“We believe it is best for the patients, staff and the Northern Beaches community that [the hospital] is returned to NSW Health if that is the government’s preferred outcome.” 

This is the boss of the private hospital provider Healthscope, Tino La Spina, announcing his desire to end a healthcare experiment 10 years in the making.

Northern Beaches Hospital in Sydney was meant to be a vision of the future: around 290 public and 195 private beds, 14 operating theatres, four procedural rooms, a 50-space ED and an on-site medical centre.

The result of a public-private partnership deal back in 2014, it was built and operated by Healthscope for public patients through a $2.1 billion contract with the NSW Government until 2038.