HEALTH CARE

Outpatient Approach: The changing medical industry is forcing more and more hospitals to think of ways to stay afloat.

Burbank-based Summit Health Ltd., for one, has decided to get into the outpatient clinic business and recently opened its first clinic: the Magnolia Clinic in Westminster.

Doctors at the Magnolia Clinic specialize in so-called “minimally invasive” surgical techniques. Minimally invasive surgery, which uses lasers, catheters, computer and video screens and computers, is considered more efficient because it cuts recovery time and medical costs.

Medical experts say that development of new medical devices and spiraling health costs is changing the medical industry, making hospital stays unnecessary for all but the most seriously ill.