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Q I'm an RN in a hospital outpatient surgery unit. Our hospital has just built a freestanding ASC in partnership with 30 physicians in a 51-49 agreement. We're being urged to apply and transfer to the new ASC if we want to be assured a job. It's projected that half of the hospital's outpatient volume (about 600 cases per month) will go to the new center. What's been your observation of the effect new ambulatory centers have on staffing of hospital outpatient surgical units? We want to make an informed decision but this concept is new to us.
A I'd probably move to the ASC, which is a very different environment from the hospital. Even though you do outpatient surgery now, you're still in the hospital. In an ASC, you usually cross-train to lots of areas, and that will give you a new focus on nursing. You can also get involved in CQI, safety, infection control and risk management.
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