Langtree Endoscopy Center - Goal and focus is providing efficient, effective care
5/10/2021
This article was written by Karen Kistler and originally appeared in the Mooresville Tribune on Sunday, May 9, 2021, Page A9. You can view the original article here.
Efficiency from the moment the patient walks into the office to completion of their procedure is one word that describes the goal of Langtree Endoscopy Center.
The center, which opened as a joint venture by Drs. John Clements, gastroenterologist, and Ryan Heider, bariatric surgeon, is located at 106 Alexander Bank Drive, Suite 101, Mooresville, first opened just as the pandemic hit and reopened for business later last year and celebrated with a ribbon cutting ceremony in mid-March of 2021.
“March 16 of last year was the first opening day in the facility,” noted Facility Director Stephanie Gault, “and then we started seeing patients after our CMS certification in July 2020.”
During 2020, she shared they saw 607 patients. Even during the slowdown of the pandemic, Gault noted people still needed to be screened and have procedures. “We are very fortunate,” she said.
Clyde Wood, CEO of both Davis Regional and Lake Norman Regional medical centers and who serves on the Langtree board, stressed the need to not delay on health care.
“We’ve seen this around the region, around the country, that a lot of people have been either scared to come to hospitals or health centers or surgery centers. Screen colonoscopies or just general endoscopic procedures are very important for early detection and prevention of diseases or conditions,” Wood said. “And having a place like Langtree that is new and invigorating and fresh, it just creates an environment that people can feel comfortable and safe coming to and getting that needed care and screenings that are very important.”
Clements likewise expressed why he would encourage people to be faithful about being screened as he noted that “if you look at colon cancer as the second most common killer of cancer of men and women in combination. It’s 90 percent preventable by doing a relatively un-invasive procedure that’s completely simple. We extrapolate the risks, based on how many polyps of what we find and screen them appropriately, but it’s a 90 percent reduction in risk in getting the second leading cancer killer in our country.”
The facility, which also has a partnership with Davis Regional Medical Center, has 10,000 square feet of space which includes a waiting area, procedure room, four pre-operative areas and seven recovery room areas.
Their hope is one day to be able to have two endoscopy rooms at the center; however, for now they have one procedure room, which, Gault said, “is the room set up for our endoscopy/colonoscopy suite.”
While the majority of their procedures are colonoscopies, Gault shared that “with an endoscopy, we can do anything with upper endoscopies, dilation, patients with strictures, colonoscopies and hemorrhoid banding.” Also, as noted on their rack card, the colonoscopies can be both screening and diagnostic and they also offer variceal banding.
According to material provided by Langtree, an endoscopy center is a “facility for patients who don’t need to be admitted to the hospital and need an upper or lower gastrointestinal procedure. They typically arrive for their procedure, have it performed and recover safely and quickly from light sedation.”
Because of the number of pre-op and recovery areas, Gault noted that they are “very capable to have patients come every 30 minutes to an hour;” therefore, the modern procedure room is in used most of the time.
Prior to the patient’s arrival, they have been screened for COVID, “two weeks ahead, one week ahead and then three days when they do their pre-calls for their procedures,” said Gault. “We do another screening for whoever is going to be bringing them as well. And we screen the patients at the door, their temperatures and all that,” she noted. A log is kept and the one accompanying the patient receives a sticker verifying they are the one the doctor can call back and talk to and they are able to go back with their family member.
Efficiency is their goal, noted Gault, as she shared that they don’t want the patients to be waiting in the waiting room.
“We have a pretty seamless process of registration,” she said. “Before they even sit down, the nurse will go and welcome them and bring them back. We really thrive on being efficient; we want the patients ready for the provider. As soon as the (providers) show up, the first thing they can do is see their patient without wondering where the patient is and what has been completed.”
Gault referenced their board in the pre-operative area where patients’ names are recorded. “We utilize our board here so when the physicians come, the gold star lets them know your patient is ready, anesthesia and consents are completed and they are ready for the procedure.”
Seven physicians are credentialed at Langtree Endoscopy Center to be able to perform the procedures. These are Dr. John Clements, Dr. Ryan Hyder and Dr. David Gish, all from Lake Norman Medical Group; Dr. Eric Hilgenfeldt and Dr. Kent Holtzmuller with Tryon Medical Partners; and Dr. Brandon Marion and Dr. Carl Foulks Jr. from Piedmont HealthCare.
And while not a requirement, Gault noted that each of these credentialed doctors are board certified at this free standing ambulatory surgery center.
“Any physician can refer a patient to the doctors that do procedures here,” said Wood, “but if there are physicians that want to perform procedures, here they have to be credentialed and go through the process and be on staff here because it is its own separate entity.”
There are no limits on the number of physicians that can apply for the privileges here, Gault stressed, and they encourage any physician to do so.
In addition to the physicians, the staff at Langtree Endoscopy Center includes four in the business office including the supervisor, procedure scheduler and two part-front desk personnel and six nurses, which includes Gault herself, and the endoscopy technician.
Gault shared that all of the seven credentialed physicians “are great partners with each other. We meet periodically. We held our lunch for Doctors’ Day. It’s very nice that the offices of two of the physicians are here,” she said, and “they will pop down here and check in and see ‘what can I do and how’s it going.’”
“Centers like Langtree Endoscopy Center is an easy way for patients to not only see their physician or one of the physicians in the clinic, but also have their procedure here on an outpatient setting. They come in and it’s easy in, easy out, great service,” said Wood. “It’s high quality of care and a really excellent well-built facility.”
The center is open Monday through Friday from 6:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., averaging about 46 patients a week.
“Being a new facility, we like to be efficient in all our processes so we can be productive,” stressed Gault.
Wood added that “as hospitals or heath systems partner with physicians, everyone’s goal and focus in mind is really providing efficient, effective, cost efficient care and the highest standards and a great place. We have very high patient satisfaction scores because they can pull into a nice parking lot, park in front of the facility, walk right in, have a procedure and go home that day. We are very fortunate to be a partner with the physicians here and just look forward to continued growth and success this year and in the next year.”
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