Surgical Centers
Healthcare Staffing, Employment & Recruiting Agency
What is a Surgical Center?
Surgical centers are designed exclusively for short-stay surgery. They typically focus on routine, low-risk procedures like knee arthroscopy, cataract surgery, or colonoscopy. They have operating rooms and recovery areas but often lack capabilities for major surgery, trauma stabilization, or critical care provided by full-service hospitals.
Surgical centers resemble hospitals in three key ways:
- They have registered nurses and medical technicians, specialized in surgical and recovery care who assist your surgeon as part of a supportive team.
- The surgical centers feature state-of-the-art suites and equipment on par with major hospitals.
- Board Certified Anesthesiologists may participate in your care, meeting with you upon admittance if an operation is scheduled.
What Sets Apart Hospitals from Surgical Centers?
Hospitals and surgical centers are both medical facilities, but they serve different healthcare needs. What distinguishes hospitals from surgical centers comes down to their size, services provided, staffing, and focus. Hospitals are large medical facilities equipped to handle a wide range of health conditions, medical situations, and patient needs. Some key aspects in which hospitals differ from surgical centers include:
- Hospitals offer a wide range of services, including emergency care, intensive care, various medical and surgical specialties, imaging, lab tests, and onsite pharmacy services.
- Surgical centers provide more limited outpatient surgical procedures.
- Hospitals employ a diverse team of healthcare professionals, including doctors, nurses, technicians, and numerous medical specialists with the expertise to treat complex health conditions.
- Surgical centers have a smaller staff primarily focused on assisting with ambulatory surgery.
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- Hospitals can accommodate patient stays ranging from outpatient procedures to weeks of inpatient critical care.
- Surgical centers perform outpatient surgeries where patients are discharged the same day.
Medical Staff and Specialists At Surgical Centers
Surgical centers employ a specialized team focused on efficient delivery of same-day outpatient procedures. Their coordinated staff facilitates all aspects of care for surgery patients. While leaner than a hospital, they staff medical professionals, technical personnel, and support staff to provide smooth operations for fairly healthy patients needing non-life-threatening procedures. See below for the types of positions you may find at a surgical center:
- Surgeons
- Anesthesiologists
- Nurses
- Surgical Technologists
- Medical Assistants and Aides
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