Preparing for Your Surgery

For your health and safety, some laboratory tests or medical clearance may be required prior to your procedure. Your surgeon or Surgery Center of Key West may ask you to visit your family doctor to obtain the necessary tests or clearance within 30 days of your procedure.

A nurse from Surgery Center of Key West will call you prior to your surgery to ask you questions regarding your past and current medical conditions, allergies and medications you are taking. Please don't hesitate to ask any questions you may have, and be sure to let them know of any special needs. A nurse will call you the day prior to your surgery to advise what time you should arrive the day of surgery. You do not need to arrive any earlier. This arrival time allows for paperwork and preoperative procedures.

The nurse will instruct you as to what time you are to stop eating and drinking prior to surgery.

If you take medication for any conditions, ask your doctor and/or the Surgery Center of Key West nurse whether or not to take it the day of your surgery.

For women, if there is a possibility that you are pregnant, please notify your doctor and/or the Surgery Center of Key West nurse.

Leave all valuables at home, including watches, rings, jewelry and wallets.

Please notify your surgeon of any change in your health, such as a cold, fever or sore throat.

For your safety, a responsible adult MUST be available to drive you home after your procedure. Your ride is required to be available when you are discharged.

Children, age 17 years and younger or incapacitated adults must be accompanied by a person with legal guardianship.

You will receive a call from Surgery Center of Key West business office staff regarding your financial information and responsibilities.

Day of Surgery

Arrive promptly at the time instructed. This will allow adequate time for all necessary admission procedures.

Please bring your insurance identification cards and photo ID. If special financial arrangements are necessary, please call the Surgery Center of Key West prior to the day of surgery.

Wear loose fitting comfortable clothing. Leave all valuables at home.

Items to bring with you include, but are not limited to, a list of your current medications, previously obtained prescription for pain medication, containers for eye wear, medical equipment you may use or have received prior to your surgery, any important records such as living will or patient advocate forms and any comfort devices such as a pillow for the ride home.

Upon arrival you will change into a hospital gown and slippers which we provide. You will be asked to remove contact lenses, dentures, jewelry and any prosthesis.

Your care throughout your stay will be closely monitored by our staff for your safety and comfort.

When you are fully awake, members of your family will be able to join you.

Each individual is different, however you may expect to be in the recovery area 30 minutes to two hours.

At Home After Surgery

Your surgeon will provide specific instructions for care while recovering at home. In the event of difficulty, please call your surgeon.

For the first 24 hours following surgery, do not engage in strenuous activities, do not drink any alcoholic beverages, drive, or make any critical decisions.

A nurse from Surgery Center of Key West will call you within a day or two to evaluate how you are recovering at home. You will be asked to complete a questionnaire about the care you received. Your comments will enable us to continue to improve our services.

Patient Responsibilities

Providing accurate and complete information about your present health status and past medical history and reporting any unexpected changes to the appropriate practitioner.

Following the treatment plan recommended by the practitioner involved in your care.

Providing a responsible adult to transport you home after surgery and stay with you as needed.

Indicating that you clearly understand what is expected of you after your surgery/procedure.

Your own actions should you refuse treatment, leave the Facility against medical advice, or choose to purposefully not follow the instructions of your practitioner.

Providing information and/or copies of an Advance Directive such as Living Will or Durable Power of Attorney.

Ask your health professional what to expect for pain management; discuss pain relief options; discuss openly any concerns or fears regarding pain management medications.

Advance Directives

An advance directive speaks for you if you are unable to speak and helps to assure that your religious and personal beliefs will be respected. It is a useful document for an adult of any age to plan for future health care needs.  

Although Surgery Center of Key West does not honor advance directives in regards to Do Not Resuscitate (DNR), upon request we will provide you with contact information and forms to assist in writing an advance directive. Information can also be obtained here.

You may also contact your local area office on aging.

Financial Policy

Surgery Center of Key West fees cover the use of the facility only, and do not include laboratory, pathology, surgeon or anesthesiologist fees. You will be billed separately for these services.

As a courtesy, we will bill your primary and secondary insurance carriers or governmental agency directly for the Surgery Center of Key West charges. Be sure to bring your most current insurance, Medicare, or public assistance card with you on the day of your surgery. If you have more than one insurance carrier, we will also need accurate secondary billing information.

Please be aware of any admission policies your insurance plan may have. You or your physicians may have to adhere to certain requirements in order to insure maximum reimbursement. Failure to obtain pre-authorization, physician referral, or a second opinion may greatly reduce or eliminate your benefits.

Be prepared to bring any co-pay or co-insurance amounts on the day of your surgery. Patients who do not have insurance coverage may also be required to pay a portion of their charges in advance. Also, please make sure you bring a photo ID. We will need to see this as part of your insurance validation. We realize, however, that at times you may require special financial arrangements. In these instances, please phone our office prior to your surgery to discuss alternative methods of payment. Surgery Center of Key West accepts cash, Visa, Mastercard, Discover, money order or cashier's checks the day of surgery. Personal checks must be received, with a valid I.D., seven days prior to the day of surgery.

Please feel free to contact our business office at any time if you have questions or concerns regarding the facility charges, the financial policy or billing procedures. Call (305) 293-1801 for more information.

Grievance Process

We strive to maintain a professional and compliant atmosphere. However, issues can arise. The Grievance procedure is a means for patients and related parties to inquire into issues raised and identify whether action needs to be taken to resolve identified issues and prevent recurrence.

The Center Administrator will record the grievance complaint and conduct a prompt investigation for quick resolution. Any patient and/or support person, visitor, employee, physician or vendor may lodge a grievance using the Center’s procedure to formally voice complaints, resolve disputes or to bring attention to possible violations of patient rights.

No person shall be punished or retaliated against for using the Grievance Procedure. Any grievances, comments and complaints should be addressed with the Center's Administrator. Complete details and a copy of the Center’s Grievance Policy as well as a Grievance form may be obtained by contacting the Center Administrator, Tara Sellers at (305) 293-1801 or tcormack@sckwllc.com.

To file a health care facility complaint, call (888) 419-3456, or click here to complete the Health Care Facility Complaint Form. Click here to search our FloridaHealthFinder.gov site to see if the facility you have concerns about is one that is regulated by our Agency.

You may also contact www.medicare.gov, or call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227).

Patient Bill of Rights

Patients receiving care in the ambulatory surgery setting have a right to the following:

Access to care

Patients have the right to access necessary surgical and/or procedural interventions that are medically indicated.
Patients, family members, and/or designees are included in ethical discussions of and decisions affecting the patient’s care.
Marketing or advertising regarding the competence and capabilities of the organization is not misleading to patients and/or support persons.

Respectful and considerate care

Patients will be treated with respect, compassion, and consideration in a clean and safe environment.
Patients are treated with dignity and without discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, sexual orientation or source of payment.
The patient has the right to be free of restraint except when indicated to protect the patient or others from injury.

Privacy and confidentiality

Patients have the right to every consideration of personal privacy.
Any patient case discussion, consultation, examination and treatment will be conducted so as to protect each patient’s privacy.

Information about treatment

Patients have the right to information about their illness, treatment options and potential outcomes.
Patients will receive information as necessary to provide informed consent for any planned procedure.
Patients have the right to consent or decline in research affecting their care.
Communication aids (i.e., interpreters, pictures, sign language, etc.) are provided to patients who have language barriers.

Refusal of Care

Patients have the right to refuse care to the extent provided by law and to be informed of the potential consequences of this refusal.
Patients receiving care in the ambulatory surgery setting have responsibilities as follows:

Communication

Patients are responsible for providing accurate and complete information regarding their health status, medical history and current medications, as well as over-the-counter products, herbal remedies and dietary supplements.
Patients are responsible for reporting any change in their condition during the present course of treatment and recovery.
Patients are responsible for participating in care decisions and for asking questions when they do not understand the information provided.
Patients are responsible for providing information about any living will, power of attorney or other advanced directives.

Respecting others

Patients have the responsibility to be considerate of others, including health care providers and to respect their rights, privacy and property.

Participation

Patients are responsible for adhering to the plan of treatment by following instructions, keeping appointments and cooperating with care providers who assist with carrying out the plan of care, including arranging for a responsible adult to take them home and remain with them for 24 hours if required.
Patients are responsible for recognizing the effect of lifestyle choices on their personal health.

Financial obligations

Patients are responsible for providing complete and accurate third party payer information and meeting any outstanding financial obligations related to the services received.
Collaboration and agreement of payment policies and fees for services will be documented.

HIPAA Compliance Policy

The Facility has established a compliance policy to ensure compliance with the Standards for Privacy of Individually Identifiable Health Information (the “Privacy Regulations”) promulgated under the Health Insurance Portability and Accounting Act of 1996 (“HIPAA”).

This compliance policy is not intended to be a comprehensive explanation of the Privacy Regulations, nor will it provide answers to every possible issue that may arise under the Privacy Regulations. Rather, it is intended to provide guidelines with respect to the steps that the Facility must take in order to achieve compliance with the Privacy Regulations and to sensitize the Facility to potential problems that may arise under the Privacy Regulations. The Facility expects full compliance with the guidelines set forth in this policy statement, and encourages the Facility to seek any further necessary information or clarification prior to engaging in any potentially sensitive actions or activities. See HIPAA Notebook for complete HIPAA policies and forms.

This compliance policy is divided into two main sections: (1) an overview of the Privacy Regulations; and (2) specific compliance guidelines. This policy requires the Facility to:

Appoint a Privacy/Security Official;
Inform Patients of the Facility’s Privacy Policies and Procedures by disseminating handouts and posting a disclosure notice;
Use a Business Associates agreement;
Clarify discipline for employees and vendors who violate the Privacy Rules and Privacy Policies and Procedures;
Update the Privacy Policies and Procedures as needed;
Hold all employee educational meetings;
Discuss adoption of the Privacy Policies and Procedures at a Board Meeting; and
Develop safe guards to protect and identify Protected Health Information (as defined in the regulations).

Ownership Disclosure

We, the Physician Owners of Surgery Center of Key West, want to thank you for your trust in us for your surgical procedure. We recognize that you have the right to choose the provider of your healthcare services. We are pleased that you have chosen The Surgery Center of Key West.

Juan Larrauri, MD
Rhoda Smith, MD
Paul Maurer, MD
Eduardo Gonzalez-Blanco, MD
Andrew Wolszczak, MD
Bruce Fariss, MD
William Schnapp, MD
Lawrence Blass, MD
Ambulatory Surgical Centers of America

Payment Plans/Care Credit

This center participates with Care Credit that is a service that is a credit card that helps make it easier to take care of your health. It only take a few hours to be qualified for credit to cover deductibles and co-pays. Please call the center at (305) 293-1801 and ask today how to get qualified.

This center offers payment plans to all patients. We require 50% on day of services and break down the remainder balance in three payments over 90 days. We require a credit card on file for the remainder payments.

Cash paying patients pay 25% of the fee for facility service. This is only for the center facility fees. (Does not include anesthesia or pathology fees which are separate from the center).

PAYMENT POLICY: The Surgery Center of Key West, LLC is a for profit organization. The center does not provide any financial assistance or provide charity care. The Surgery Center collects all deductibles, copays, and out of pockets at time of services. The Surgery Center will inform patient prior to date of service of total amount that will be due time of service. .

Providers Who Bill Separately at SCKW

In order to have your procedure here at the center you will also have services provided by an anesthesiologist who performs a service of putting you to sleep for you procedure. You will receive a separate bill for their services. Please see below the information to receive a good faith estimate of these fees for services.

Next, your procedure may require obtaining a specimen which is a decision made by your surgeon and this is sent to a pathologist for examination and diagnosis. If a specimen is obtain by your surgeon and sent you will receive a separate bill from a pathologist. Please see below the information for our pathologist to receive a good faith estimate for these fees for service.

Anesthesia providers are as followed: Robert Eid, MD 931 Toppino Drive, Key West, FL 33040, Billing inquiries (518) 534-0896 and Larry Mackall, MD 931 Toppino Drive, Key West, FL 33040, Billing inquiries (239) 489-3166.

Pathology provider Daniel Gill, MD 931 Toppino Drive, Key West, FL 33040, Billing Inquiry (305) 294-5535 Ext 3386.

http://pricing.floridahealthfinder.gov

Estimated Fees

You can call during business hours 0730 - 1700 to receive an estimated fee for services Monday through Friday at (305) 293-1801. Please be prepared with what procedure your doctor will be performing and it is best to have the code from your provider to provide the office for best estimate.

Please bring your insurance card(s) and picture identification with you. If we are OUT OF NETWORK with your insurance plan, you will pay no more out-of-pocket than if you went to a facility in your insurance carrier’s network. The Center’s bill does not include fees for your surgeon, anesthesiologist, laboratory tests, pathology tests, or other diagnostic tests ordered by your surgeon. These fees are billed separately.

According to the Agency for healthcare 59A-5.032; transparency and patient billing

COST FOR PROCEDURES POLICY: The fee for service is a non-personalized estimate of charges of anticipated services and that actual costs will be billed and charged based on services actually provide to the patient.

A hyperlink to the Agency’s pricing website will provide information on payments made to the facility. The agency’s pricing website is located at: http://pricing.floridahealthfinder.gov

Patient Information