Capital Expenditure BioVision by Faxitron
Capital Expenditure BioVision by Faxitron
Capital Expenditure BioVision by Faxitron
CAPITAL EXPENDITURE
who provide these services to outpatients using existing in equipment. The Ambulatory Service
Centers mission is to provide outpatients with specialized and general high-tech care at
reasonable costs and with an eye toward compassion.
Ambulatory Surgery Centers (ASCs) provide same day surgery and medical care
including diagnostic care and preventative healthcare. ASCs area modern concept healthcare
locations where patients can have outpatient procedures and other procedures performed in a
professional and ultramodern facility without being admitted to a hospital. ASCs have were
introduced in the United States in the 1970s and have expanded in number and services so that
today they are looked to for their exceptional care capacity, high quality personnel and
equipment, and customer service attitude. Medical care costs have become prohibitive for much
of the population. In order to obtain health care services and benefit from high-end technology
most outpatients travel to large hospitals and medical centers. ASCs continue to change that by
providing millions of people with an alternative to in hospital outpatient procedures. The ASC
expanded faster than had been expected and was servicing a wider market than originally
planned within the first three years.
The main source of revenue for the Ambulatory Service Center is outpatient services
performed onsite. In ASCs, the standard assumption is that patients stay between 6 to 10 hours
onsite depending on the procedure. The ASC has three ultramodern operating rooms plus a
recovery room. The procedures currently offered include outpatient procedures, cosmetic
procedures, and emergency outpatient services. The ASC receives payments from co-pays,
Medicare, and insurance companies.
Approximately 85% of the ASCs current patients use private insurance, Medicare, or
Medicaid. There is going to be huge growth in the ASC industry. The Value Based Purchasing
CAPITAL EXPENDITURE
options available via The Affordable Care Act have already been established. This plan allows
for payments to ASCs similar to those that are already popular under the Medicare program. The
report to Congress referred to need to improve payment quality and speed for ASC services. The
intention is to reward ASCs for providing better value, outcomes, and innovations, instead of
merely volume (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, 2013).
Because of the changes in the population that will enjoy medical care in the future, ASCs
are in position to service the demographic of outpatients who will be seeking disease
management, surgery, and other payer made decisions. The issues facing ASCs will be
complicated and ASC growth will need to be planned in order to meet the increasing demands
for ASC services.
ASCs consistently operated at a profit. Even during periods of recession, outpatient
centers enjoy economic stability. People always need specialized diagnostic care and cancer
patients require radiation treatments continuously. Costs for providing outpatient care is paid by
insurance and healthcare systems, in the future this will include ACA payments. There are over
200,000 outpatient service facilities in the United States. These outpatient facilities produce
approximately $180 billion dollars in revenue annually and employ almost 2 million people. As
the population increases so does the demand for outpatient treatment. The predicted growth rate
of outpatient care in the next two decades is expected to grow rapidly as the baby-boomers
demand treatment.
Analysis reveals three factors that traditionally define the number of outpatient
procedures performed at ASCs. Firstly, there is an acknowledged need for increased healthcare
and medical procedures on an outpatient basis. The healthcare procedures performed relate to
the population served, the protocols for screening used by a given facility, and the advancement
CAPITAL EXPENDITURE
CAPITAL EXPENDITURE
2008). An important draw for patients is that ASCs provide them access to ultramodern
technology.
Based on Medicare data for the period 2000 to 2007 supplied by Medicare
Physician/Supplier Procedure Summary (PSPS) growth in outpatient services for all kinds will
continue to increase and this means updated technology will be required for ASCs, HOPDs, and
physician offices as well as other facilities that offer alternative sites for of outpatient procedures.
We conducted a comprehensive study of the growth factors for ASCs. The predicted growth in
ASCs will mirror the movement away from hospital inpatient surgeries to outpatient settings.
ASCs need to be prepared to use disease screening for common procedures, for example,
colorectal cancer. Because these patients will have a choice, they will be drawn to ASCs that can
provide them with improved technology, fast recovery times, pharmaceutical services, and
modern ex-ray procedures.
Productivity at the ASC
One of the goals of management at ASC is productivity. The ASC is committed to being
at the forefront when it comes to technology. This will be accomplished by Faxitrons BioVison.
This system is not only useful for daily imagining procedures. ASC surgeons will be able to use
the BioVison in the operating room to reduce procedure times and advance patient care. The
cutting-edge digital imaging technology comes with user-friendly software that is designed to be
learned intuitively so that training time is short and the results are the finest images every time
thereby bettering the workflow at the ASC and in the surgical suite. Specimen radiographs are
ready for review immediately. This means that surgeons, technicians, and radiologists can view
the x-ray simultaneously. The BioVision consistently reduces procedure times and saves on per
procedure costs.
CAPITAL EXPENDITURE
CAPITAL EXPENDITURE
attract business from physicians is by offering them the ability to refer patients and get results
back as fast and as conveniently as possible (French, 2011). The BioVision would definitely
attract the attention of local physicians who would send their patients to the ASC for ex-rays as
well as other tests and procedures. MRI and CAT scans constitute a steady revenue source.
Besides the cost of the MRI or CAT scan, the patient usually generates between $2,500 and
$3,000 in additional services.
Quality Assurance
The management goals of the ASC include making sure that the facilities are prepared to
enter into the next era of patient care, surgical treatments, and professional management by
means of planned design and regularization to ensure a dependable, consistent experience for
patients, providers, families, and staff. ASC seeks to maintain a high level of clinical quality. In
doing so the organization will be better able to evaluate, monitor, and increase the clinical
outcomes for its patients. By creating standardized procedures that capitalize on the use of
modern technology, ASC will be able to simplify employee workflow and increase employee
productivity. To establish better patient access the ASC was originally designed using standards
that enhance patient and family experiences. State-of-the-art clinical care was and is one of the
main goals.
An example of how the BioVison would enhance quality assurance is the application of
the equipment to core specimens. When the physician is about to release a patient from
the stereotactic core needle biopsy procedure, the physician needs to be sure that he or she wants
to be certain that the core specimens taken are representative of the micro-calcifications
recognized on the mammogram. The BioVison eliminates the need to move the specimen to a
different location because the unit is in the stereotactic suite. It sets up easily and provides a
CAPITAL EXPENDITURE
superior digital image on the spot (Faxitron, 2013, p 6). This assures that the patient will be
inconvenienced or forced into an uncomfortable position for as short a time as possible. The
time saving element reduces the workload for employees thereby saving money on every
procedure.
Cleverley & Cameron (2007) mention quality assurance in relation to revenue, but
quality assurance in relation to patient care can be improved using the Digital Imaging System.
Data can easily be accessed from the system and reports generated for patients who have fallen,
have frequent pain, are currently experiencing a urinary tract infection or have shown a decline
in activities of daily living. These reports can be used to compare historical trends within the
facility, the state, and the industry. The reports also can be used by the clinical staff to improve
infection control procedures, increase fall prevention plans and address a patients pain more
efficiently. The reports generated from the Digital Imaging System can provide nursing
management an opportunity to review documentation for accuracy and follow through by the
registered nurse, licensed practical nurse, and the nursing assistants. This information can be
then forwarded to the appropriate person to ensure quality patient care.
Economic Environment
Most of the comments relate to Independent research and user experience suggest that
the use of Digital Imaging System systems can help organizations save money and can be used
as sources of new revenue (Renner, 1996, para. 7). The economic environment of ASC will
certainly improve once the transition has taken place. The financial benefits to implement the
Digital Imaging System is a reduction in labor costs in the medical records department, for
personnel involved in coding, billing or manually retrieving lab results, the nursing department
in the transcription of hand-written physician orders and redundant documentation. The system
CAPITAL EXPENDITURE
will be integrated with the business office and the billing and coding department. The automated
system will ensure that the process links clinical information to financial information and lost
charges can be reduced substantially with improved documentation. The length of time accounts
receivables are outstanding will decrease increasing revenue monthly or quarterly. Storage and
supply costs will decrease with the use of the Digital Imaging System. Storage costs can be
eliminated or decreased because of the amount of paper a health care facility must keep.
Supplies such as paper, folders, filing cabinets, dividers, and storage boxes will decrease.
Another factor to consider is the cost of an outside vendor to shred sensitive information. With
the use of the Digital Imaging System the paper, needing to be shred will decrease and so will the
cost.
A decrease in the amount of funds necessary for labor is a large benefit to the Center. An
improvement for the economic environment also can be seen in the reduction of repeated lab
tests, such as x-rays, ultrasounds, and blood draws because of a misplaced document. The
physicians access to the complete clinical record will ensure medication orders are complete and
covered by the patients insurance. Many times the facility has been responsible to pay the
pharmacy charges for non-covered medication or medications ordered too soon. Having access
to pertinent data will decrease pharmacy charges. With the reduction in labor needed to perform
all the above duties the staff will spend time that is more productive with the patients.
Cost Containment
ASC has detected an inefficient practice related to the medical record. Areas of concern
are the location of needed documents, inadequate documentation, missing documentation,
inappropriate diagnosis codes, and failure to follow through on necessary patient care needs. All
of these concerns increase cost and unnecessary treatments or inefficient treatment of the patient.
CAPITAL EXPENDITURE
10
The initial cost of the system will be large for the organization and the effects may not be seen
for quite some time. The organizations goal is to improve patient care by reducing the cost of
labor and increasing productivity. Decreasing the need for costly medications and unnecessary
medications will help in cost containment and better patient outcomes.
Leadership Role in the ASC Community
There are many testimonials available from reliable leaders and researchers in the field.
The following are just a few from notables. Dr. and Professor G.W. Eklund at the University of
Illinois College of Medicine states that "Faxitron's unit has opened a new era in specimen
radiography. The ultra-high resolution and 5 times magnification capability of needle core and
excisional biopsy tissue have enabled us to find micro-calcification that would otherwise escape
detection. The superior contrast achieved with very low kV enables discrimination of soft tissue
lesions that have similar density to normal glandular tissue. With Faxitron specimen radiography
we can predict the extent and location of disease more accurately. Surgeon and Director Dr.
Christine B. Teal of George Washington University Hospital wrote The BioVision system
allows us to see the specimen radiographs immediately which has improved our efficiency
substantially, benefitting us and our patients. Dr. Michael N. Linver of the University of New
Mexico School of Medicine considers the BioVision "one of the great breakthroughs in breast
cancer diagnosis in the past 10 years. In his praise, Dr. Linver said of the BioVision Through
its exquisitely detailed magnification images, the Faxitron has expanded our understanding of
breast pathophysiology, resulting in more accurate and complete diagnosis and better patient
outcomes." These leaders in the field point up many benefits to the BioVision. It assists the
institutes in guiding workflow, meets the needs of the whole clinical staff that includes
administration, nurses, assistants, and physicians. Using this imagining system will allow the
CAPITAL EXPENDITURE
11
ASC to take and maintain its place as a leading ASC as well as take a leadership role in
educating its employees in the most modern technology.
Organizational Need
ASCs goal to provide high-quality clinical care means that all processes at the
facility should not only be standardized but also should be state-of-the-art. This goal sets the
standard for all of the clinic specialties the staff offers to its patients and their families.
Standardization provisions regulatory compliance. In order to assure that an organized and
dependable patient approval process takes place the ASC must consistently maintain the best
possible inventory of equipment. The ASC must demonstrate that its goals include a coordinated
effort to accomplish constant enhancements to the patient experience. The BioVision improves
the ASCs ability to increase the standard of care to patients going through a surgical excision or a
biopsy.
Nurses will be able to bring patient care plans up to in real time because of the presence
of the BioVision results and the ease in transferring the information. Staff will spend less time
on the phones with other locations, handling film, arranging new appoint, or worse making the
patient come in to the facility for a re-shoot of the x-rays because of film development issues.
Repairs and the procurement of film, paper, transport packets and other consumables associated
with film x-rays will be eliminated. Because of the timesavings, the staff will not be required to
work over-time nor will they have cause to fall behind schedule. The auditing process will be
streamlined because the digital images with travel with the patient file. In this way the staff can
ensure that all of the patients records are complete, up-to-date, and accurate. Physician orders
will be contained in the file and available immediately upon the review of the record. This
comprehensive way of maintaining patient records, will all available information including x-ray
CAPITAL EXPENDITURE
12
images in one place will assist the lab and other sectors in the ASC. This will allow the ASC
staff to make informed and speedy decisions about a patients healthcare needs.
The acquisition, simple delivery method and installation, along with the training provided
by Faxitron (and included in the quote price) correlates directly with the ASC goals of valueadded patient care, long-term revenue enhancement, community leadership, and ethical
responsibility. Comprehensive, precise, readable images will enhance the maintenance of
medical records, ensure a continuousness high standard of patient care, lessen the possibility of
error during transport of and development of film and above all guarantee that diagnosis and
treatment for patients occurs in a timely fashion.
The staff will require less time in performing clerical duties. This will increase cost
containment overall. The ASC budget apportioned to clerical and staff labor hours, technician,
nurse and physician labor hours, materials, consumable supplies and their storage, space used for
film x-ray storage, as well as medical records will be cut. This will reduce stress in the ASC as
the staff will not be burdened with non-patient care tasks and will feel confident that their
records are up-to-date and comprehensive. This should increase employee job satisfaction
thereby reducing the risk of staff resignation and discharge. Physicians, technicians, surgeons,
nurse, and nursing assistants, in fact all the clinical staff, will be gratified to be using the most
modern imaging equipment available.
Justification
This capital expenditure is justified because the BioVision Digital Imaging System
meets the administrative, business, and clinical needs of the ASC. The improvement in
information management will enhance employee job satisfaction and advance the quality of
patient care. The problems associated with film will be eliminated because here is no
CAPITAL EXPENDITURE
13
development, transfer, and transport of physical film x-rays required. The elimination of film
problems will increase efficiency, productivity, quality, and profits. Cost containment with
regards to employees will be assured.
Acquiring the Digital Imaging System will allow ASC staff to focus on clinical issues
such as patient diagnosis and treatment. The capability of reviewing a patients medical records
comprehensively will reduce wait times as well as the very timely task of telephoning
laboratories, read services, and other external support sources. Patient histories and regularly
scheduled physicals will be conducted with the knowledge that the clinical staff is approaching
patient care in a holistic manner due to the completeness of the information contained in the
patients medical record. Redundancy will be eliminated, there will be no need for duplication
services, or multiple copies of an x-ray because clinicians can review x-rays digitally.
The Digital Imaging System will reduce the time required to file, warehouse, and
preserve the film and paper x-ray reports. Off site and on site storage space that has been
allocated to x-rays can be eliminated in the future. This will be an immediate hard cost savings
as will the reduction on supplies needed to maintain a film and paper records including storage
cabinets. The incorporation of the patients clinical record, insurance records, and payment
record will allow for more accurate and timely billing. It will streamline the procedure for
billing insurance companies because all the information will be in one comprehensive patient
file.
Conclusion
The BioVision cost of $99,875.00 total will be recouped in less than a year with a
minimum number of procedures benefitting from the new equipment. The attached Time & Cost
Savings calculations demonstrate that using a low estimate of four surgical procedures and
CAPITAL EXPENDITURE
14
assuming patient screens of approximately 32 per day the immediate monthly savings compared
to film will be an estimated $20,800.00 per month. This equates to an estimated savings of
$249,600.00 in the first year. This more than meets the requirements established by Cleverley &
Cameron whose studies indicate that a capital expenditure should be based on the assumption
that it will not only deliver benefits for a decent time period ( two years being the established
minimum) but also that the expenditure will be recouped (Cleverley & Cameron, 2007, p. 397).
As has been demonstrated in this report the ASC will benefit in many aspects of
operation form the acquisition of a BioVison. The organization has long been aware of the need
to modernize radiology services and streamline the handling of patient information. The call for
this report and proposal is an acknowledgment that the ASC wants to advance patient care,
address employee productivity issues, increase overall efficiency and service, and ensure high
quality patient experiences. The decrease in duplication of documentation alone will allow for
increased organization when meeting patient needs and simultaneously increase employee job
satisfaction and therefore employee retention. New higher levels of productivity and precision
will cause revenues to increase because of cost containment and patient loyalty.
Section II: Establishing Acceptability
In Section I and in the attachments that comprise Section III the acceptability of
the purchase for revenue enhancement has been examined. Section I addresses the payers whose
focus is cost-effectiveness; and the ASC as an employer whose focus is cost constraints and
improved employee productivity.
This Section of the report addresses the acceptability of the BioVision for key
stakeholders at the ASC. The providers of direct care to patients, those being the clinicians
including physicians, radiologists, and nurses are key stakeholders. Clinicians focus on high
CAPITAL EXPENDITURE
15
quality and advanced technology as well as providing an accurate diagnosis, selecting the correct
course of patient care and therapies, and finally the best result for the patients health outcome.
The patients themselves are key stakeholders as well and concerned with many of the same
things as are providers, additionally they look for compassion and communication (Duke
University, 2005).
Research from other organizations point to the valuable contributions that digital
imaging has made in the field of breast cancer diagnosis and treatment. Because mammograms
are so much in demand, it is important that the ASC offer the best possible service to these
patients. The speed of the digital mammogram recommends itself to the patient. Additionally
the capability of manipulating the digital image of a mammogram electronically is very useful
for radiologists, physicians, and surgeons. A digital mammogram is much better than the film
mammograms currently in use because the digital imaging system utilizes an exceptional
detector that captures and converts the x-ray energy into a digital image. There are obvious
advantages to offering digital mammography at the ASC, not the least of which is patient and
employee expediency. There is not film that needs to be developed. This means the radiologist
or technician doing the imaging can appraise the quality and usability of the image immediately.
The patient and the technician will not need as much time for the examination. Also, because the
technician can check the images as they are taken there will not be a need for repeating the
procedure at another time as happens so often when film images are over-exposed (URMC,
2013).
From a patient point-of-view, the fact that they will not need to twist themselves into
awkward and even painful positions for x-rays will appreciate how much faster the digital
imaging is compared to film. Once the mammogram is ready to view, the technician can change
CAPITAL EXPENDITURE
16
the setting for brightness, contrast, or darkness as well as zoom in or magnify specific areas in
the image. This allows for a high quality and refined appraisal of the tissue under examination.
Experts praise the way in which they can manipulate the contrast feature of a digital image in
mammograms because this aspect of the image is vital to readings that reveal dense tissue. The
problem with film mammograms is that malignant cells and dense tissue both look white on a
film mammogram. Other advantages of digital imaging noted were that the images can be stored
and retrieved easily, they can be transmitted between doctors quickly and easily, and they can be
used with the latest advances in software to aid in the early detection of breast cancer (URMC,
2013). The BioVision delivers instantaneous confirmation of excised breast tissue margins.
A publication that points up the advantages of this digital radiology is Abdominal
Imaging experts discuss the benefits of digital imaging when doing examinations of the pelvis
and abdomen. In this book, the experts discuss a variety of organs and systems that benefit from
being examined using digital equipment. Suggestions for imaging methods and exam protocols
are explained. The book uses many excellent digital images to demonstrate how effectively a
physician can differentiate between a normal scan and a scan that reveals pathologic entities
(Hamm & Ros, 2013). This type of ability to render complete and accurate diagnosis in a timely
manner will reduce organizational risk and increase the ASCs compliance record.
Because it is important that the ASC management make certain that the
organization stays in accordance with accreditation sources recommendations from such
agencies as The Joint Commission need to be examined. That organization has in place
guidelines whereby the ASC must provide modern diagnostic imaging services. Additionally
there are special requirements for ASCs that want to obtain an advanced diagnostic imaging
certification. The criteria regulates safety issues, in particular the issue of claustrophobia that
CAPITAL EXPENDITURE
17
larger, older ex-ray equipment exacerbates. This problem can be avoided by using a digital
imagining system. Another issue for The Joint Commission is that either quality of the imaging
equipment. For ASCs that offer diagnostic computed tomography (CT) services, they consider it
necessary that a diagnostic medical physicist evaluate the imaging equipment. The following is a
list of what the evaluator would be looking for in terms of quality imaging results (The Joint
Commission, 2013):
Image uniformity
Slice thickness accuracy
Slice position accuracy
Alignment light accuracy
Table travel accuracy
Radiation beam width
High-contrast resolution
Low-contrast resolution
Geometric or distance accuracy
CT number accuracy and uniformity
Artifact evaluation
Owning and operating a state-of-the art digital system would insure the ASC passes all of
the above requirements and achieves the very desirable advanced diagnostic imaging
certification.
Sensitivity Analysis
Healthcare businesses are immune from negative changes in the economy due to the
simple fact that people will continue to get sick and require outpatient treatments. Additionally,
CAPITAL EXPENDITURE
18
these treatments are often paid for by private insurance companies and publicly funded health
systems. As such, the Ambulatory Service Center should have no issues generating top line
income or receiving payments from its patient base.
It is possible that ASCs are held to even higher standards that HOPD and physician
offices because of the newness of ASCs and the remarkable growth in their facilities as those of
choice for patients. Compliance with state and national standards means on-site surveys during
which the ASC is subject to evaluation. Licensures differ according to the state and ASCs need
to be prepared for on-going re-inspections. When Medicare patients are involved, the ASC must
meet federal facility standards. There are several accreditation organizations, the main one being
The Joint Commission and the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC).
The reason it is so important for an ASC to offer the best possible technology is that they are
expected to use innovations in all aspects of outpatient care including ex-ray, anesthesia, and
outpatient techniques. The development of minimally invasive techniques, including the
technology that replaced intraocular lens is now expected. Procedures such as this are used one
million times every year to treat Medicare patients for cataracts. These and other procedures that
used to take place in hospitals are now performed at ASCs with greater customer service and at
lower costs.
The ASC would benefit from the purchase of the BioVision because it would provide for
intra-operative use. This makes for less time-consuming procedures. The unit provides point-ofcare specimen radiography so that surgeons can immediately read breast biopsies and
lumpectomy specimens. The estimated timesaving using digital imaging is a minimum of twenty
minutes for patients under anesthesia. The surgeon and others do not need to send the specimens
CAPITAL EXPENDITURE
19
to another department or location for imaging. The radiologist and the surgeon can view the
digital image instantaneously and make decisions accordingly.
CAPITAL EXPENDITURE
20
References
Chukmaitov, Askar S, Menachemi, Nir, Brown, L Steven, Saunders, Charles, & Brooks, Robert
G.
(2008). A Comparative Study of Quality Outcomes in Freestanding Ambulatory Surgery
Centers and Hospital-Based Outpatient Departments: 19972004. Blackwell Science
Inc.
Cleverley, W. O., & Cameron, A. E. (2007). Essentials of health care finance (6th ed.).
Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett.
French, Joel. (2011). Four ways to improve hospital revenue. Healthcare Finance News.
Retrieved from http://www.healthcarefinancenews.com/blog/four-ways-improvehospital-revenue.
Hamm, B., & Ros, P. R. (2013). Abdominal imaging. Berlin: Springer.
Renner, K. (1996). Cost-justifying electronic medical records. Healthcare Financial
Management: Journal of the Healthcare Financial Management Association, 50(10), 63.
Retrieved from MEDLINE with Full Text database.
Organization Publications
Duke University. (2005). Patient Quality Improvement. Department of Community and
Family Medicine, Duke University Medical Center. Retrieved from
http://patientsafetyed.duhs.duke.edu/module_a/introduction/stakeholders.html
Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC). (n.d.). Medicare Payment Advisory
Commission (MedPAC).
Peer Reviews. (2013). Ask the Experts. Retrieved from
http://www.faxitron.com/medical/about/peer-reviews.html.
CAPITAL EXPENDITURE
21
The Joint Commission. (2013). Revised Requirements for the Ambulatory Health Care
Program. The Joint Commission Perspectives. Retrieved from
http://www.jointcommission.org/assets/1/18/PREPUB-1-2-2014-PCMH_AHC.pdf.
URMC. (2013). Advantages of Digital Mammography. University of Rochester Medical
Center.
Retrieved from http://www.urmc.rochester.edu/highland/departments-centers/breastimaging/tests-procedures/advantages-digital-mammography.aspx.