Dr. Nancy Wilkes is the Medical Director of the Ambulatory Surgery Center and the division chief of Ambulatory Anesthesia. She is assisted in daily operations at the Ambulatory Surgery Center by the Associate Medical Director, Dr. Ty L. Bullard. Dr. Wilkes and Dr. Bullard spend the majority of their clinical time in the surgery center, a physically separate but hospital-affiliated state-of-the-art facility with four operating rooms located in the Ambulatory Care Center (ACC). There they assist a core group of ambulatory and regional anesthesia specialists who provide daily anesthetic care for our day-surgery patients. Plans currently exist for growth to eight operating rooms, including expanded preoperative holding and recovery rooms, as well as a 23-hour extended-stay observation unit.

We employ the anesthesia-care team model, in which an attending anesthesiologist, paired with either a resident or CRNA, provides all perioperative patient care. A variety of anesthetic techniques are utilized, ranging from intravenous sedation to general anesthesia, integrated at every opportunity with cutting-edge ultrasound-guided regional anesthetics (peripheral nerve blockade) to optimize patient safety and comfort, as well as to facilitate early discharge. Postoperatively, patients recover in a two-phase recovery area, where they are prepared for discharge. The ACC handles a diverse range of procedures, performed on a broad patient population, by an array of surgical subspecialists.

Residents in anesthesiology typically spend a minimum of two months during their residency on their ambulatory rotation, during which time they have the opportunity to participate in a wide variety of regional anesthetics, in addition to honing the skills needed to artfully perform intravenous sedation and general anesthesia. Residents will also become learned in appropriate patient and procedure selection for the outpatient setting. They will be additionally challenged with the important task of establishing efficient home-readiness prior to discharge, addressing such issues as pain control, anti-emesis and level of sedation.

It is our distinct mission, responsibility and privilege to ensure the highest level of ambulatory perioperative care for our patients, while facilitating an educational atmosphere that fosters intellectual growth, technical development and a pleasant working environment for our residents in anesthesiology, as well as for all staff members at the ACC. Whether you are a prospective patient or a potential faculty, resident, or staff-member recruit, we invite you to come and experience our institution first-hand with the fine men and women that ensure our daily success! We hope to see you soon!