Hariss International

As the holding company for ICON Managed Care and ICON Radiotherapy, Icon Oncology and its partner companies will champion the shift from fee-for-service to value-based health care to improve the patient experience, resulting in a healthier population and a reduction in the per patient cost of healthcare. This kind of shift has been shown elsewhere in the world to deliver benefits to all stakeholders and, most importantly, to patients. Icon Oncology aims to be the frontrunner in quality oncology care in Africa where the patient is the centre of care.

This investment in cancer treatment is in line with Oppenheimer Partners’ ambitions to develop a global healthcare platform through acquisitions and expansion funding. The healthcare sector makes a meaningful contribution to the broader society and Oppenheimer Partners is aligned with Icon Oncology in the pursuit of delivering quality, sustainable healthcare solutions.

There is a growing cancer burden globally and a material underservicing of health care needs in developing countries, Africa has an immense need for oncology treatment. Icon Oncology is well positioned to provide its services to alleviate the growing cancer burden and to expand to all oncology-related services including beyond South Africa.

Icon Oncology has 28 oncology centres with 32 linear accelerators for radiation therapy. These service mainly the private sector population of almost 9 million. It has however, strong working relationships with the public sector in certain areas in South Africa.

The Independent Clinical Oncology Network (“ICON”) resides within the Icon Oncology group of companies with the goal of advancing and improving patient care in South Africa by utilizing unique and progressive treatment models. At the core of the model is a network of approximately 160 dedicated medical and radiation oncologists who are committed to patient-centric, ethical care. Through this system there is a substantial amount of data used effectively to the benefit treating doctors, patients and funders alike. ICON enables true value-based care with resultant increases in clinical quality and reductions in cost of oncology treatment which makes such treatment more accessible. Icon Oncology believes that the approach to provide value- and outcomes-based care – by sharing expertise, resources, best practice, experience, infrastructure – can also be applied to other specialisations in the future.

The importance of the oncologists is further evidenced in their shareholding in Icon Oncology and Icon Oncology’s support allows them to focus on providing the critical healthcare services required. Icon Oncology continues to seek additional specialists to join the group and grow alongside. OP has also reserved and funded equity for new black doctors to join the group.

Over and above the investment in Icon Oncology, Oppenheimer Partners has also invested in Flexcor Twenty Two (“Flexcor”), a recognised specialist oncology property management company. Flexcor has 15 properties with approximately 16,700m2 of lettable space, most of which are rented to Icon Oncology.

Oppenheimer Partners has ambitious plans to develop a global healthcare platform across the value chain through acquisitions and expansion funding. Oppenheimer Partners and Icon Oncology have a shared philosophy about delivering quality, sustainable healthcare solutions and Icon Oncology would be an ideal platform to pursue a pan African specialist healthcare group.