From expanding procedure capabilities to evolving payment models, these are the accomplishments five ASC leaders told Becker’s they were most proud of over the past year.
Question: Looking back at the last year, what’s one thing you would be proud of?
Editor’s note: Responses have been lightly edited for clarity and length.
Scott Bergman. President of Peak Health Associates: The year 2025 represented yet another period of significant transformation, and challenges, for ASCs as well as the healthcare sector as a whole. Amid ongoing industry evolution, the continued migration of appropriate procedures to the outpatient setting has yielded substantial advantages for both patients and providers.
Throughout the past year, I am proud to have had the privilege to collaborate with leading health systems to assist in facilitating the transition of appropriate cases from the hospital setting to the ASC environment and to support the development of comprehensive, system-wide strategies to ensure continued future migration. These efforts are advancing organizational readiness and positioning the health systems to meet the demands of an increasingly outpatient-oriented healthcare landscape.
John Petroni. Managing Owner of Silver State Surgery Center (Las Vegas): Reflecting on 2025, I’m immensely proud of the collaborative efforts of our administrative and nursing leadership in creating a stable workplace environment that effectively addressed our staffing and anesthesia challenges.
Additionally, the cohesive physician ownership team deserves recognition for pioneering advanced spinal surgeries with our innovative 23-hour observation capabilities. This development not only enhances our center’s offerings but also provides the community with a valuable alternative to inpatient hospital care.
Adam Spiegel. CEO of NorthStar Anesthesia (Irving, Texas): I’m most proud of the trust we built with our ASC partners. This year, as the industry grappled with both anesthesia staffing challenges and cost increases, we partnered with our centers to rewrite the playbook and implemented new anesthesia models at several locations.
We stabilized sites in the middle of workforce volatility, right-sized staffing to match volume without compromising patient safety or surgeon satisfaction, reduced reliance on premium labor and drove meaningful efficiency gains for our centers. In a year defined by disruption, our teams earned trust by delivering measurable improvements in how ASCs run and by serving as a reliable and transparent partner.
Robert Taylor, RN. Clinical Director & Total Joint Coordinator at Constitution Surgery Center East (Waterford, Conn.): As 2025 comes to a close, I am most proud of our facility being recognized by Newsweek as one of America’s Best Ambulatory Centers. It was an unexpected honor, which always makes the acknowledgement that much sweeter.
As caregivers at a multispecialty center, we provide a wide range of perioperative care to the community in which we all live. Every member of our team is proud to have their efforts and delivery of care recognized at a national level.
We’ve earned the same distinction again for 2026, based on 2025 data.
Josh Troast, MSN, RN. Director of Ambulatory Surgical Services at Muskegon (Mich.) Surgical Associates: I am proud of our ASC’s progression. As a new ASC, in 2025, we accomplished our Medicare Deemed Status Accreditation through the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care and over 50 insurance contracts.
As a result, our ASC has increased its volume from 30 to over 200 cases per month in a one operating room, one procedure room ASC. We anticipate adding a second OR in 2026.
