Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2020 Jul;131(1):31-36.
doi: 10.1213/ANE.0000000000004847.

COVID-19: Role of Ambulatory Surgery Facilities in This Global Pandemic

Affiliations

COVID-19: Role of Ambulatory Surgery Facilities in This Global Pandemic

Niraja Rajan et al. Anesth Analg. 2020 Jul.

Abstract

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has now become a global pandemic. This has led the United States to declare a national emergency and resulted in a ban on all elective diagnostic and therapeutic procedures as well as elective surgery in inpatient and outpatient settings. Ambulatory surgery facilities (ASF) that perform only elective procedures are thus likely to be closed. However, these facilities may be able to assist acute care hospitals as essential (urgent and emergent) surgeries and diagnostic and therapeutic procedures will still need to be performed. The aim of this article is to explore the potential contribution of ASFs in the current health care crisis. It is important to understand that COVID-19-related information is continually evolving, and thus, the discussion provided here is subject to change.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of Interest: See Disclosures at the end of the article.

Figures

Figure.
Figure.
Inventory that an ambulatory surgery facility could collect. Based on the recommendation from the Ambulatory Surgery Center Association. AED indicates automated external defibrillator.

References

    1. WHO. Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) Pandemic. Available at: https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019. Accessed March 29, 2020.
    1. ASCA. ASC_Facility_Demographic_Inventory_Checklist.pdf. Available at: https://higherlogicdownload.s3.amazonaws.com/ASCACONNECT/b42cd922-f859-4.... Accessed March 29, 2020.
    1. Texas Health and Human Services. Health facility licensing guidance letter. Available at: https://mcusercontent.com/72ab2bf42ce1cbbeee25344ab/files/2b6bc783-0d92-...]. Accessed March 29, 2020.
    1. ACS. COVID-19: Guidance for triage of non-emergent surgical procedures. Available at: https://www.facs.org/covid-19/clinical-guidance/triage. Accessed March 29, 2020.
    1. CDC. Interim Infection Prevention and Control Recommendations for Patients with Suspected or Confirmed Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Healthcare Settings. Available at: www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/infection-control/control-recommendati.... Accessed March 29, 2020.