The medical treatment of an injury or other physical disorder by direct physical actions without the patient being admitted to a hospital: Ambulatory surgery is usually performed in the outpatient section of a medical center or in a physician's office and an overnight stay is not necessary; in other words, he or she can walk out and go home after the doctor's treatment.

Medical facilities that are designed and equipped to handle surgery, pain management, and specific diagnostic procedures which do not require overnight hospitalization: Patients who are in relatively good health may choose to receive treatments at ambulatory surgery centers instead of having to stay overnight in a room and they will be treated by health professionals just as they would in a conventional surgery department.