In 2024, Becker’s reported on 11 academic health centers that had opened or were developing new ASCs and outpatient centers. In 2025, that number increased to 14, a move that reflects growing interest in outpatient ventures by health systems across the U.S.
“We’ve seen a steady move from hospital-based to outpatient care, and it’s picking up speed,” Michael Lewis, MD, the chair of anesthesiology, pain management and perioperative medicine at Detroit-based Henry Ford Health, told Becker’s. He also serves as a professor at East Lansing-based Michigan State University and Detroit-based Wayne State University.
“Patients want surgery and recovery closer to home when it’s safe, and the payment environment encourages that direction,” he continued. “Advances in surgical technique and technology have made it possible — smaller procedures, faster recovery, fewer hospital stays.”
Academic systems can bring unique advantages to ASC development as they can build strong trust from patients who understand their care is connected to a dynamic system that emphasizes innovation and ongoing research.
Richmond, Va.-based VCU Health, for example, has been advancing its ASC capabilities through investments in technology, specifically robotics.
“Right now, there are robotic surgical suites across several VCU Health locations, including the Short Pump Ambulatory Surgical Center,” Bernadette Purser, BSN, RN senior administrator of ambulatory surgery at VCU Health, told Becker’s. “The robot at Short Pump ASC allows certain procedures to be performed safely in an outpatient environment and allows our patients to be treated closer to home. “
She cautioned that academic health systems looking to develop their outpatient arm should emphasize unity and continuity between facilities to avoid trapping ASCs in isolation.
“Sometimes ASCs end up on an island, but when you are a part of a university-based health system and partner with folks in the hospital, you see how it all works together within the same ecosystem,” she said. “You know what you can do for each other, and then it becomes a system goal. You take care of the patient at the right location and use data to gauge progress. When you start to see that needle move, others see it too, and you build momentum — like a snowball.”
The payoff for academic centers that are able to find this synergy can be significant, Dr. Lewis added.
“Academic centers move carefully, and decisions take time. We work to balance operations, education, and research, and that takes deliberate attention,” he said. “When it all comes together, it’s gratifying. Patients receive great care, and our trainees see how collaboration really works in practice.”
