Who’s Who in the Ambulatory Surgery Industry: The People

Welcome to our fifth annual Who’s Who in the Ambulatory Surgery Industry. We asked our readers and members of the industry to nominate outstanding individuals who serve the outpatient healthcare community, and the facilities that shine. The dynamic caliber of these candidates is what makes this industry all that it has become. So, in light of the challenges the ambulatory surgery industry weathers, it is appropriate to celebrate your victories, acknowledge your contributions, and ponder the future of this dynamic healthcare delivery model.

THE PEOPLE

Joseph Delligatti

Joseph (Joe) Delligatti, former director of marketing for Stryker Corporation and now a principal at Physician Planning and Consulting LLC, helps physicians evaluate, plan and develop businesses. He has worked in healthcare for 27 years, but it is the last seven in the ambulatory surgery center (ASC) field that have been the most fun of his career.

“I feel like this business is my home away from home and I never feel like I am ‘working,’” Delligatti says.

He is passionate about helping physicians evaluate all entrepreneurial options, including ASCs and specialty hospitals. He speaks regularly at industry conferences and travels extensively for his job, but is still able to balance family life.

“(I) believe that having a stable and secure family life is so important,” Delligatti says. “As a father, scheduling becomes paramount in order to not miss school and social activities with my daughter. I would find another line of work if I could not maintain that balance.”

The biggest challenge of his career was when he left the “safe cocoon” of a big company and developed a small entrepreneurial business. Delligatti believes that great healthcare and reasonable profits are not mutually exclusive.

“If I can help physicians achieve both, I feel confident that I have done my job,” he says.

Don E. Detmer

Don Eugene Detmer, MD, MA, president and CEO of the American Medical Informatics Association (AMIA) is a true pioneer in the ASC industry. After receiving his doctor of medicine degree in 1965, he went on to help launch one of the very first ambulatory surgery models in the nation.

“In 1970, I helped create with Dr. James Davis the hospital-based ambulatory surgery unit at Watts Hospital in Durham, N. C.,” he recalls. “In addition to co-developing a successful hospital-based ambulatory surgery unit and evaluating the quality and cost of care between inpatient and ambulatory care, we were successful in BlueCross/Blue Shield of North Carolina reimbursing for such care. This led to the spread of the innovation nationally and particularly in the southern United States.”

Detmer is a member of more than 20 associations and committees — both national and international — and conducts regular speaking engagements and presentations. He is a world renowned consultant, most noteworthy of which is his involvement with several U.S. government entities, but his expertise spreads as far away as Europe and Hong Kong as well.

Detmer is past chairman of the Board on Health Care Services of the IOM, the National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics, and the Board of Regents of the National Library of Medicine. He chaired the 1991 study, “The Computer-based Patient Record,” was a member of the committee that developed the IOM Reports, “To Error is Human,” and “Crossing the Quality Chasm,” and is on the steering committee of a policy report for the Office of the National Coordinator on Health Information Technology to create a national framework for clinical decision support. And at the age of 63 (in 2002) when most would be planning retirement, Detmer received his master of arts degree from Cambridge University.

Detmer has published several reviews on the “increasing popularity of the innovation” over the past 36 years. He also has written other articles and reviews (a total of 104, in fact), and has contributed to 42 books, book chapters, reports, and monographs. One future endeavor Detmer plans to tackle is “an analysis to show what impact ambulatory surgery units has had, or not had, on improving the equity of healthcare due to the efficiencies created by this innovation.”

Perhaps Detmer’s best written note of all was within his answer to his future outlook of the industry. “If quality can be maintained and greed contained, the future should be bright.”

Nancy Franssen

Nancy Franssen, RN, CASC, director of Oregon’s Corvallis Clinic Surgery Center, says she remembers the day that she was referred to as a number instead of a name at a hospital she was employed at years ago. She left, started a career at an ASC and has been referred to as human, not a widget, ever since.

This change “has enabled me to grow in many different directions in which the hospital environment would not permit,” Franssen says. “We work as a team and in my current role I feel a personal accomplishment every day.”

Her biggest challenge was when she took the leap from the security of the hospital to the ASC environment, but says it was the best choice she ever made.

Franssen is involved with FASA and is president of the Oregon Ambulatory Surgery Associates. She believes that the ASC industry is in its infancy in Oregon, and that it’s a necessary part of the healthcare system. Franssen is a single mother of two and has found that the ASC environment has been a positive influence on her and her family. She enjoys photography and the outdoors.

Lisa Freeman

Lisa Freeman is co-founder of Instantia Health, an ASC development and consulting company. She says her clients are “smart, highly dedicated professionals” who are trying to provide excellent care in an environment of escalating costs, declining reimbursement and increasing regulation.

Freeman most enjoys development projects because of their unique nature. “I wholeheartedly believe in the concept of creating alternatives to the traditional hospital setting for day surgery in order to provide a more patient-friendly, surgeon-oriented environment that saves money for society as a whole,” Freeman says.

Freeman enjoys having her own firm because she is able to tailor her solutions. “I personally don’t believe an assessment of the need for long-term management services can be determined until after the center’s administrator is hired and their skill set has been clearly established and found it increasingly difficult to tell potential clients to make this determination up front,” Freeman says. “With my own firm, I have the flexibility to make recommendations as the project progresses rather than to force a client into a predetermined business model.”

Freeman is involved in several organizations including FASA and American Association of Ambulatory Surgery Centers (AAASC) and loves skiing with her sons.

She says, “It has been both humbling and exciting watching them go from trying to keep up with me to wondering why I don’t ski as fast as I used to,” she says jokingly.

John Goehle

John Goehle, MBA, CASC, CPA, is vice president of finance at Surgery Consultants of America. Goehle, a trained accountant who has been in the healthcare industry for 20 years, says his greatest contribution to the field has been teaching nonaccountants how to read financial information, and how they can use it to improve their bottom line.

Goehle speaks frequently about finance, accounting and reimbursement at national conferences. He expects to see an increase in hospital/physician joint ventures and re-syndication of existing ASCs as a result of the changes in the reimbursement environment.

Goehle says he “loves” working in the cutting edge industry of ambulatory care and enjoys seeing the positive impact the industry has.

And as if the industry doesn’t keep Goehle busy enough, he is the proud father of four teenage daughters, all of whom are in high school. He also directs and produces community musicals.

Goehle is involved in many organizations including, FASA, AAASC, Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC), The New York State Association of Ambulatory Surgery Centers and the New York State Association of CPAs.

Tammy Ham

Tammy Ham, senior vice president for the GI division of Nueterra Healthcare, has more than two decades of experience in the ASC industry and believes that ASCs are facing their most trying times — but that there are solutions.

“Keeping ahead of legislative changes is always a challenge for our partners,” Ham says. “I am constantly working with our physician partners to plan for the long-term but we have to keep our eye on what is coming down from Washington.”

Ham is involved with American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE), FASA and is a founding member and past president of the Missouri Ambulatory Surgery Center Association. She has experience in clinical nursing, administration and consulting. Prior to joining Nueterra, Ham founded Ambulatory Surgery Assistance, Inc. and developed 20 centers in several states.

Ham lectures often at conferences and finds value in working with physician partners to evaluate their business processes, including fixed vs. variable costs and evaluation of their payor contracts.

“It has been very satisfying to work with GI physicians in a truly win-win partnership as an ASC developer and manager,” Ham says. “We work very hard at clinical excellence and patient satisfaction which at the end of the day is what really matters.”

Susan Hollander

Susan Hollander, BSN, MBA, FACHE, says that if someone told her in 1976 that she was going to be involved in surgery, she would have “doubted their sanity.” That was when she graduated nursing school and the memory of being escorted from an operating room for feeling faint was still sharp.

Indeed, a lot has changed since then. Hollander developed a love of OR nursing and is now vice president of operations at National Surgical Care, where she specializes in operations and partnership management. She is involved with FASA, AAASC, Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN), Society of Gastroenterology Nurses and Associates (SGNA), AAAHC and the North Carolina ASC Association.

The biggest challenge of Hollander’s career was when she was earning her MBA as a single working parent, she recalls. Some of her classes were 100 miles away and certain subject matter was foreign to her, but she forged on. Hollander’s husband and son value her success and are supportive. She likes to golf, garden and gamble, and is glad that she can mentor administrators and clinical directors now that she has “lived in the trenches.” “It makes me feel special,” Hollander says, “while at the same time, it makes me feel old.”

Despite market competition and changes in reimbursement, Hollander believes that ASCs will remain profitable. “We need to adjust our expectations, but not give up hope on the longevity aspect,” she concludes.

Craig E. Holm

Craig E. Holm, FACHE, CHC, senior vice president of Health Strategies & Solutions, Inc. is an expert consultant on physician/hospital partnerships. He saw the future in physician ownership and empowerment and has worked to educate others to build strong ties throughout their healthcare systems.

His commitment to providing educational programs and resources for healthcare professionals in the field shines in the two books he authored: “Allies or Adversaries: Revitalizing the Medical Staff Organization” (2004) and “Next Generation Physician — Health System Partnerships” (2000).

Holm has over 25 years of experience in the healthcare field — both as a management consultant and hospital executive. He specializes in ambulatory care planning, physician-hospital affiliations and joint ventures, and medical staff development.

Holm is a member, speaker and conference planner with the Society for Healthcare Strategy & Market Development (SHSMD). He is also a frequent lecturer for the Cornell University Sloan Healthcare Program. Holm conducts numerous educational programs for local, state, and national associations each year, including sessions for the American College of Healthcare Executives, the Society for Healthcare Planning & Market Development, the American College of Physician Executives, and the Healthcare Financial Association.

Holm says his passion lies within helping physicians and hospitals “work together in a collaborative fashion rather than compete in the ACS/specialty hospital arena — which can be to the detriment of each party,” he asserts.

Tom Hui

Tom Hui is CEO of Healthcare Systems and Technologies and specializes in software for surgery centers. He has been in the surgery industry for 23 years.

“One of my contributions is recognizing that surgery centers do not have computer professionals on staff, and education and training of surgery center staff is an important factor in their ability to use computer technology,” Hui says.

Hui is a regular public speaker and recently lectured at the Dow Jones Venture Wire for Healthcare conference where he challenged the audience to think about their industry in fresh perspectives.

“The nuts and bolts of technology are not that interesting,” Hui says. “The audience wants to gaze into a crystal ball and wonder what lies ahead.”

Speaking of the future, Hui foresees that electronic medical records (EMRs) will be adopted at a much slower rate than anticipated. “(They) will fall short of (their) potential to transform the healthcare system,” Hui says. “Competition and industry changes will force many inefficient or improperly structured surgery centers to be acquired or go out of business.”

Hui is, “very happy” with his career choice and says the ASC industry has rewarded him with many friendships. “I am lucky to have found my niche at the right time,” he says.

Hui is a strong supporter of Students Rising Above, a nonprofit organization that helps students attend college. “Working with these kids gives me a balanced perspective and sense of value when I think about my daily work as CEO of a software company,” he adds.

Elliott Jeter

After a full decade in the industry, Elliott Jeter, CFA, CPA/ABV, principal at VMG Health, LLC, has become a true expert — and asset. Jetter provides insight to his ASC clients regarding ASC valuations and ASC partnership transaction issues.

Jeter’s company, VMG Health, which provides valuation and other financial services to over 100 ASCs annually, is deeply entrenched in the industry. Jeter says he particularly enjoys traveling to ASCs across the country, meeting new people in the industry and seeing new places. He attends many trade shows each year and participates in webcast speaking engagements, writes magazine articles and is often a contributor on ASC/financial topics.

“Given the overwhelmingly positive clinical and business dynamics of ASCs, the number of ASCs will continue to proliferate,” he notes. “Eventually, consolidation will occur and only the strongest ASCs will survive. To my clients, I advocate continual marketing of ASC partnership units to outside physicians which will ensure survival of the ASC for the benefit of patients, staff and physicians.”

Prior to joining VMG Health, Jeter worked as director of development for MedSynergies, Inc. — a $50 million Ophthalmic Physician Practice Management Company. He also worked for the financial advisory services group of Ernst and Young, with a wide range of healthcare clients including hospital systems, physician practice management companies and other healthcare entities.

Jeter is a member of Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA), FASA, AAASC, American Bar Association Health Law Section (ABA), and American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA).

Douglas V. Johnson

There is no task too small or too large for Douglas V. Johnson, the current president of Physician Hospitals of America (PHA) and president of Sioux Falls, South Dakota-based Surgical Management Professionals.

Johnson’s “strategic vision” spreads across every discipline imaginable within the ASC and physician-owned/specialty hospital industries. Johnson’s 10-year tenure in the aforementioned niche groups has been littered with exceptional advances in business development, political advocacy and ASC and surgical specialty hospital management.

Johnson, who holds a MBA in marketing from the University of Missouri, says he will continue his efforts to integrate the appropriate physician/ ASC disciplines within the “community healthcare system.”

“My past and current experiences are enabling me to focus my energies on industry-wide issues, perspectives and initiatives,” he asserts, citing his greatest accomplishment being that of his political activism — through PHA, in particular.

“The future outlook of the industry is very bright. We represent the platform for physicians and hospitals when a joint venture is in place to forge a path together as well as jointly address the critical issues facing the healthcare industry.”

He continues, “Get involved. Join your local, state ASC/specialty hospital organization. Contribute to the appropriate PACs, and continue to develop the platform for physicians to be a force for legislative, clinical and system change.”

Joyce Jones

Joyce L. Jones, CPC, CPC-H, CCS-P, CPC-ASC, is director of business operations at AmSurg. Currently, she manages the accounts receivable for 10 of AmSurg’s centers located in Tennessee and Indiana.

Jones specializes in single specialty ASCs and has been in the healthcare field for over 25 years — most of which has been with physician services. Jones also serves on the Cigna Government Services of Tennessee Provider Outreach and Education Advisory Board representing freestanding ASCs. She is a member of the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC), FASCA of Tennessee, American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA), and the local AAPC coding chapter: Professional Coders of Nashville, Tenn.

Jones contributed to the new ASC specialty certification for AAPC, and is a strong advocate of education concerning her niche facet. “I believe in educating your billing staff and physicians,” she shares. “This will help the ASCs to have clean claims sent the first time and will be paid appropriately and timely. I keep a close watch on my centers to ensure that they meet their monthly goals. I love the people and I always welcome a challenge in the billing and coding arena,” she shares.

Embracing her passion for her career choice, Jones is a true mentor in the field. She is an approved PMCC (professional medical coding curriculum) instructor for the AAPC and she has spent the last 11 years teaching a class at the Laine Professional Coding Institute for coding certification which will prepare the student to sit for the CPC (certified professional coder) exam as well as the CCS-P (certified coding specialist, physician based).

Jones does what she does to help strengthen the ASC industry.

“With the new changes in the payment methodologies for freestanding ASCs, we will see a need for strong coders and reimbursement specialists who can interpret Medicare regulations,” she says. “As reimbursement is decreased, timely filing and quick reimbursement is of utmost importance.”

Milla Perry Jones

Milla Perry Jones, vice president of communications and government relations with United Surgical Partners International (USPI), is a true advocate for the physician-owned healthcare model. She dedicates much of her time in her active and longtime roles with industry associations. She is a board member of the Texas Ambulatory Surgery Center Society, a founding member of the new Texas physician hospitals association, a FASA member — having served on the 2007 annual meeting program committee — and is a board member of PHA.

Be it her MBA in marketing or her passion for patient access to safe, efficient healthcare and the patient/physician relationship, Jones has done a stellar job in her attempts to raise awareness and take the industry to the next level. And, as even she recognizes as one of her greatest accomplishments, she excels at educating USPI’s physician partners of the value of their involvement in advocating for the industry.

Jones says her next big focus will on the patient as an advocate for the industry and ensuring data on this niche model of healthcare delivery is dispersed to the public. “We have not done a good job of educating the public to what a physician owned ASC or surgical hospital is,” she points out. “They love our facilities but we do not involve them as advocates. As consumer driven healthcare becomes more than a buzz word, it is important that our industry take a leadership role in defining through data — quality outcomes and efficiency — the value of the physician as a member of the management team.”

E. Paul Kerens

E. Paul Kerens, senior executive officer of Kansas City Orthopaedic Institute, LLC, is passionate about working with physicians.

“I believe the only way to provide appropriate healthcare is if the physician delivering the care has the freedom to provide the services that he or she feels are appropriate for the patient,” Kerens asserts. “Over the years the relationships between the physician and the patient have been strained by managed care and hospital/ physician relationships. Physicians have lost some of their control over how they practice medicine.”

Even so, there is no other industry in which Kerens would rather work.

“Every day is a new challenge and I get to work with some of the brightest and most motivated people,” he says.

Kerens serves in many organizations, including PHA, Kansas Surgical Hospital Association, and the Leawood Chamber of Commerce. He is an avid public speaker at state and national conferences and feels strongly that industry members must continue to learn from each other.

“In a changing environment such as ours, you do not have the time to reinvent the wheel each time,” Kerens says.

He also believes that industry members must all play a role in educating politicians and the general public on how ambulatory care is good for society. “There is a lot of negative rhetoric on our industry that just isn’t true,” Kerens says. “This negativism against our industry will only damage us if we let it.”

Ronald Ladniak

Ronald Ladniak, MBA, is president of Midwest Surgical Management Group and has been in the ASC industry for 25 years. He also serves as a consultant to Gemini Consulting Group, Inc., which specializes in surgery center development in Western Europe.

Successful partnering between surgeons and healthcare organizations requires strategy, Ladniak says. “We know how to recognize the strengths of each owner group and to use these strengths to attain the most favorable financial results,” he adds.

Ladniak entered the ASC industry in 1987 after working in hospitals and group practices. “The excitement within healthcare regarding what was then a new outpatient delivery system and all it had to offer initially drove my interest,” Ladniak says. “Since then, the drive to continually manage excellent patient outcomes while maintaining financial success has always been a test that maintains my interest.”

Patient satisfaction should be measured in patient feedback, he believes.

“It is only then that you realize the direct impact your organization made on someone’s life,” Ladniak says. “It is rewarding.” Roadblocks ensue, however.

“Never in my career in ambulatory surgery have the challenges seemed so great in terms of needing to achieve more with less resources,” he adds. “However, it is this challenge, and the desire to find alternatives for success, that personally drive me.”

Marian Lowe

Marian Lowe is senior vice president of federal health policy at Strategic Health Care and represents the American Association of Ambulatory Surgery Centers (AAASC), a platform she uses to ensure that ASCs are not constrained by government regulation and rate-setting.

“To both Congress and CMS, I help give voice and visibility to an industry that has tremendous potential to improve the lives of Medicare beneficiaries and save money for patients and the Medicare program,” Lowe says.

Despite challenges, the industry will thrive under the new Medicare payment system because the ASC business model is so strong, she says.

Lowe is curious and persistent. “Whether figuring out the nuance of a complex regulation or deciphering why my herb garden flourishes while my tomato plants languish, I never give up on a problem until the solution is in hand,” she says.

That tenacity helped Lowe immeasurably when she started her first lobbying position 10 years ago.

“I thought I had three strikes against me already: I was young, I was a woman, and I had not worked on Capitol Hill,” she says. Lowe looked at these challenges as opportunities, however, and that proactive attitude has served her well.

John M. Pike

John M. Pike is the executive director of the Texas Ambulatory Surgery Center Society. He began with TASCS in 2004, after working for five years as the associate director of the Texas Orthopaedic Association. In January, he was instrumental in organizing and running the Texas Coalition of Physician Owned Hospitals and Ambulatory Surgery Centers, which is a grass-roots political coalition, in partnership with TASCS, established to defend physician ownership of healthcare facilities at the Texas legislature.

In just over three years, Pike has worked hard to grow the TASCS membership from 30 ASC members to over 150 ASC members. He has assembled and coordinated a lobbying team that has successfully defended the ASC industry on physician ownership through two legislative sessions.

“We need to be diligent in fending off attacks on physician ownership and anti-competitive tactics from other healthcare sectors,” he advises. “There is a growing trend of ASCs partnering with corporate ASC management companies and entering joint ventures with hospital systems. These trends have a stabilizing effect in the industry and could help to unify the industry politically.

“I feel it is imperative that we continue to get our clear and concise message out to legislators, regulators, and the public that ASCs are part of what is working in healthcare delivery. By providing high quality, safe, efficient and cost effective facilities that are preferred by patients and physicians alike, ASCs have raised the bar for other healthcare facilities.”

Pike also serves as a member of the Texas Society of Association Executives, the American Society of Association Executives, American Association of Ambulatory Surgery Centers, and participates actively with FASA. He is involved with and participates in the Texas State Disaster Response Coalition and the Department of State Health Services’ Data Collection Initiative.

“I have been active in my neighborhood association, my church, my children’s schools, and scouting,” he adds. “I feel that it is very important to stay involved in anything that impacts your life and livelihood.”

Angela L. Richberg

Angela L. Richberg, RN, CASC, BBA, LHRM, went from being a scrub nurse to center administrator of a large 40,000 square foot ASC with greater than 50 physician partners and 10 ORs. “I started in the outpatient surgical field as a scrub nurse/first assist with a podiatric group in San Diego, Calif. over 15 years ago,” she recalls. “It was one of my most enjoyable jobs. I traveled with the physicians, assisted with hundreds of cases at several ASCs and was involved in the management of the entire pre- and postoperative components of the patient care — the best of all worlds: working with the patients and participating in the surgery.

“I made the jump into administration working for Dermatology Associates in San Diego. I was the clinical/surgical director. My job was to assure the smooth running of four individual patient care clinics, a AAAHC certified ASC, and a medical spa. It was very challenging, and again very fulfilling.”

At the larger center aforementioned, “I was hired following management restructuring. After several months and hundreds of working hours (just) walking in, seeing the employees work together, seeing the schedule full, knowing that everyone was doing their best … I felt such a sense of pride.”

She now is the administrator of Southside Surgery Center in Jacksonville, Florida. She also keeps busy through her efforts with FASA, MGMA, AAASC, AAHP and by attending the Texas, Colorado, California, Washington and Florida state association meetings. Richberg will again share her expertise at the annual FASA conference, and she recently launched her own consulting business: ASR or Ambulatory Surgery Rescue. ASR was developed to assist the small independent surgery center struggling with operational issues.

Education and empowerment is where her true passion lies. “The industry will always prosper as more difficult surgical cases are introduced into the ASC,” she says. “Reimbursement will change with the advent of the new APC reimbursement rates. But one of the biggest hurdles administrators face is staff education — and re-education.

Adding the new cases will have greater success if we include the staff in the process and make everyone a team member. The buy-in from the entire center is needed to make the business run successfully.”

Ken Rabinoff-Goldman

Seeing ASCs succeed to their highest potential through the use of patient-centric site selection and targeted marketing is truly gratifying to Ken Rabinoff-Goldman, DC, CCRD, CDN, vice president of HealthCareID at Buxton, a healthcare market research company.

He has served in the ASC/specialty hospital business for three years and is involved with the American Hospital Association. Rabinoff-Goldman has served in several organizations, including positions as president of a senior citizens’ apartment complex, and chair of a private school’s board of education.

Transitioning from private practice to his current position was Rabinoff- Goldman’s biggest challenge, but he is “absolutely” happy with his career choice.

“I have the opportunity to help many different types of entities achieve far greater success through data-driven superior site selection and targeted marketing,” Rabinoff-Goldman says. “Seeing them succeed is a great reward.”

He says the ambulatory surgery industry is burgeoning because of patient demand for the greatest possible convenience, and the “recognition that out-patient, ambulatory procedures are the most cost effective for insurance companies and patients alike.”

Michael D. Snow

Michael D. Snow, president and CEO of Surgical Care Affiliates, LLC, has worked in healthcare for 27 years — and in the ASC field for 15 years. He believes that ambulatory care is part of the solution to rising healthcare costs.

“Technological progress will allow more acute procedures to be done in an ambulatory setting and we must be clinically prepared to help our physicians migrate more of their cases from hospitals into an ambulatory setting,” Snow says. He speaks publicly about the macroeconomic indicators for ASCs and about the advantages the sector has over hospitals.

Snow is pleased with his career, mostly because his colleagues have the common goal of helping patients.

“With that as a common thread, the people with whom you meet and work with in the industry tend to be really good people with an opportunity to truly make a difference in people’s lives,” Snow says.

As a new grandparent, Snow understands the importance of family more than ever. “It reminds me of why being in the healthcare field is so important in the long run,” he says. “To provide people with the services they need to heal, and get back to what is most important in their own lives.”

Jerry Sokol

Jerry J. Sokol, Esq., partner at McDermott Will & Emery, LLP, has been involved in the ASC industry for more than a decade. Sokol’s specialty lies within transactional healthcare law, with a practice focus on ASCs and other outpatient facilities.

“My passion lies within the transactional area of ASCs,” he says. “This includes syndicating de novo (start-up) ASCs, recurring transactions with physician owners (i.e., sales and redemptions of physician ownership), and sales of large equity stakes to or on behalf of corporate investors (e.g. ASC companies and health systems.) I also have a passion for helping clients shepard through myriad healthcare rules and regulations in order to develop creative structures that meet their business objectives, yet comply with applicable regulatory guidance.”

Sokol names three accomplishments in which he holds most value: 1.) He effectuated numerous equity transactions within the ASC industry helping many clients achieve their business objectives; 2.) Created the annual national ASC Symposium — a transaction focused program attended by senior executives and business decision makers within the ASC industry; and 3.) Playing a material role in getting legislation introduced in Congress to raise ASC reimbursement.

Sokol lectures frequently around the country on a variety of ASC legal and transactional issues, including speaking engagements with FASA, AAASC, today’s surgicenter conference, and at such specialty programs as Digestive Disease Week, Gastroenterology Practice and Endoscopic ASC, GI Outlook, American Society of Cataract and Reflective Surgery, and many state ASC association meetings. He also has authored numerous articles on a variety of ASC legal issues.

Sokol turns an optimistic eye toward the future of the industry. “All of the reasons that have caused outpatient surgeries to move at such a rapid pace into the ASC setting (including patient, payor, and physician preference), continue to provide a compelling argument for future growth and stability of the ASC industry. As technology continues to advance — which it undoubtedly will — the role of the ASC in the healthcare delivery system will become increasingly important.”

Sokol’s life extends beyond his office walls. A proclamation made this year by the mayor in Miami-Dade County, Fla., declared Oct. 11 “Jerry and Allison Sokol Day.” His charitable involvement and community service also were entered into the record of the U.S. Congress in 2007.

“I have a wonderful wife, Allison, and four beautiful children, Jake, Sophie, Caroline and Isaac. I am heavily involved in a number of local and international charities, and I am the head coach of the Miami Beach Bulldogs 90 lb. football team.”

David M. Thoene

David M. Thoene is vice president of business development with Titan Health Corporation, which specializes in surgery center development, acquisition and management.

Thoene has been involved in the ASC industry since 1982 — a year in which he developed three surgery centers that are still operating profitably today. “Shortly after starting in this business I discovered that one size doesn’t fit all,” Thoene shares. “Looking back on more than 50 projects I can say that no two were alike. They were all the result of physician groups with slightly different needs.”

And that is where the passion lies. “I love helping young physician leaders develop surgery centers that are safe, efficient, and responsive to the changing practice needs of the doctors who work in them,” he explains.

Thoene’s niche is in his approach to feasibility analysis and strategies for managing the real estate requirements of surgery centers. He also is a member of FASA and of the California Ambulatory Surgery Association, and he was a founding member of the American Surgical Hospital Association (which was renamed PHA).

“The industry has impressed me with its versatility and ability to adapt over the past 25 years,” he says. “I can’t imagine that will change in the future. Each year we see a new group of young physician leaders in search of ambulatory surgery center opportunities. What hasn’t changed is their motivation — they want a venue that is safe for their patients and that is efficiently operated, and a management team that is responsive to their individual needs.

“Our industry must continue to search for the technical improvements that safely allow more complex procedures to be performed in patient-friendly settings like outpatient surgery centers.”

Thoene is an avid cook, traveler and gardener — three things that enable him to spend quality time with his family, children and grandchildren.

“This industry has allowed me to make a social contribution that has improved the life of literally tens of thousands of patients — I know because I’ve been a patient in facilities I’ve helped to create. I’m very proud of my work.”

Mikhail Zalmanov

It’s not every day that you will find an anesthesiologist taking a proactive stance to raise awareness for a niche model of healthcare. But Mikhail Zalmanov, MD, MBA, DD, director of anesthesia services at Gramercy Surgery Center, did just that. Zalmanov recently issued a press release highlighting the value of ASCs. In it, he notes, “Since the first ambulatory surgery center opened its doors in the U.S. in 1970, they’ve revolutionized how surgical care is delivered in the U.S. ASCs offer patients numerous advantages over hospitals and private offices at each step of the surgical process.”

Zalmanov has been a longtime supporter and pioneer in the ASC industry. “I have been involved in ambulatory surgery for the past 30 years,” he shares. “I brought the first mobile anesthesia group to a center in New York City outside of the hospital setting to an ASC.”

He is founder and president of Mobile Anesthesia Associates, PC. He is also involved in the American Society of Anesthesiologists, American Society of Ambulatory Anesthesiologists, and the New York State Society of Anesthesiologists.

“My greatest accomplishment to ambulatory surgery in New York City is that I have assisted thousands of patients over the past 30 years by helping them get their elective procedures done without a significant scheduling delay. Without the opportunity of the ASC setting people would be waiting months for their elective surgery.”

“The satisfying feeling at the end of the day is to have a patient come in and to be able to ease their stress that upon leaving after their procedure they tell you how thankful they are and that is wasn’t that big of a deal.”

“I see this industry growing immensely in the next five to 10 years. The options we offer and with new surgical advancements growth is the only natural course of events for us.

“The first question I am asked when someone sees my CV or my business card is what does the ‘DD’ stand for and they are surprised when I tell them ‘Doctor of Divinity.’ As I tell them, the reason I decided to get this degree in the first place was to have a better understanding of who people are and who I am myself. It’s important in the field of medicine to understand the needs of people and to have a passion to deliver those needs with the dignity of your patient in mind at all times.”

Peggy Zampetti

Peggy Zampetti, RN, is senior vice president of facility development and clinical operations at Titan Health Corporation, an acquisition and management company. She has worked in the ASC industry for 28 years and is proud of the many hats she has worn.

“I do feel somewhat special in my current role as I am able to use all my past experiences as staff nurse, nursing director and administrator in the designing, building, licensing, certification, accreditation and management of all our centers,” Zampetti says. “It’s great to be able to relate on so many levels since I’ve done the jobs myself.”

She didn’t start out with all this knowledge, however.

“Recalling my first job in an ASC I must admit my ego was a bit bruised,” Zampetti says. “Coming from a hospital setting with great perioperative skills, I soon realized how narrow my scope of nursing had become. In the ASC arena I was able to broaden both my clinical and business skills. I knew that the ASC industry was right for me as it opened up opportunities for career growth and heightened my understanding of cost containment in healthcare balanced with quality of care.”

She is involved with FASA and CASA and speaks at several conferences. “My passion comes from a strong belief that ASCs play a very important role in the healthcare delivery system,” Zampetti says. “We do one thing — surgery — and we do it well!”

Previous Who’s Who Awardees

Share this article: Email, Slashdot, Digg, Del.icio.us, Yahoo!MyWeb, Windows Live Favorites, Furl
Add this article feed to: RSS, My Yahoo, Newsgator, Bloglines

Read Comments [0]