Interventional Cardiologists' Perspectives on Percutaneous Coronary Intervention at Ambulatory Surgical Centers

The volume of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) at ambulatory surgical centers (ASC) is expected to increase.

We surveyed US interventional cardiologists with a 58-question, anonymous online survey to evaluate their knowledge of and perspectives on ASC PCI.

A total of 114 interventional cardiologists (9 fellows) responded. Participants were most commonly between 45 and 54 years old (33%). Most participants identified as male (95%), white (58%), non-Hispanic (95%), and with an academic affiliation (61%); 13 participants (11%) were PCI operators at an ASC. Most participants (59%) were in support of ASC PCI, 63% were very confident in their ability to decide if a patient is well-suited for ASC PCI, and 43% were not familiar with national and state-level laws/regulations of ASC PCI. Perceived benefits of ASC PCI included positive patient experience (69%), greater efficiency (79%), and lower costs for patients (50%) and institutions (53%). Participants reported a high level of concern about private equity involvement in ASC PCI (58%), occurrence of adverse events away from the hospital (47%), lower quality of care (39%), inappropriate patient selection (40%), inadequate regulatory standards (35%), and institutional pressures (47%). Supporters of ASC PCI reported a better self-assessed knowledge of it and perceived more benefits with fewer concerns.

Most survey participants expressed support for ASC PCI, citing benefits such as improved patient experience, greater efficiency, and reduced costs. However, participants expressed concern for private equity involvement and the risk of adverse events occurring away from the hospital setting.