Doctors tout low-cost procedures, close-knit feel at new Idaho Falls surgery center
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IDAHO FALLS — A brand new outpatient surgery center in Idaho Falls held a ribbon-cutting and open house on Friday to celebrate several months of low-cost surgeries.
Officials said the Bonneville Surgery Center, 2001 S. Woodruff Ave., had been in the works for several years, and doctors began performing surgeries there earlier this year.
Dr. Luke O’Rourke, the center’s chief medical officer, told EastIdahoNews.com that the brand new facility has two operating rooms and state-of-the-art equipment. It can offer efficient surgeries that don’t require a hospital stay at a much lower cost than hospital-based procedures.
CEO Adam Shurtz said the center has already provided general surgery as well as orthopedic, ophthalmology, OBGYN and plastic surgeries, and it can accommodate just about any specialty.
“We can really do anything that the big hospitals can do, but for half the cost,” Shurtz said. “That’s the purpose of surgery centers — to be able to have affordable healthcare in the community.”
Shurtz said the staff is what makes the center special. O’Rourke said they were hand-selected for being the best in the local surgical industry.
Dr. Logan Cooper, an orthopedic surgeon, said when performing surgeries in hospitals, the staff doesn’t always know the surgeons or their routines and protocols. At a smaller center like the Bonneville Surgery Center, the staff knows the doctors very well and everyone can work more efficiently.
“I’ve been really limited with only being able to have your surgery at a hospital,” Cooper said. “So you come here, it’s a smaller, closer-knit feel, more patient-centered care — without having the big intimidating hospital.”
Cooper said the surgery center not only serves east Idaho, but also patients from neighboring states, depending on the doctor. He personally has patients from western Montana, Wyoming, northern Utah, northern Nevada and even northern California.
