ASCend Specialists adds 2 rural surgery centers

Gillette, Wyo.-based ASCend Specialists, an ASC management company, is welcoming two new Midwestern ASCs into its network.

Eastside Surgery Center is slated to open in late 2026 as a standalone ambulatory surgery center in Spearfish, S.D., according to an Oct. 13 press release. ASCend will support the center with professional management and access to resources as well as economies of scale.

Lorri Riley, DPM, will lead the surgery center. She previously opened Spearfish Surgery Center in 1995 and sold majority ownership two years later to Queen City Medical.

“As someone deeply invested in the health and growth of this community, I believe Eastside Surgery Center will be transformational,” said Dr. Riley. “We will bring advanced surgical care closer to home – to our neighbors, our families, our region – and do so with a model that emphasizes quality, access and local control. We want to give patients a choice in where they can have their outpatient surgery performed.

The center will operate independently while receiving management and operational support from ASCend Specialists, a Gillette, Wyo.-based ASC management firm.

ESC is expected to expand access to outpatient surgical services in the Spearfish and Black Hills region. It will be structured to support multiple specialties over time, depending on physician partnerships and local demand.

ASCend announced another key partnership Oct. 13: Lander, Wyo.-based Western Wyoming Outpatient Surgery joined its network.

The center is one of Wyoming’s newest multispecialty ASC and provides outpatient surgical services across Fremont County. ASCend will provide the center with operational, financial and strategic support. Under the agreement, ASCend will oversee revenue cycle management, compliance, marketing strategy and financial planning for the center.

Dr. Ben Francisco, medical director of the surgery center, said the partnership will help expand local access to affordable, patient-centered care.

“We’re really excited to welcome Western Wyoming Outpatient Surgery into the ASCend family,” said Linda Bedwell, CEO of ASCend Specialists. “Our partnerships are focused on strengthening independence for rural providers, improving efficiency, and ultimately expanding access to care for patients in rural areas who deserve world-class surgical services regardless of their zip code.”

ASCend Specialists adds 2 rural surgery centers

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