I refer to the news analysis “Can Singapore get another not-for-profit hospital to help keep private sector costs down?” (Jan 14).
Mount Alvernia Hospital is the only known successful model of a not-for-profit private acute hospital in Singapore.
Its formation was born out of compassion from Franciscan Missionaries of the Divine Motherhood nuns, who pooled their savings and salaries. Individuals and companies responded to their call, and donated generously.
In short, the hospital owes its success to its roots in a compassionate mission, supported by non-profit governance and management.
In inviting private healthcare operators to participate in an industry consultation, the Ministry of Health would be capitalising on the business know-how of operators which are used to operating in an environment marked by watching quarterly returns, shareholder value and share price.
It remains to be seen how this know-how can translate into desirable outcomes for a not-for-profit organisation.
When commercial considerations lock horns with compassionate healthcare, will a non-profit private acute hospital remain unshackled from the need to optimise its market potential, and not lose sight of the goal of “providing compassionate, excellent and holistic healthcare” – the mission of Mount Alvernia Hospital?
Will it wriggle its way out by accumulating surpluses that attract funding, without earning “profits”?
Artificial intelligence start-up OpenAI’s recent saga, during which it sacked and reinstated chief executive Sam Altman in the space of five days, perhaps demonstrates the difficulties of running a business that has the potential to make money with a non-profit board.
Time magazine, in its recent article naming Mr Altman as its CEO of the Year, put it this way: “In contrast to a typical for-profit board, which makes decisions informed by quarterly earnings reports, stock prices and concerns for shareholder value, their job was to exercise their judgment to ensure the company was acting in the best interests of humanity – a mission that is fuzzy at best, and difficult to uphold when so much money is at stake.”
In short, you can’t have your cake and eat it. There is probably no hybrid model that provides an organisation with the best of both worlds, for-profit and non-profit.
Lai Yew Chan
