The Benenden Hospital Trust has seen income from private medical insurance (PMI) increase 201% year-on-year, according to its 2021 annual report.
Self-pay revenue also doubled however there were notable issues in recruiting vital medical staff during the pandemic while Covid absences were also hitting service levels.
The report revealed the trust saw income from PMI of £611,000, up from £203,000 in 2020 as the sector rebounded from the worst of the Covid pandemic.
Income from society members rose to £24.1m in 2021 from £17.6m in 2020, with self-pay income up to £8.72m from £4.042m in the previous year.
And while income from the NHS fell to £4.4m from £10.2m in 2020, income from charitable activities was also up to £37.93m from £32.05m in 2020.
Benenden chairman Angela Hays noted there were “very significant” issues with recruiting anaesthetists during the second wave of the pandemic meaning theatres did not run at full capacity, while the more recent Omicron variant has increased pressure on resources due to staff absences.
However, the chairman also pointed to the hospital’s successful implementation of its commercial strategy which led to growth in self-pay patient income and continued growth in the number of society members.
Hays added that she looked forward to patient numbers returning to pre-pandemic levels which would enable the trust to support more members and grow self-pay patient income further.
