"I
f you build it, they will come." That
famous statement about building
baseball fields in Iowa also applies to
constructing new spine centers. With
recent technological advances, short-
er procedure and recovery times, not to mention a
patient population that's wary of staying overnight
in a hospital, now is the time to capitalize on the
surging demand for outpatient spine surgery.
Worth the wait
UCHealth Yampa Valley Medical Center (YVMC),
located in Steamboat Springs, Colo., had wanted to
open an ambulatory surgery center for almost 20
years. The right opportunity finally came when it
formed a partnership in early 2019 with Steamboat
Orthopaedic & Spine Institute (SOSI). After a year
of renovating a former Sports Authority location,
the 27,000-square-foot building is unrecognizable
from its former incarnation as a sporting goods
retailer. The first floor houses the surgery center,
and the second floor, home to the SOSI offices, has a
waiting room with spectacular views of Steamboat
Resort and Fish Creek Falls. It also offers two high-
definition X-ray machines, which deliver images in
extraordinary anatomical detail and reduce radiologi-
cal exposure for patients and staff.
The facility gives patients a one-stop shop for
orthopedic care: surgery, occupational therapy, X-
ray, MRI, physical therapy, pain management injec-
tions and clinic appointments. Plus, the location was
perfect — YVMC recognized the growing need for a
multispecialty orthopedic center in a community that
could serve residents and tourists. "Being associated
with a local world-class ski resort, we're able to
serve the local community and tourists from around
the world," says Soniya Fidler, president of YVMC.
"We're really proud that we're able to offer high-qual-
ity, low-cost options to the communities we serve."
The building had sat empty for about three
years prior to construction, so it needed a fair
number of renovations and restructuring in order
1 6 • S U P P L E M E N T
T O O U T P A T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • F E B R U A R Y 2 0 2 1
Danielle Bouchat-Friedman | Associate Editor
Starting a Spine Center From Scratch
Timing, location and plenty of physician
involvement ultimately dictate the success of the project.
CLEAR
VIEW Clint Devin, MD, and his physician assistant Jessica Nyquist, PA-C, team up during surgery at UCHealth Yampa Valley Medical Center.
UCHealth
Yampa
Valley
Medical
Center
