The independent consultant is the backbone of high-quality private healthcare in Ireland. While the sector faces significant financial pressures, one of the biggest challenges remains the high insurance costs and overly complex reimbursement systems of our private healthcare ecosystem. This was clearly outlined by Professor Helen Hegarty, President of the MDCA, in her recent Irish Medical Times feature “The sustainability of health insurance companies cannot be at the expense of independent consultants”.
The independent consultant, both in medicine and in dentistry, can secure the future of private practice by supporting their professional bodies in influencing national policy while taking direct control of their internal operations to ensure their practice weathers financial pressures.
While general inflation is a factor, the core profitability issues that drain time and revenue stem from two structural forces. The most substantial is the increase in medical indemnity premiums, averaging around €100k per year. This cost, combined with the need to match competitive wage increases, means overheads are anticipated to jump by 10% to 15% this year alone. Beyond high costs, the “Friction Challenge” when dealing with insurers, can create an unnecessary and costly administrative burdens. Delayed payments, detailed claims procedures, and the time spent challenging audits slow cash flow and prevent staff from focusing on high-value patient interactions. All of this occurs as inflation and wage growth continue to outpace professional fee increases, forcing the independent consultant to absorb higher costs while your revenue remains flat.
Your professional bodies, such as the IHCA and MDCA, are essential for negotiating and influencing national policy on costs and systems. The strength of these bodies lies in the unified voice of the members. You can activate your voice by encouraging your colleagues and advocating for change through these representative groups with your specific, data-driven examples of administrative friction and cost impact. This crucial feedback empowers them to drive system-wide change, leading to simplified and accelerated claims processes for everyone.
While the drive for national change continues, you can take immediate control of your practice’s resilience. Relying solely on external fee increases to combat rising costs is no longer enough. At the private practice level, you can use strategic business management tools to implement solutions that boost efficiency, streamline processes, unlock staff capacity, and ensure your team is focused on patient care, not paperwork. Perfect Practice can help you accelerate cash flow by implementing best practices to reduce payment delays and minimise administrative friction with insurers. By taking proactive charge of your internal operational excellence, you can confidently weather the current financial pressures and position your practice to survive and thrive.
