Switching to Outpatient Surgery for Everyone ’s Benefit
By AMY KRAMBECK, MD
The
trend toward less invasive procedures, shifting from inpatient to outpatient, has
changed the face of surgery. Industry-changing leaps in technology and surgical
techniques have allowed us to achieve our treatment goals with smaller
incisions, laparoscopy and other “closed” procedures, less bleeding, less pain,
and lower complication rates. As a result, patients who used to require days of
recovery in the hospital for many common surgeries can now recuperate in their
own homes.
Outpatient
procedures grew from about 50% to 67% of hospitals’
total surgeries between 1994 and 2016,1,2 and outpatient
volume is expected to grow another 15% by 2028,3 with advantages for
patients, surgeons, insurers, and hospitals. In my hospital, where bed space is at a premium, my colleagues and
I were able to make a significant impact by switching minimally invasive
surgery for enlarged prostate, also called benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH),
from inpatient to outpatient.
New
Opportunity with an Advanced Technology
BPH affects
about half of men in their 50s, with the prevalence increasing with age to include
about 90% of men 80 and older.4 As a result, BPH surgery makes up a significant
portion of urological procedures in any hospital.
I
have been performing BPH surgery for 11 years. There are several options,
including transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) and suprapubic
prostatectomy, both of which require hospital stays and bladder irriga...
Source: The Health Care Blog - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Christina Liu Tags: Medical Practice Physicians Amy Krambeck benign prostatic hyperplasia outpatient surgery Source Type: blogs
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