MILDURA-based medical chain Tristar has kept its clinic doors open, including in Swan Hill, despite despite administrators taking over its parent company.
There had been fears that the move could further aggravate the chronic shortage of regional doctors, but a spokesperson for adminstrator McGrathNicol said the Tristar business would remain open and operate as usual in the immediate term while the company’s long-term future was assessed.
The company now operates 29 clinics, mostly in Victoria and NSW. Its Swan Hill clinic is open, but only for a total of about nine hours across three days a week.
McGrathNicol took over the administration of Tristar’s parent company, Khaled El-Sheikh Pty Ltd, a fortnight ago.
The practice’s business woes come as the district grapples with a severe shortage of GPs and while Swan Hill District Health is under chronic workload pressure through the COVID-19 pandemic and now the winter flu season.
The business faced a creditor motion to wind up in court, but this was unsuccessful. The administrators say a wind-up order could have placed the company in liquidation and that this could have immediately closed all its clinics.
Tristar is based in Mildura, but at one stage operated 58 clinics around Australia.
Attempts to speak with company head Dr El-Sheikh last week were unsuccessful.
McGrathNicol partner Matthew Caddy said that he had visited Mildura and his firm was conscious of the need to keep health services open if possible.
“We are undertaking an urgent assessment of the business, but it is our intention to maintain the services on a business-as-usual basis,” Mr Caddy said.
“We’ll be pursuing a sale or recapitalisation of the business.”
Mr Caddy said the business’s lender was prepared to explore recapitalisation and that there had also already been interest from potential buyers.
“We’ve had what I would call strong early interest from highly credible parties across the medical space,” he said.
“Hopefully we’ll find a solid new owner.”
Mr Caddy said he was still assessing the business and was not in a position to detail the circumstances that had led the business into solvency problems.
