REGIONAL AND INTRAMETROPOLITAN DIFFERENCES IN THE LOCATION OF FREESTANDING AMBULATORY SURGERY CENTERS

The freestanding ambulatory surgery center (FASC), also known as an outpatient or day surgery center, is one of several modern health care providers which are currently challenging the dominance of traditional medical professionals. This paper examines the location and distribution of FASCs in the United States for the period 1987-1992. FASCs tend to be concentrated in the states of the South and West, and have exhibited increasing concentration in these regions during the five-year study period. In addition, FASCs are found mostly in metropolitan areas and appear to be moving toward more suburban locations, although central city sites still dominate. Future research should concentrate on more micro-scale locations of the FASC and other nontraditional health cam providers.