Facility Spotlight: Four Exemplary Surgery Centers

The Facility Spotlight section of Outpatient Surgery Magazine’s Special Edition on Surgical Construction celebrates the spirit of ASCs and the thousands of facilities across the country that entice patients with their quality, their efficiency and their tireless commitment to safety.

The four standout centers in this section — located in Minnesota, Colorado, New York and California — were chosen for their eye-catching and unique designs, their ability to perform in-demand surgeries and their dedication to patients and staff alike.

Allina Health Surgery Center – Brooklyn Park

Brooklyn Park, Minn.

This 17,000-square-foot ASC opened in May 2022 and is located on the second floor of a new 40,000-square-foot medical facility. It touts five operating rooms where approximately 3,800 orthopedic total joints, general surgery, ENT, urology and gastrointestinal procedures have been successfully performed. According to Robert Quickel, MD, MBA, vice president of surgery and orthopedics for Allina Health, the new ASC was designed to be easy to navigate. “When a patient shows up at the ASC, they walk in and they have a direct line of sight to the front desk,” he says, adding that calming colors on the walls were also intentionally chosen. “They are patient-friendly and comfortable, beginning with a cool greenish blue. When the patient arrives in recovery, the colors are more of a gentle orange to indicate a sunset,” says Dr. Quickel. The pre- and post-op rooms offer plenty of privacy but are flooded with natural light. The 450-square-foot ORs are equipped with integrated X-ray equipment as well as microscopes and laparoscopes, which aid in the efficiency and flow during surgery. Allina Health Surgery Center’s layout can be altered to accommodate growth, thanks to the prefabricated modular walls that were installed. “At some subsequent point in the life of the center, we can easily do a redesign without having to go through a huge demolition,” says Dr. Quickel.

Steamboat Surgery Center

Steamboat Springs, Colo. What happens when you take an adventurous partnership between UCHealth Yampa Valley Medical Center and Steamboat Orthopaedic & Spine Institute and combine it with a vacant building that once housed a Sports Authority store? You get Steamboat Surgery Center, a 27,000- square-foot-facility strategically located right near a hospital, town and popular ski resort. The facility’s location offers 180-degree mountain views. Alexander Meininger, MD, a board-certified orthopedic sports medicine surgeon and founding partner of Steamboat Orthopaedic & Spine Institute, says floor-to-ceiling windows in the ASC’s lobby and waiting room offer incredible views of the Steamboat Ski Resort and fill the facility with warm, natural light. “The most commonly heard comments about our center today are about the view,” he says. Instead of a two-OR ASC with a procedure room, leaders instead opted to forgo the procedure room in favor of two large ORs (531 and 515 square feet) for maximum efficiency. “Our preoperative area, OR corridors and PACU are designed around a circular workflow that allows for a smooth transition of the patient as their status changes,” says Dr. Meininger.

Specialists’ One-Day Surgery Center

Syracuse, N.Y.
While Specialists’ One-Day Surgery Center (SODS) has been performing orthopedic and pain procedures in the Upstate New York region for more than two decades, it recently moved into a newly constructed facility to accommodate a wave of new total joints and spine cases.

The new and improved facility has four 650-square-foot ORs with their own internal core, along with six 450-square-foot ORs with a separate core. Both of those surgical cores are surrounded by one larger central core. The internal core design was intended to help with infection control, along with having all surgical equipment, supplies and implants centrally concentrated near the surgical and clinical teams. SODS performs 9,200 surgical cases per year (more than 800 per month), 1,500 of which are total joint cases.

SODS also offers an eight-room 23-hour overnight wing for a subset of spine and total joints patients who require extended clinical care. Patients have private rooms, cable TV and Wi-Fi and can order meals directly through Panera Bread.

SODS was designed with both patient and staff needs in mind.

“The spacious waiting room offers a welcoming and comfortable starting point for patients who are already nervous,” says Geoffrey Smith, MBA, executive director. “We have a spacious and modern breakroom, and locker rooms for the providers and staff. Recently, we retrofitted an underused small room into an employee relaxation room with a state-of-the-art massage chair, soft lights, decorations, scented oils and more.”

Citrus Heights Surgery Center

Rancho Cordova, Calif.

Citrus Heights Surgery Center — in affiliation with Dignity Health and United Surgical Partners International (USPI) — is a combination of cutting-edge technology and warm, welcoming design. One example of this combination is found in how the center communicates with patients and their caregivers. “The center was built with state-of-the-art equipment and technology, including a surgery board and text messaging system to inform the family of the patient’s progress through pre-op, surgery and recovery,” says Administrator Megan Miller. Additionally, oversized ORs were specifically designed to accommodate large equipment, and the endoscopy suites have passthrough wall cabinets for clean endoscopes to ensure infection prevention and ease of access.

The center, which performs 2,500 procedures annually, has dimmable lighting in all pre-op and recovery bays to accommodate patient preferences. It also features a large breakroom with a kitchen full of oversized windows to draw in the natural light, and multiple seating options for both private spaces and group gatherings. As Ms. Miller puts it, “Our team is the heart and soul of the center, and we wanted to give them a place to recharge during a busy day.” OSM