20,145 So can you touch on some of those 95 00:03:20,145 --> 00:03:22,705 specialization areas and what you foresee adding in 96 00:03:22,705 --> 00:03:24,085 the future for the center? 97 00:03:24,730 --> 00:03:25,629 Well, our ASC 98 00:03:25,930 --> 00:03:27,629 is orthopedic only. 99 00:03:28,010 --> 00:03:30,250 I don't foresee in the near future that 100 00:03:30,250 --> 00:03:32,830 our facility will do anything other than orthopedics. 101 00:03:32,969 --> 00:03:35,849 So the subspecialties that you would expect, including 102 00:03:35,849 --> 00:03:38,490 pain management, so hand and upper extremity, foot 103 00:03:38,490 --> 00:03:39,150 and ankle, 104 00:03:39,514 --> 00:03:40,414 total joints. 105 00:03:40,715 --> 00:03:43,854 We have a very strong total joint practice. 106 00:03:44,794 --> 00:03:46,715 We're about to enter our busy quarter, you 107 00:03:46,715 --> 00:03:47,854 know, Iowa's farmland, 108 00:03:48,314 --> 00:03:50,314 people have met their deductibles, which is common 109 00:03:50,314 --> 00:03:51,055 for most 110 00:03:51,354 --> 00:03:52,495 orthopedic practices. 111 00:03:53,110 --> 00:03:54,950 But we're also farmers are about to take 112 00:03:54,950 --> 00:03:57,189 in the fields and so our fourth quarter 113 00:03:57,189 --> 00:03:59,110 tends to be super busy doing all the 114 00:03:59,110 --> 00:04:02,230 orthopedic practices that a farming type community needs 115 00:04:02,230 --> 00:04:03,450 for the upcoming year. 116 00:04:04,069 --> 00:04:06,170 Oh, that's great to learn. Thank you, Patrick. 117 00:04:06,855 --> 00:04:09,754 And I know the the center is relatively 118 00:04:09,895 --> 00:04:13,435 new having just been established in March. 119 00:04:13,814 --> 00:04:16,154 Can you walk us through what the RFP 120 00:04:16,214 --> 00:04:18,295 and the bidding process looked like as you 121 00:04:18,295 --> 00:04:19,355 developed the center? 122 00:04:19,759 --> 00:04:21,279 And as part of that, how did you 123 00:04:21,279 --> 00:04:24,319 factor in future needs like potential expansions or 124 00:04:24,319 --> 00:04:27,199 even new tools and technologies during the decision 125 00:04:27,199 --> 00:04:27,699 making? 126 00:04:28,399 --> 00:04:30,720 Yeah. So when we when we really conceived 127 00:04:30,720 --> 00:04:32,420 the idea of building an ASC, 128 00:04:32,964 --> 00:04:35,464 really the genesis for that or the cornerstone 129 00:04:35,685 --> 00:04:36,185 was 130 00:04:36,644 --> 00:04:38,584 having the ability to have self determination, 131 00:04:39,845 --> 00:04:41,464 not having an ASC 132 00:04:41,845 --> 00:04:42,985 where that's clearly, 133 00:04:43,285 --> 00:04:45,204 you know, five years ago, we identified as 134 00:04:45,204 --> 00:04:47,464 most people five years ago would have identified 135 00:04:47,910 --> 00:04:51,529 That is the trend, lower cost outpatient environment. 136 00:04:51,910 --> 00:04:54,790 You know, from our perspective, COVID accelerated that 137 00:04:54,790 --> 00:04:57,990 many patients. We started doing some procedures that 138 00:04:57,990 --> 00:04:59,050 would work historically, 139 00:04:59,830 --> 00:05:03,529 inpatient procedures or hospital procedures, hospital based procedures. 140 00:05:03,964 --> 00:05:06,285 We we I remember very clearly one day 141 00:05:06,285 --> 00:05:08,204 we put on Facebook and social media that 142 00:05:08,204 --> 00:05:09,745 we had done our first ASC, 143 00:05:10,125 --> 00:05:10,785 knee replacement, 144 00:05:11,245 --> 00:05:14,544 and the community feedback was was strong and 145 00:05:14,604 --> 00:05:16,524 folks wondering why we were doing that. And 146 00:05:16,524 --> 00:05:18,909 I remember I was at a ortho conference 147 00:05:18,909 --> 00:05:20,909 and our social media person said, I took 148 00:05:20,909 --> 00:05:22,430 the post down because we had so much 149 00:05:22,430 --> 00:05:23,970 feedback. And I remember 150 00:05:24,509 --> 00:05:26,349 saying, no, please post it again. We've been 151 00:05:26,349 --> 00:05:28,589 doing outpatient procedures for quite some time. We've 152 00:05:28,589 --> 00:05:30,589 just done them in a hospital setting. And 153 00:05:30,589 --> 00:05:31,729 then COVID occurred 154 00:05:32,354 --> 00:05:34,595 and then patients were like, anything to keep 155 00:05:34,595 --> 00:05:35,875 me out of the hospital. And the demand 156 00:05:35,875 --> 00:05:38,274 for ASCs, as you know, on the listeners 157 00:05:38,274 --> 00:05:41,154 note, has increased. From our perspective, what was 158 00:05:41,154 --> 00:05:42,834 really important is we knew that our community 159 00:05:42,834 --> 00:05:45,474 hospital was in dire financial straits. And I 160 00:05:45,474 --> 00:05:47,730 had projected when I arrived at Steinler that 161 00:05:47,889 --> 00:05:49,889 bankruptcy was most likely on the horizon. And 162 00:05:49,889 --> 00:05:51,509 that's in fact what actually happened. 163 00:05:51,970 --> 00:05:53,670 Our community hospital closed, 164 00:05:54,290 --> 00:05:56,629 was acquired by the University of Iowa and 165 00:05:56,770 --> 00:05:58,770 incorporated in the University of Iowa and the 166 00:05:58,770 --> 00:06:02,045 academic medical center footprint that they have. And 167 00:06:02,045 --> 00:06:04,285 so our ASC, I think, at the time 168 00:06:04,285 --> 00:06:06,205 it was conceived, was rightly conceived as an 169 00:06:06,205 --> 00:06:08,524 opportunity for us to have self determination where 170 00:06:08,524 --> 00:06:09,824 we have our own facility. 171 00:06:10,205 --> 00:06:12,625 As far as what went into planning, initially, 172 00:06:13,279 --> 00:06:15,520 I was Iowa is a CON state. And 173 00:06:15,520 --> 00:06:17,520 so we had to go in front of 174 00:06:17,520 --> 00:06:19,360 the Health Facilities Council in the state of 175 00:06:19,360 --> 00:06:21,060 Iowa and get permission 176 00:06:21,360 --> 00:06:22,500 to build an ASC. 177 00:06:22,800 --> 00:06:24,819 And as most listeners who are in orthopedics 178 00:06:24,879 --> 00:06:26,480 would know, if you're in a CON state, 179 00:06:26,480 --> 00:06:28,875 that's a very difficult thing to do. Most 180 00:06:28,875 --> 00:06:29,375 likely, 181 00:06:30,074 --> 00:06:31,914 unless you have a hospital partner and you 182 00:06:31,914 --> 00:06:34,474 work with a hospital partner to pave the 183 00:06:34,474 --> 00:06:36,014 way, there's usually opposition. 184 00:06:36,634 --> 00:06:39,134 And in more cases than not, any type 185 00:06:39,274 --> 00:06:41,294 of sole application is denied. 186 00:06:42,394 --> 00:06:43,050 In our 187 00:06:43,449 --> 00:06:43,949 situation, 188 00:06:45,289 --> 00:06:47,229 we knew that there were certain 189 00:06:47,769 --> 00:06:50,829 elements in place that made our application likely. 190 00:06:50,889 --> 00:06:53,449 So we did apply and we did receive 191 00:06:53,449 --> 00:06:54,430 unanimous approval. 192 00:06:55,050 --> 00:06:57,564 Steiner had actually applied for one some fifteen 193 00:06:57,564 --> 00:06:59,404 years earlier and was denied and had just 194 00:06:59,404 --> 00:07:00,625 kinda ruled that out. 195 00:07:01,084 --> 00:07:04,764 When our application was approved, we originally thought 196 00:07:04,764 --> 00:07:06,784 that we were gonna build a multi specialty 197 00:07:07,485 --> 00:07:10,230 ASC, and so we designed it to be 198 00:07:10,230 --> 00:07:12,089 multi specialty. So our capacity, 199 00:07:12,629 --> 00:07:14,709 it's six rooms currently, and we can expand 200 00:07:14,709 --> 00:07:17,610 it relatively easy to eight total operating rooms. 201 00:07:18,949 --> 00:07:21,110 But for a number of reasons, we're limiting 202 00:07:21,110 --> 00:07:23,384 it for the next few years to orthopedic 203 00:07:23,685 --> 00:07:25,845 only, and I think it'll be some time 204 00:07:25,845 --> 00:07:28,025 before we open it up to multispecialty. 205 00:07:28,884 --> 00:07:30,185 As far as our planning, 206 00:07:30,645 --> 00:07:32,824 we toured a number of ASC facilities 207 00:07:33,365 --> 00:07:36,479 around the country, and we saw many things 208 00:07:36,479 --> 00:07:38,180 that we thought would be wonderfully, 209 00:07:39,439 --> 00:07:41,599 incorporated into our facility, things that we just 210 00:07:41,599 --> 00:07:42,979 really wanted to see, 211 00:07:43,279 --> 00:07:45,599 larger operating rooms. We wanted to make sure 212 00:07:45,599 --> 00:07:47,220 that each of our rooms was, 213 00:07:48,175 --> 00:07:49,855 light so that, you know, if you walk 214 00:07:49,855 --> 00:07:52,035 into Room 1 or Room 4, Room 6, 215 00:07:52,175 --> 00:07:53,694 you know, if you're blindfolded and you walk 216 00:07:53,694 --> 00:07:55,375 in and take the blindfold off, they all 217 00:07:55,375 --> 00:07:57,074 look the same. They all feel the same. 218 00:07:57,134 --> 00:07:59,134 So we wanted that type of consistency. But 219 00:07:59,134 --> 00:08:00,355 we also, more importantly, 220 00:08:00,709 --> 00:08:01,990 we saw a lot of things that didn't 221 00:08:01,990 --> 00:08:03,910 make sense to us. I remember going to 222 00:08:03,910 --> 00:08:06,069 one ambulatory surgery center and, 223 00:08:06,389 --> 00:08:07,930 owned by a large company, 224 00:08:08,470 --> 00:08:10,649 that has a footprint nationally. And, 225 00:08:11,589 --> 00:08:12,490 they had a sister 226 00:08:12,974 --> 00:08:14,974 ASC in the same city, and they had 227 00:08:14,974 --> 00:08:17,055 a surprise inspection. And so in the facility 228 00:08:17,055 --> 00:08:18,675 that we were touring as guests 229 00:08:19,055 --> 00:08:20,354 on our site visit, 230 00:08:20,814 --> 00:08:23,055 I remember they were putting boxes in into 231 00:08:23,055 --> 00:08:25,254 cars that morning to try to prepare for 232 00:08:25,254 --> 00:08:27,569 a potential inspection. And, you know, we said 233 00:08:27,569 --> 00:08:29,250 that that's not something that we wanted to 234 00:08:29,250 --> 00:08:31,110 do. Another facility said that 235 00:08:31,569 --> 00:08:33,429 the central sterilization component, 236 00:08:34,049 --> 00:08:35,889 was very small. And the and the feeling 237 00:08:35,889 --> 00:08:37,590 was they were in the orthopedic 238 00:08:38,529 --> 00:08:41,330 surgery center business, not the central sterilization business. 239 00:08:41,330 --> 00:08:43,295 And so they went with the bare minimum. 240 00:08:43,295 --> 00:08:44,735 And, you know, we looked at that and 241 00:08:44,735 --> 00:08:46,595 we talked to folks who work there. And 242 00:08:46,654 --> 00:08:48,495 we determined that for us, the best course 243 00:08:48,495 --> 00:08:49,934 of action was to just make sure that 244 00:08:49,934 --> 00:08:51,774 we built a facility that could handle all 245 00:08:51,774 --> 00:08:54,179 of our needs and potential growth. And it 246 00:08:54,179 --> 00:08:56,600 it also turns into opportunities for us because 247 00:08:56,740 --> 00:08:58,899 if we put a community hospital next door, 248 00:08:58,899 --> 00:09:01,059 we think there's an opportunity for us to 249 00:09:01,059 --> 00:09:01,559 provide 250 00:09:02,100 --> 00:09:02,600 sterilization 251 00:09:03,299 --> 00:09:05,220 services to the community hospital, which will be 252 00:09:05,220 --> 00:09:06,600 a savings for the hospital 253 00:09:07,085 --> 00:09:08,764 and create an opportunity for us to have 254 00:09:08,764 --> 00:09:11,345 a true partnership with a community hospital partner. 255 00:09:11,485 --> 00:09:12,764 So there's a lot that we did that 256 00:09:12,764 --> 00:09:15,165 went into our planning and our thinking. But, 257 00:09:15,485 --> 00:09:16,924 you know, for the most part, I think 258 00:09:16,924 --> 00:09:19,504 the most important thing is the patient experience 259 00:09:19,565 --> 00:09:21,769 around ASC is exceptional. And I would invite 260 00:09:21,769 --> 00:09:23,389 anyone who wanted to come take a tour 261 00:09:23,610 --> 00:09:24,889 of what we've done to come take a 262 00:09:24,889 --> 00:09:26,570 look at it. We're proud of it, but 263 00:09:26,570 --> 00:09:27,789 it really works 264 00:09:28,250 --> 00:09:30,250 well. In some cases, I might say that 265 00:09:30,250 --> 00:09:32,809 we overbuild. We have probably more supply area 266 00:09:32,809 --> 00:09:34,465 than we need, but we also have a 267 00:09:34,465 --> 00:09:36,144 standard that nobody who walks through it will 268 00:09:36,144 --> 00:09:37,745 ever see cardboard in a walkway, in a 269 00:09:37,745 --> 00:09:38,245 hallway. 270 00:09:39,345 --> 00:09:42,065 Oh, absolutely. And, Patrick, I really appreciate the 271 00:09:42,065 --> 00:09:44,625 overview of kind of where the center started 272 00:09:44,625 --> 00:09:46,829 and where it is now and this focus 273 00:09:46,829 --> 00:09:47,490 on exceptional 274 00:09:47,870 --> 00:09:50,429 patient experience in the ASC. I I think 275 00:09:50,429 --> 00:09:51,089 that that's 276 00:09:51,470 --> 00:09:53,870 such a great foundation for everything else that 277 00:09:53,870 --> 00:09:56,029 you just described and what's possible in terms 278 00:09:56,029 --> 00:09:57,649 of the center's growth and expansion. 279 00:09:58,504 --> 00:09:59,784 And I know a big part of the 280 00:09:59,784 --> 00:10:01,804 patient experience, of course, is having, 281 00:10:02,584 --> 00:10:03,084 surgical 282 00:10:03,784 --> 00:10:05,644 procedures and technology that make 283 00:10:06,105 --> 00:10:08,684 those experiences for patients that much more streamlined 284 00:10:08,825 --> 00:10:11,399 and easy. So I know that part of 285 00:10:11,399 --> 00:10:14,039 that for Seimler is its partnership with J 286 00:10:14,039 --> 00:10:16,080 and J MedTech. So I'd love to learn 287 00:10:16,080 --> 00:10:18,539 a little bit more about that partnership and 288 00:10:18,600 --> 00:10:19,820 maybe some of the nonnegotiables 289 00:10:20,279 --> 00:10:22,600 that you established upfront as you were searching 290 00:10:22,600 --> 00:10:24,059 for a partnership like this. 291 00:10:24,914 --> 00:10:26,514 Well, as you can imagine, we had a 292 00:10:26,514 --> 00:10:27,794 lot of interest. I mean, I think, 293 00:10:29,235 --> 00:10:30,995 one of the things that we wanted to 294 00:10:30,995 --> 00:10:31,495 do 295 00:10:31,955 --> 00:10:33,815 was try to hone in on an opportunity 296 00:10:34,115 --> 00:10:36,615 to create the most value within our facility. 297 00:10:36,995 --> 00:10:37,495 And 298 00:10:38,190 --> 00:10:40,669 one aspect of that was trying to get 299 00:10:40,669 --> 00:10:41,169 to 300 00:10:41,549 --> 00:10:42,610 one or two 301 00:10:43,070 --> 00:10:43,570 partners 302 00:10:44,110 --> 00:10:47,070 where we concentrated our spend to really drive 303 00:10:47,070 --> 00:10:48,210 down our price. 304 00:10:49,230 --> 00:10:50,290 With everything else, 305 00:10:50,894 --> 00:10:52,995 labor, health insurance, materials 306 00:10:53,375 --> 00:10:55,455 increasing year over year and really not seeing 307 00:10:55,455 --> 00:10:57,394 much in the way of reimbursement increases, 308 00:10:58,095 --> 00:11:01,615 being very thoughtful about efficiency and spend was 309 00:11:01,615 --> 00:11:03,055 something that we honed in on. And so 310 00:11:03,055 --> 00:11:05,235 that was a major aspect of the RFP 311 00:11:05,375 --> 00:11:05,875 process. 312 00:11:07,429 --> 00:11:09,509 But those ideas, of course, are are super 313 00:11:09,509 --> 00:11:12,070 important, but they only work well if the 314 00:11:12,070 --> 00:11:13,750 quality that you're gonna get from the partner 315 00:11:13,750 --> 00:11:16,470 you choose is quality that you can live 316 00:11:16,470 --> 00:11:18,230 with every day and that you're comfortable with. 317 00:11:18,230 --> 00:11:18,970 And so, 318 00:11:19,295 --> 00:11:20,815 you know, we had a lot of interest 319 00:11:20,815 --> 00:11:22,415 and we really honed it down. And when 320 00:11:22,415 --> 00:11:23,934 it when it's all said and done, I 321 00:11:23,934 --> 00:11:25,934 think what we really we thought that the 322 00:11:25,934 --> 00:11:28,274 partnership with J and J was gonna be 323 00:11:28,495 --> 00:11:29,394 super comprehensive 324 00:11:29,774 --> 00:11:32,095 and that we would work with folks who 325 00:11:32,095 --> 00:11:34,675 were very much invested in our 326 00:11:35,100 --> 00:11:37,820 success. And then, you know, partnership's often thrown 327 00:11:37,820 --> 00:11:39,980 around as just a term, and it really 328 00:11:39,980 --> 00:11:41,899 doesn't have the traction that really means that 329 00:11:41,899 --> 00:11:44,700 it's a dual sided commitment. And with J 330 00:11:44,700 --> 00:11:46,139 and J, we just felt like we were 331 00:11:46,139 --> 00:11:47,919 gonna have that commitment from them. 332 00:11:48,434 --> 00:11:49,955 And I can say that, you know, since 333 00:11:49,955 --> 00:11:51,715 we made that decision and we built the 334 00:11:51,715 --> 00:11:54,355 facility and we worked through all the different 335 00:11:54,355 --> 00:11:56,434 equipment that came with the partnership and we 336 00:11:56,434 --> 00:11:58,434 opened and they came to celebrate our opening 337 00:11:58,434 --> 00:12:00,355 and things that we're doing now and a 338 00:12:00,355 --> 00:12:02,434 continuation of that relationship, I think we made 339 00:12:02,434 --> 00:12:03,254 the right call. 340 00:12:04,179 --> 00:12:05,860 Yeah. That I love what you're saying here 341 00:12:05,860 --> 00:12:06,360 about 342 00:12:07,059 --> 00:12:08,040 kind of that bidirectional, 343 00:12:08,980 --> 00:12:11,779 effort and investment in a partnership. I'm sure 344 00:12:11,779 --> 00:12:12,440 that really, 345 00:12:12,899 --> 00:12:15,240 solidified that decision for you all. And 346 00:12:15,540 --> 00:12:17,804 it's been great, Patrick, learning more about 347 00:12:18,365 --> 00:12:19,345 Steindler's history, 348 00:12:19,725 --> 00:12:21,964 where the newest center is at and some 349 00:12:21,964 --> 00:12:23,825 of these growth and expansion opportunities. 350 00:12:24,284 --> 00:12:25,725 I know we covered a lot of ground, 351 00:12:25,725 --> 00:12:27,245 but is there anything else you'd like to 352 00:12:27,245 --> 00:12:29,504 add or or leave our listeners with today? 353 00:12:30,379 --> 00:12:32,539 Yeah. I think that yeah. Yeah. I'd remind 354 00:12:32,539 --> 00:12:34,460 everyone that for all of us, the challenges 355 00:12:34,460 --> 00:12:34,960 continue 356 00:12:35,500 --> 00:12:37,580 to increase and and the approaches that we 357 00:12:37,580 --> 00:12:39,740 have to take to be successful in the 358 00:12:39,740 --> 00:12:42,160 orthopedic space and running a surgery center, 359 00:12:42,674 --> 00:12:44,754 our our challenges are increasing. And I think 360 00:12:44,754 --> 00:12:46,375 one of the things that I really value, 361 00:12:46,514 --> 00:12:48,355 and I and I commend Becker's for this 362 00:12:48,355 --> 00:12:50,195 as well, is that we do have this 363 00:12:50,195 --> 00:12:53,875 really unique community where we share information, we 364 00:12:53,875 --> 00:12:56,195 share insights, we learn best practices from one 365 00:12:56,195 --> 00:12:58,909 another, and I appreciate that. And so, you 366 00:12:58,909 --> 00:13:01,549 know, from Steiner's perspective, if there's anything that 367 00:13:01,549 --> 00:13:03,709 we've done and can share with anyone, we 368 00:13:03,709 --> 00:13:05,870 welcome the opportunity to do so. I can 369 00:13:05,870 --> 00:13:08,110 say for absolute certain that so much of 370 00:13:08,110 --> 00:13:09,409 what makes us run well 371 00:13:09,894 --> 00:13:11,654 has come through others who have helped us 372 00:13:11,654 --> 00:13:13,014 along the way. And so that's one of 373 00:13:13,014 --> 00:13:14,794 the things that really is to respect about 374 00:13:14,855 --> 00:13:15,995 the orthopedic community. 375 00:13:16,934 --> 00:13:19,174 Oh, great note to end our conversation on, 376 00:13:19,174 --> 00:13:21,575 Patrick. Thank you so much again for making 377 00:13:21,575 --> 00:13:23,735 time for our conversation today and for joining 378 00:13:23,735 --> 00:13:26,027 Becker's for a podcast. It was great having 379 00:13:26,027 --> 00:13:28,523 you. Well, thank you for having me, and 380 00:13:28,523 --> 00:13:29,459 thank you for, 381 00:13:30,083 --> 00:13:32,578 taking interest in Southern Orthopedics. Absolutely. And we'd, 382 00:13:32,578 --> 00:13:35,074 of course, also like to thank our podcast 383 00:13:35,074 --> 00:13:37,978 sponsor for today, J and J MedTech. Listeners, 384 00:13:37,978 --> 00:13:39,658 be sure to tune into more podcasts from 385 00:13:39,658 --> 00:13:42,538 Becker's Healthcare by visiting our podcast page at 386 00:13:42,538 --> 00:13:44,878 beckershospitalreview.com.