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Private hospital group Life Healthcare plans to expand capacity, open a new hospital and recruit more specialists as it aims to boost occupancy levels across its facilities.
The company said it will continue growing its underlying asset base in strategic locations, adding 87 acute hospital beds, 64 acute rehabilitation beds, a vascular lab and a cath lab — a specialised medical facility equipped with diagnostic imaging technology. Life Healthcare operates 41 hospitals and seven Life Nkanyisa facilities, which provide mental health and frail care services.
The JSE-listed group said it “will continue to drive occupancies to 68%, with PPD (paid patient days) growth expected to remain relatively flat”.
Life Healthcare reported a 2.4% increase in half-year group revenue to R12.4bn, despite a marginal 0.4% decline in paid patient days (PPDs), largely due to Sizwe Hosmed medical fund being placed under curatorship. This weighed on occupancy, which came in at 67% — below the 70% level previously targeted by the group. On a like-for-like basis, excluding the Sizwe impact, PPDs would have increased by 0.9%.
“We had a challenge with the Sizwe medical fund during the period under review … it was a hiccup and we picked up some scratches and bruises,” said Life Healthcare CEO Peter Wharton-Hood.
He added: “We did take a bit of a hit in the first six months. There’s nothing we can do to recover the PPDs lost — it’s beyond our control — but at least we can explain that it was an event outside our control, and that our footprint and approach remain solid.”
Revenue from hospitals was up 1.1% to R10.4bn. The Complementary Services segment, which includes dialysis, delivered 13.7% growth in revenue to R1.3bn supported by robust performance in mental health and acute rehabilitation, resulting in occupancies increasing to 72.7% from 71.6% in the half year to March last year.
Life Healthcare expects full-year revenue growth of about 2%. The group also plans to recruit 140 new specialists for the 2026 financial year, with Wharton-Hood noting that about 97 have already been hired.
Capital expenditure is expected to total about R2.4bn for the 2026 financial year.
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