BMI hospital closures continue

BMI Healthcare has closed its Fawkham Manor Hospital in Dartford Kent, citing continued financial viability.

The 30-bed hospital is the latest in a series of closures announced by UK’s largest private hospital group following the takeover by its landlords at the end of 2018.

A spokesperson for the hospital, which was rated ‘Good’ by the CQC last year, said: ‘Having looked at current and future patient numbers and current and future financial performance, we have concluded that it is no longer commercially viable to run the hospital.’

In May, BMI closed its Somerfield Hospital in Maidstone, Kent – approximately 40-minutes drive away – saying that activity and finances at the hospital had been impacted by new market entrants in an area which already had an oversupply of private beds.

However, recent hospital closures and exits have stretched across the UK. In February, the company announced it was selling its South Cheshire Private Hospital to Mid Cheshire NHS Trust (MCHFT) and in May it closed the 15-bed Fernbrae Hospital in Dundee due to falling PMI and self-pay numbers in the region. Earlier this month, the company also unveiled plans to close its 52-bed Esperance Hospital in East Sussex in July.

A spokesperson for BMI, which is planning to implement a £250m capital investment programme over the next four years, said: ‘As you would expect of any organisation of our size we constantly review our business and the service we offer for patients.’