Mediclinic still not seeing a rebound in SA

Private hospital operator Mediclinic, which has taken a revenue hit as patients opted to delay surgeries, says it is not yet seeing a rebound in SA, where it is still caring for a sizeable number of Covid-19 infected patients.

The group has seen a rebound in its operations in Switzerland and the Middle East since May, as the initial peak of the pandemic passed.

Recovery at its local operations has been more gradual, with Mediclinic also concerned about the economic effects of the pandemic, such as on medical scheme membership.

We saw trading rebound from May

“

2020, particularly in Switzerland and the United Arab Emirates, as the initial peak of the pandemic passed,” said CEO Ronnie van der Merwe.

In Southern Africa, the recovery has

“been more gradual due to the timing of the initial peak and the larger volumes of Covid-19 patients Mediclinic has treated,” Van Der Merwe said.

Group revenue fell 7% to £1.41bn (R29.15bn) in Mediclinic s six months to

’ end-September, with revenue in SA down 19% to R6.97bn.

Hirslanden, in Switzerland, saw a 2% revenue fall to 853-million Swiss francs (R14.6bn), while revenue in Mediclinic Middle East was up 9% to 1.76-billion Emirati dirhams (R7.53bn).

At the end of the period, Hirslanden operated 17 hospitals and four day case clinics. In SA and Namibia the group has 52 hospitals, eight subacute and specialised hospitals and 11 day case clinics. Mediclinic Middle East has seven hospitals, two day case clinics and 18 outpatient clinics

Headline earnings fell 82.8% to £18m. The group has suspended dividend payments to preserve cash.

The group said it has admitted more than 19,000 Covid-19 patients, about 3,000 of whom required intensive care and more than 2,000 were ventilated.

In morning trade Mediclinic s share was

’ up 1.65% to R69.58, having fallen 9.84% so far in 2020.