In a world of skyrocketing insurance premiums and prescription drug costs, the rising cost of health care has everyone on edge. One effect is that routine, small surgeries once performed in a full-service hospital are being scheduled in ambulatory or same-day surgery centers. In recent years, the number of ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) in America has exploded. According to industry research firm IBISWorld, the number rose to 8,469 ASCs nationally in 2023.

As surgeries in these centers have exploded, so have the risks of medical complications and malpractice. Here’s what you need to know.

Documenting the Risks of Surgical Centers

A new joint investigation by USA TODAY and Kaiser Health News sheds light on centers plagued by poor oversight, unqualified or ill-equipped staff, and a lack of accountability. According to the report, more than 260 patients have died since 2013 at surgery centers across America.

The joint effort emphasized the lack of accountability surrounding ambulatory centers, citing a series of deaths at Kanis Endoscopy Center in Arkansas. With no legal mandate to report patient deaths, most of the public were uninformed that two people had died and one suffered brain damage after anesthesia complications at the facility.

Further, Medicare-reporting qualifications aren’t strong for these centers. Surgery centers are allowed great latitude regarding reporting what number of patients end up getting transferred to a hospital, a move that indicates a surgery center could not handle an issue that arose during a procedure. Prompted by these concerns, ASC Quality Collaboration, an organization run by the surgery center industry, asked Medicare to do better reporting with a quarterly quality report.

To boot, many surgery centers are partially or fully owned by the doctors who work there. Therein lies a conflict of interest between a doctor-owner’s financial interests and a willingness to report mistakes.

Protecting Your Loved Ones at Surgical Centers

Unfortunately, medical procedures are unavoidable, and most of us are at the mercy of our insurance providers’ willingness to pay. If you or a loved one are referred to a surgery center, here are a few steps you can take to reduce the chance of complications:

• Only go to accredited surgery centers. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid provide a list of approved accrediting organizations.
• Talk to friends and family about the experiences they had at the surgery center.
• Check to see if the facility and its surgeons regularly perform the procedure you need.
• Due diligence means checking out online patient reviews beforehand.
• Check and ensure your surgery center is close to a hospital in case of an emergency.

Contact an Oklahoma Medical Malpractice Attorney

If you or a loved one have experienced pain and suffering from medical malpractice, you need an experienced Oklahoma malpractice legal firm. At Gilpin Law Office, Tim Gilpin has you covered with more than 35 years of experience practicing medical malpractice law. To get the help you need, call Tim today.