Updated 1:40pm, Monday: McGrathNicol has been appointed as receivers for Healthscope, Australia’s second-largest private hospital operator.
Healthscope has assured patients that all of its 37 hospitals, including Hobart Private Hospital, will continue to operate as normal.
Earlier: Hobart Private Hospital staff are holding their breath as Australia’s second-largest private hospital operator scrambles to avoid voluntary receivership, with up to 400 Tasmanian jobs on the line.
Healthscope, which runs 38 private hospitals across the country, is locked in talks with lenders who control its $1.6 billion debt, after failing to convince them to accept a restructure proposal.
The company acknowledged on Sunday it was prepared for all possibilities, including receivership, as the situation reaches crunch point this week.
The looming crisis has alarmed healthcare unions, particularly in Tasmania where Healthscope’s track record has staff worried about potential closures.
The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation’s acting state secretary Phoebe Mansell described members as “disappointed and deeply concerned” about Healthscope’s financial collapse.
“For the nurses and midwives who care for patients in Healthscope every day, this is a very difficult and worrying time,” she said.
“Despite the uncertainty, our members remain committed to their patients and will continue to provide the highest standard of care.”
The company’s troubles stem from a standoff with foreign hedge funds, including London’s Polus Capital Management and LA-based Canyon Partners, who are reportedly pushing for a fast-track receivership to claw back their investments.
But Australia’s major banks, controlling around 15% of the debt, prefer avoiding disruption to hospitals and their 19,000 staff.
“This is what happens when we allow profit-driven corporations, often with overseas financial backing, to operate critical parts of our health system. Americanised healthcare models simply do not work in Australia,” Mansell said.
“We cannot continue down a path where profits are prioritised over people.”
Mainland reports suggest Healthscope’s private equity owner Brookfield Asset Management insists ‘considerable interest’ exists from potential buyers for both the entire network and individual hospitals.
The federal government says it is keeping a close watch on the situation, wary of any closures that could pile more pressure onto an already stretched public health system.
Independent Federal Clark MP Andrew Wilkie says the closure of the hospital and loss of its 146 beds would be devastating for Tasmania’s health system.
“We just can’t afford to lose that hospital. The Royal, obviously, is in a perilous state all the time, and our health system would collapse if we lost the private,” Wilkie told Local Radio this morning.
“I first raised this publicly back in early March, and I was basically dismissed by the Tasmanian Government, who didn’t seem to think there was an issue here. Clearly, it is a very important issue.”
