Surgical Directions’ team experience covers all aspects of surgical services including anesthesia, OR management, strategic planning, business development, revenue cycle management, and information technology. Our experience enables us to tackle the challenges facing the OR.

Surgical Directions team members offer a unique blend of experience, education and expertise. We have a breadth of knowledge and experience that will benefit all aspects of the surgical services department.

William Mazzei, MD, is Clinical Professor of Anesthesiology and Medical Director of Perioperative Services at the University of California, San Diego Medical Center. After completing his anesthesia residency and fellowship at the Massachusetts General Hospital, he became Clinical Director of Anesthesiology at UCSD and focused his research and educational efforts in the area of OR Management. He co-founded the Association of Anesthesia Clinical Directors in 1987 and directed their Workshop on OR Management for 10 years. Bill is nationally recognized as an expert in OR Management. Bill is a frequent lecturer and has published numerous articles on the subject of OR Management. He has performed evaluations of anesthesia or operating room services at over 50 sites in the US and maintains a benchmark database for perioperative processes.

Tom Blasco, MD, MS. Dr. Blasco is a practicing board-certified anesthesiologist/intensivist at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in suburban Chicago, past Vice Chairman of Anesthesiology at Parkside Anesthesia, Chicago, Illinois, and current Medical Director at Illinois Sports Medicine and Orthopedic Surgery Center. Tom was instrumental in the development of several free standing physician owned outpatient surgery centers including Chicago Prostate Cancer Center and the Illinois Sports Medicine and Orthopedic Surgery Center and works extensively with anesthesia groups and hospital surgical departments to improve financial performance, operational efficiency and organizational effectiveness. Tom completed his anesthesia residency at Loyola Medical Center and received a Master of Science in Administrative Medicine from the University of Wisconsin. He has held academic positions at Northwestern University and the University of Chicago. Tom completed his Lean Healthcare Certification from Villanova University.

David Young, MD. Dr. Young is board certified by the American Board of Anesthesia and the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology. Dr. Young completed his OB/Gyn residency at the University of Virginia and his anesthesia residency at the University of California, San Diego. He is Medical Director of Pre Surgical Testing at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital, Chicago, Illinois and is nationally recognized for his work in upgrading pre-surgical assessment practices. He remains a faculty member of the Department of Anesthesia at the University of California, San Diego. Dr. Young received his Lean Healthcare Certification from the University of Michigan’s College of Engineering. Dr. Young maintains a full time clinical practice in addition to his consulting work.

Pamela Ereckson Fox, MD, serves/has served as interim medical director at several hospitals around the country. Pam formerly served as Medical Director of Perioperative Services at The Nebraska Medical Center where she also functioned as Associate Professor Anesthesiology for the University of Nebraska in Omaha’s Department of Anesthesiology. She is currently Director for the Board of Directors of the American Association of Clinical Directors (AACD) as well as a member of the Committee on Education for the AACD. She has an expertise in operating room block scheduling management, development of anesthesia groups and has held leadership roles in a variety of perioperative process improvement projects

Christian A. Eby, MD, is a board certified general and pediatric anesthesiologist with advanced clinical training in pediatric anesthesia and pediatric critical care. Dr. Eby presently serves as Medical Director of Surgical Services at Saint Mary’s Medical Center in Reno, Nevada as well as Co-Director Anesthesiology and Clinical Instructor, Department of Surgery at the University of Nevada, School of Medicine. Dr. Eby completed his pediatrics residency at the University of California at San Diego and his anesthesia residency at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles where he also served as Chief Resident. He is a member of the American Society of Anesthesiologists, The Society of Pediatric Anesthesia, Society of Critical Care Medicine and Diplomate American Board of Anesthesiology.

Jeff Peters, President of Surgical Directions, is recognized as a national thought leader on perioperative improvement and anesthesia practice management. Jeff has extensive experience in addressing the operational, financial and political issues of large, complex academic and non-academic healthcare organizations. He has worked with numerous surgical and anesthesia departments and is very knowledgeable about the complexities and importance of these services to the organization’s financial performance and reputation. Jeff’s work focuses on the alignment of governance, organizational resources, and financial incentives to improve organizational performance. Jeff is a frequent speaker and author on physician practice management and perioperative improvement.

Nell Panten, RN, BSN, MSN, CNOR, Chief Nurse Executive. Nell Panten has over 30 years experience in perioperative clinical nursing and nursing leadership in both non-profit and for-profit healthcare systems. She has served as Director of Nursing for the Surgical Division in a major teaching institution in the Northeast and as CNO at a 458-bed trauma center in Maryland. Nell has experience in multiple process redesign efforts at teaching and non-teaching facilities. In addition, she has multiple years of experience in new construction and redesign of existing healthcare facilities. Her expertise includes perioperative leadership, mentoring, new program development, strategic planning, cost containment and transformational changes associated with quality improvement and safety initiatives. Nell was instrumental in developing service line leadership for Cardiovascular and Orthopedic Services associated with “Centers of Excellence” in multiple institutions. Nell is a member of the Association of PeriOperative Registered Nurses (AORN). She maintains membership in the Business Industry Consulting (BIC) and Leadership Specialty Assemblies through AORN. She is a member of the Association of Nurse Executives (AONE), National League for Nursing (NLN) and Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing where she is involved in clinical research surrounding evidence-based nursing in the PeriOperative arena. Nell completed her Lean Healthcare Certification from Villanova University.

David Taylor, RN, MSN, CNOR, Nurse Executive. David Taylor is a highly respected Nurse Executive who has extensive experience managing the operations of perioperative services in today’s fast-faced surgical and healthcare environments. David has served as the Director of Surgical Services at a major medical institution in Colorado where he managed 9 operating room suites, central material services, and 45 FTEs and provided continuous support to the Hospital’s clinic. As a result of his management, the Hospital experienced a 31% increase in its surgical case volume. David’s excellent decision-making and problem-solving skills have been instrumental to the success of a number of perioperative turnarounds performed by Surgical Directions. In a recent project, David successfully coordinated activities for 23 & 9 ASC operating room suites, instrument processing, PACU, PAT, registration, scheduling & anesthesia services with over 280 FTEs. David is a member of the Association of PeriOperative Registered Nurses (AORN) and currently serves as a Clinical Adjunct Faculty Member at Loyola University’s School of Nursing in Chicago, Illinois.

Veda A. Knight, RN, BA, MBA, Nurse Executive. Veda Knight has extensive experience in Perioperative Clinical and Administrative Leadership in Acute Care Medical Facilities. Veda was a Director and Administrative Manager for multiple departments in a major Medical Center in San Francisco, California. The past ten years she has been an independent management consultant for AORN Works, a subsidiary of the Association of Perioperative Nurses (AORN). Veda has expertise in the following areas: perioperative process assessment and plan implementation, strategic planning for new program development and business growth (Orthopedic Center of Excellence), Nursing Magnet preparation and Shared Governance Model, Continuous Process Improvement centered on Patient Safety and Lean initiatives, new construction and redesign, budget process, staffing patterns, block scheduling and cost savings/standardization methods. Veda is a member of the Association of Perioperative Nurses (AORN) and Leadership Specialty Assembly, and the American Nurses Association (ANA).

Kaye Ringler, RN, BS, CNOR, Kaye Ringler has over 18 years healthcare management experience supported by 12 years of clinical expertise in surgical services. Kaye has integrated multiple disciplines and improved efficiency throughout the perioperative spectrum including operating room, PACU, PAT, Anesthesia, SPD, Pre-op, SD and Endoscopy Lab. Kaye has successfully deployed creative staffing matrices to minimize overtime; facilitated the installation of several computerized scheduling and charting systems; overseen the renovation of 14 OR suites; and, most recently, developed & implemented the operations of two Access Centers. She is experienced in negotiating best pricing for supplies and equipment, standardizing equipment in OR suites, setting Premier benchmarks and streamlining patient flow patterns throughout the surgical experience. Additionally, she successfully maintained operations of Surgical Services during a three (3) month nurses strike and negotiating union contracts. Kaye is ACLS certified and has initiated “Studer” concepts in surgical services.

Lee Hedman, Senior Vice President. Lee Hedman is an experienced healthcare consultant specializing in hospital and physician practice management. In her role as Senior Vice President, Lee manages Surgical Directions’ complex perioperative and anesthesia services assessment and implementation engagements and runs the anesthesia practice revenue cycle consulting division. As part of the assessment and implementation team, Lee is responsible for managing Surgical Directions’ team of physicians and nurses as well as assisting in the identification of improvement opportunities and implementation of operating room best practice standards on each project. She has worked with over 25 anesthesia group practices nationwide on the evaluation and turnaround of internal and outsourced billing and collection processes; facilitation of anesthesia contract negotiations including development of service requirements, staffing recommendations, and revenue cycle metrics; billing vendor selection and tracking mechanisms and interim management of anesthesia billing practices. Lee has published articles on anesthesia revenue cycle management in Anesthesiology News, MGMA, HFMA and Group Practice Journal and has developed the “Anesthesia Best Practice Billing, Coding and More” reference guide for clients. She completed her Lean Healthcare Certification from the University of Michigan’s College of Engineering.

Amy Bergman, Consultant, has 17 years experience as an anesthesia billing specialist and practice administrator and has a proven track record in effectively managing daily operations and implementing optimum systems. Amy is well versed in all matters pertaining to the anesthesia revenue cycle, has developed and implemented policy and procedures which increased the revenue of a medium size anesthesia group by 100%, is highly knowledgeable in anesthesia benchmarks, and has provided anesthesia billing training to hospitals, physician offices and CRNA groups. Her formal education is BSW (Bachelor of Social Work) and has used her formal education by facilitating educational seminars, televised public service information, participating and implementing corporate retreats, conflict resolution and mediation processes. Amy has worked with orthopedics, physical therapy, family medicine, radiologist and OB/GYN. Amy has been recognized as having the ability to bring individuals together to function as a team, is President of the North Carolina Anesthesia Practice Managers Association and serves on the NC Medicaid committee.

Robert M. Dahl, Vice President. Bob Dahl has over 16 years of healthcare/hospital experience, including over 13 years of ambulatory service line development and P&L management. He has designed and implemented growth strategies across multiple healthcare platforms that have generated significant incremental volume and revenue for hospital systems. Bob’s consulting expertise lies in strategic planning, financial modeling, business development and facilitation of sales and marketing strategies for both inpatient and ambulatory services lines. Bob's unique background has provided added value for clients through operational and financial assessments of perioperative services lines; inventory management; and financial modeling for healthcare entities and service lines. Bob holds an MBA from Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University. He received Lean Certification from Belmont University’s Graduate School of Business.

Aron Klein, CPA, has successfully developed and filled the role as the first Surgical Services Business Manger at a major multi-specialty, 609-bed teaching hospital in Illinois. During his time as a business manager, Aron introduced a comprehensive inventory control system, which dramatically reduced the OR inventory in the first year. Aron also developed comprehensive business plans for two DaVinci Surgical systems, a minimally-invasive OR suite, and an intra-operative MRI. Aron also designed, built and implemented a redesigned chargemaster for Surgical Services maintaining net revenue neutrality by payer in compliance with the hospital’s 40 managed care contracts. Aron is a CPA and holds a Master’s degree in Healthcare Administration as well as a Bachelor’s in Business Administration with a major in Finance from the University of Iowa.