ial costs and small staff stipends, the fixed costs of operating the
center on a monthly basis have not changed, making Saturday
colonoscopies an overall profitable addition to our practice.
We've been performing weekend colonoscopies for about a year,
and have seen our monthly procedural volume increase by more
than 5%. It's been a definite win-win for patients and our practice.
Making it work
The idea of opening our facility on Saturdays began when patients
would share with us the hassle of finding time to undergo colono-
scopies. We're always looking for ways to better serve our patients,
and realized it's inconvenient for some patients to have screenings
done during the week. It requires them to use valuable vacation
days, and a friend or
family member has to
do the same in order
to take them home
after their proce-
dures.
Our 3 physicians
take call on the
weekends. The physi-
cian on call on the
Saturday that proce-
dures are scheduled
performs the morn-
ing's cases. He's
already working, so
it's not an issue for
F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 6 • O U T PA T I E N TS U R G E R Y. N E T • 2 9
