Ambulatory Surgery Center
In March 2008, surgeons at St. Vincent’s Medical Center performed their first ambulatory surgery cases in the hospital’s new $10.5 million, 13,500 square foot Ambulatory Surgery Center (ASC). The new ASC replaced an earlier surgical suite, where procedures not requiring a hospital admission or overnight stay were performed.

Located on the main level of the Medical Center, the Ambulatory Surgery Center includes four operating rooms, a recovery suite that increases the number of Post-Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU) beds from seven to 12, one cystoscopy room for urological procedures, and a new feature, an expanded procedure room for minimally invasive procedures that do not require a surgical operating room.

With an increase in space from 8,300 to 13,500 square feet, the center allows the hospital to increase same-day surgery capacity in a workspace that is designed to increase staff efficiency and safety, and improve patient flow, comfort and privacy.

The new center features a tracking system already in use in the main OR, which improves communication between staff and family members. The system employs both a scrolling scheduling board with a listing of procedures, times and physicians, and also beepers that provide freedom of movement in the hospital for family members waiting for patients to come out of surgery.