Healthcare valuation expertise, applied independently.

Independence is structural, not a tone of voice. HPNA is engaged to reach a conclusion, not to support one that has already been settled. We do not sell healthcare businesses, we do not act as a broker or selling agent, and we take no commission or referral payment from a transaction, a purchaser or a financier. The fee is agreed before the work begins and does not move with the figure we reach or with whether a deal proceeds.

Part of what independence means here is that the fee is published rather than quoted case by case. The schedule sets a fixed amount by the annual revenue of the business being valued, and it is on the website, so anyone can see what the engagement costs before deciding whether to make an enquiry, and the person on the other side of a transaction can see it too. That is a deliberate contrast with how a figure is usually produced. An appraisal from a broker or agent is often provided at no charge because the broker is paid a commission when the business sells, which means the same person who states the number is paid more when the number is higher and paid nothing if no sale occurs. Charging by the hour avoids that, but leaves the cost unknown until the work is finished. A fee that is published, fixed by band, agreed in writing before work starts and unaffected by the conclusion removes the question entirely, which is why it belongs in the same paragraph as the rest of our independence rather than in a footnote.

That structure matters most when the report is read by someone other than the person who paid for it. At the time of writing, the ATO expects a taxpayer engaging a valuer to have set out the scope and purpose, acknowledged the valuer's independence to draw conclusions and write the report, and stated that any fee is not dependent on the outcome of the report. The Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Family Law) Rules 2021, as in force at the time of writing, put it more strongly again for an expert giving evidence in a family law proceeding: the expert's duty to the court prevails over the obligation to the person instructing or paying them, and the opinion must be objective, unbiased, independent and impartial. Those expectations shape how we reason in every engagement, whatever the purpose the valuation is prepared for.

Independence also shows in what a report is willing to admit. Our reports record the purpose, the valuation date, the information relied on, the assumptions made, the reasoning that connects them to the conclusion and the limitations that follow, including the places where information was not available. That reflects what those rules require of an expert's report, which must give the reasons for the conclusions, describe the methodology used, set out the facts and assumptions the opinion rests on, summarise any range of opinion on the matters dealt with, and disclose where an opinion is not a concluded one. A conclusion that hides its assumptions cannot be tested, and a valuation that cannot be tested is of little use in a negotiation, a restructure or a dispute. Business valuation versus business appraisal explains where that line sits.

HPNA works throughout Australia, in every state and territory, metropolitan and regional. Most of an engagement is conducted remotely. Information is exchanged securely, questions are handled by email and video meeting, and the draft and final report are delivered electronically. Distance is rarely the constraint on a valuation; the quality and completeness of the information usually is.

Where a physical inspection changes the answer, we attend the premises by arrangement. That is more likely where fitout, plant, stock or the physical position of the site carries real value: a pharmacy holding a shopping centre lease, a dental practice with several surgeries and imaging equipment, or a site used by an aged care or disability provider. Location also enters the analysis directly, through local workforce supply, competing providers nearby and lease terms. For pharmacies it enters through the approval itself, because PBS medicines may only be supplied at or from the approved premises listed in the approval and the PBS approval number is used solely for those premises. An application to establish a new pharmacy or to relocate an existing one is considered by the Australian Community Pharmacy Authority against the Pharmacy Location Rules, and where the Authority does not recommend the application a pharmacist may ask the Minister to use the discretionary power under section 90A of the National Health Act 1953. Request a valuation with the sector, the state or territory and the purpose, and we will confirm what the engagement requires.