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Question: Why do you prefer to perform surgery in an outpatient facility rather than the hospital?
Dr. Castillo’s state-of-the-art outpatient surgical facility.
Answer : Dr. Castillo: Actually, about 90 percent of cosmetic plastic surgical procedures are now done in outpatient surgical facilities for the following reasons:
• Safety
The surgical procedures done in an outpatient surgical facility are done by a staff which is dedicated to doing only outpatient surgical procedures, so they are better focused, the staff is better experienced and dedicated to a single task. This increases safety and provides the patient with knowledgeable people that are experienced in state-of-the-art outpatient surgical procedures.
* Infection
The rate of infections in hospitals varies anywhere between 2 to 12 percent. The rate of infection in outpatient surgical facilities is much smaller. In fact, in our outpatient surgical facility, infection is a nearly non-existent problem and we say that because it only presents itself every few years. That is, the rate is so small that it is difficult to quantify. You may ask yourself, why? The reasons are multiple but for the most part it has to do with carrying out procedures that are done in patients who are healthy and not suffering from disease and/or infection. Also remember that in our facility, we do not do what is referred to as a “dirty case,” that is, procedures that involve entering the intestine, colon or areas that typically have bacteria.
* Cost
The cost of care in a hospital facility is often unknown and extremely high. The reasons have to do with hospitals having fees that are much higher than the real expenses to be able to cover the uninsured and establish artificially high rates that can then be applied to different insurances. The reason why this is possible is that generally insurance have no choice but to pay a fee while in our facility, the choice is yours. That is, you are the patient and you elect whether to pay or not pay the cost you know beforehand to be – that is, you approve of that cost. What this results in is a great competitiveness and a much reduced cost for the surgical procedure.
* Scale
When you go to a hospital, you immediately become part of literally hundreds or even thousands of people who may be at the hospital for one reason or another. That makes you one of many and the services are going to be diluted, meaning you are not likely to have individual care. In comparison, an outpatient surgical facility like ours has staff that is dedicated to only you and no other business to take care of during the time that you are at the facility. Consequently, you have a staff member that remains with you throughout your surgical procedure. There are no delays and this results in expedient care and a much reduced level of anxiety.
* Comparative Services
Are the outpatient surgical facilities like ours able to take care of you in an emergency? The answer is yes. Our facility is equipped to respond to an emergency in the same manner as a hospital would be. The level of response, equipment, drugs and supplies is par with a hospital. What the outpatient surgery facility has that the hospital does not, is the experience to deal with the type of surgical procedure, that is, cosmetic surgery, which you are going to have. This is an area, like in most areas, where expertise is not only important but is often the determinant for the degree of satisfaction and success that the procedure has.
So regarding the question, are you better off having your surgical procedure in a dedicated outpatient surgical facility doing cosmetic surgery only? The answer is a qualified yes for the above reasons.
G. D. Castillo, M.D. FACS
COSMETIC PLASTIC SURGERY
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800-252-7123 (within IL)
217-359-7508 Savoy (Champaign-Urbana)