Eight orthopedic surgeons connected with Becker’s to discuss what the shift to outpatient care means for the orthopedic industry.

Ask Orthopedic Surgeons is a weekly series of questions posed to surgeons around the country about clinical, business and policy issues affecting orthopedic care. We invite all orthopedic surgeon and specialist responses.

Read the full article here: What the shift to outpatient care means for the orthopedic industry.

Subir Jossan, MD. Chief Transformation Officer at MedVanta: Historically, the majority of surgical procedures in orthopedics had been done in an inpatient setting. The shift to outpatient care began almost two decades ago and has accelerated significantly in the last four to five years. This shift is multifactorial. Minimally invasive surgical techniques were the major initial driver of this trend. Technological advances in the orthopedic implant space have also aided in the shift to outpatient care. Anesthesia post operative pain control has allowed for major joint and spine surgical cases to be feasible in an outpatient setting. Finally, surgeon comfort with performing major cases in an outpatient setting has drastically increased due to training programs adopting the shift for younger physicians, whereas for older surgeons in private practice, the shift has occurred with less of an accelerated pace. Using orthopedic specialty trained assistants and increased utilization of physician extenders has also aided in increasing surgeon comfort with more complex cases into the outpatient setting.