Outpatient surgical procedures have moved from a niche alternative to the dominant mode of surgical care delivery across most developed healthcare systems. A combination of minimally invasive technology, favorable reimbursement policy, and sustained pressure on healthcare budgets has steadily shifted volume away from inpatient wards. Procedures that once required multi-day hospital admissions — joint replacement, percutaneous coronary intervention, CAR T-cell therapy monitoring — are now being performed and managed safely on a same-day basis in ambulatory surgical centers and hospital outpatient departments.
