The rapid growth in volume and complexity of office-based medical and surgical procedures over the last 25 years represents a profound change in how health care is delivered in the United States. Initially, cosmetic, gastrointestinal and ophthalmologic procedures made up the bulk of office-based surgeries, but this has expanded to many other medical specialties such as interventional radiology, cardiology, vascular surgery, gynecology and podiatry.1,2 In fact, nearly half as many outpatient hospital procedures are being performed; the caseload in offices and surgicenters has more than doubled.1,2 The advantages of this shift to the office-based setting include greater ease of scheduling, better overall patient satisfaction, and decreased costs to providers and the patients than if performed in a hospital.
Despite the numerous advantages of performing procedures outside the hospital, the office environment can introduce significant concerns over patient safety and well-being.
First, private offices may...
