On the Surgical Assistant Podcast, John and Kelly interviewChristopher Sweebe, CSFA and founder/CEO of Precision Surgical Resources, about helping surgical assistants transition from W2 employment to independent 1099practice without getting overwhelmed by business operations. Sweebe explains PSR’s “fractional back office” model and partnerships (including All Starz anda long-time billing company) that support LLC setup, insurance, taxes, credentialing, collections, and facility contracting, while emphasizing that market factors like payer mix and state rules can determine whether independence is viable. He highlights common reimbursement barriers and a key documentation “pearl” for avoiding denials: the op note must include the assistant’s name and credential and clearly state why they were needed and what they did. The episode also covers PSR’s 20% fee, Weekly Fridaypayments,transparency, lack of non-competes, and longer-term efforts like grants to train surgical technologists.

https://precision-surgical.net/

00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro

00:57 Why PSR Exists

02:54 Independence Roadmap

06:23 Fractional Back Office

07:50 Billing Rules by State

12:04 No Noncompete Model

13:25 Dictation Gets You Paid

17:59 Pricing and Transparency

20:21 Facility Contracts Strategy

29:07 Weekly Pay and Denials

33:36 All Starz Risk Model

36:49 Outsourcing Billing Risk

37:20 Op Note Denials Basics

37:57 No Gatekeeping Support

39:10 Fees and Payer Mix

40:29 How Onboarding Works

42:04 Profit Sharing Teams

44:27 Reimbursement Nuances

46:21 Turnkey Practice Setup

49:23 Owner Mindset Required

52:56 Transparency and Responsiveness

54:54 Future Grants Pipeline

58:32 Hard Work and Processes

01:04:05 Contact and Next Steps