For decades, “having surgery” meant loading an overnight bag, canceling work for a week, and bracing for a hospital ward full of beeping monitors. Not anymore. Here in Palm Beach and Broward counties, many of the procedures I perform—hernia repairs, gallbladder removals, even appendectomies and complex wound closures—can often be done safely at an ambulatory surgery center. These dedicated outpatient facilities (often affiliated with local hospitals, such as St. Mary’s Medical Center’s outpatient surgery unit) use minimally invasive techniques so that with just a few small incisions and a short nap under anesthesia, you’re often home in your own bed by dinner.

Streamlined Care with Advanced Techniques

From the moment you check in, every minute at the surgery center has a purpose. A specialized nursing team starts your IV fluids while the anesthesia provider reviews your airway and medical history. Because the center handles only planned elective cases, there’s no emergency trauma rushing in to disrupt the schedule. That means, barring any unforeseen delays, we roll into the operating room on time as scheduled. In the OR, high-definition cameras magnify the surgical field ten-fold, allowing precise dissection through incisions about the width of a pencil eraser. Lower tissue trauma leads to less postoperative pain, reduced need for opioids, and faster return of bowel function. As a result, surgical site infection rates at outpatient centers are significantly lower than at hospitals—studies have found roughly half the rate of infections compared to inpatient surgery . Importantly, all of these efficiency gains come without sacrificing safety or quality of care.

Recover at Home, Not in the Hospital

After surgery, you recover in the same room where your vital signs were recorded pre-op, often cared for by the very same nurse who greeted you that morning. As soon as you’re awake, able to sip water, and can stand and walk a few steps, we’ll discharge you home with clear, easy-to-follow instructions. By recovering at home, you avoid things like middle-of-the-night vital-sign checks, hospital food, and exposure to antibiotic-resistant bacteria that often circulate in large medical wards. In fact, most patients in our program are resting on their own couch within a few hours of their procedure, equipped with ice packs, over-the-counter pain medicine, and a direct after-hours phone line to reach our team if any questions or concerns arise. You get to heal where you sleep best, eat best, and feel safest—at home—while still having your surgical team just a call away. And if an unexpected issue does come up after you’ve left, our centers are affiliated with full-service hospitals, so we can swiftly arrange any additional care or overnight observation if it’s needed.

Lower Costs with Transparent Pricing

Same-day surgery offers tangible cost savings as well. A laparoscopic gallbladder removal at our Palm Beach center, for example, typically incurs only about 40% of the facility fee for the same surgery in a hospital operating room. In other words, the cost to you can be roughly 50–60% lower. Industry data back this up: outpatient surgical procedures are often 35–50% less expensive than hospital-based surgeries . Insurers recognize the value of these savings and generally don’t push back against outpatient surgery approvals. Medicare also encourages performing eligible procedures in ambulatory centers whenever appropriate, because outcomes in these centers match those of inpatient surgery. Even patients paying out-of-pocket benefit: many centers offer bundled pricing that includes the surgeon’s fee, anesthesia, and facility charges in one transparent package, so you know the total cost well before the first incision.

Added Convenience for You and Your Family

Convenience is another big advantage. Family members appreciate being able to park just steps from the entrance instead of navigating a sprawling hospital parking deck. Most paperwork and pre-operative registration can be handled online a day or two before, streamlining your check-in on the day of surgery. On average, only about 60 minutes passes from your arrival to the moment you’re wheeled into the OR, since there are no delays from emergency cases. Discharge after surgery is quick too—often less than half an hour once you’re awake and stable. All of this means you and your loved ones spend less time waiting around and more time in the comfort of your own home. You’re free to recover in familiar surroundings without the stress or discomfort of an overnight hospital stay.

Not Everyone Is a Candidate

Of course, not every patient or every procedure is an ideal fit for same-day surgery. If any of the following apply to you, a short hospital stay might be safer:

You have serious heart or lung conditions that increase your risk.

You need a very complex or lengthy operation (for example, a major revision surgery).

You won’t have a reliable adult caregiver with you on the first night after surgery.

In situations like these, it may be wiser to plan for an overnight hospital stay. Patient selection is key; we carefully evaluate each individual to ensure that an outpatient procedure is the right choice. In some cases, even otherwise healthy patients might be kept overnight for observation if something unexpected comes up during surgery or recovery. The good news is that for the majority of relatively healthy adults undergoing routine operations—like the hernia repairs or gallbladder removals mentioned earlier—same-day surgery provides a shorter path back to normal life with no compromise in quality or outcomes.

Planning Your Elective Surgery

If you’re weighing your options for a hernia repair, gallbladder removal, or another elective procedure, be sure to ask your surgeon one important question: “Can this be done safely at an ambulatory surgery center as an outpatient?” In most cases, the answer these days is yes. If your surgeon confirms you’re a good candidate, choosing a same-day approach could save you significant pain, time, money, and the hassle of a night in the hospital when you don’t really need it. Our team is here to help you plan every step and ensure you have the resources in place for a smooth recovery at home. With proper preparation and the right surgical setting, you can have advanced surgery today and be back in the comfort of your own home by tonight.

— ADAM MANN, MD

Advanced Surgery · Fast Recovery

This article offers general information and is not a substitute for personal medical advice.