AFTER three decades as one of Jamaica’s most established diagnostic imaging companies, Image Plus Consultants Limited, which trades as Apex Radiology, is formalising a leadership transition that management says is designed to preserve continuity while positioning the business for its next phase of growth.

Founder and long-standing Chairman Dr Karlene McDonnough will retire from the chairmanship effective February 28, 2026, ending a tenure that spans the company’s evolution from a private start-up into a Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE)-listed health-care provider with annual revenues now exceeding $1 billion. She will, however, remain on the board as an executive director, and continue as lead consultant radiologist for the company’s nuclear medicine services.

“The entire IPCL family wishes to convey our heartfelt appreciation to Dr McDonnough for her vision, unwavering support, and selfless leadership over the years. We extend our warmest wishes for God’s abundant blessings as she begins her well-earned semi-retirement,” the company said in a notice posted on JSE.

Succeeding her is Dr Steven Lewis, who assumes the role of chairman on March 1, 2026 after serving as deputy chairman since November 2024. Lewis has been a consultant radiologist with Image Plus since 2003 and joined the board in 2010, giving him more than two decades of operational and governance familiarity with the business.

The transition comes at a time when Image Plus is navigating both near-term operational pressures and longer-term expansion plans. In its unaudited third-quarter results for the period ended November 30, 2025, the company reported revenues of $277.2 million for the quarter — its strongest quarterly performance for the 2026 financial year to date — despite disruption from Hurricane Melissa which reduced operating days and weighed on patient volumes, particularly outside Kingston.

For the nine-month period, revenues stood at $803.3 million, down 3.9 per cent year on year, while profit before tax declined to $33.1 million from $41.6 million in the prior year, reflecting lower scan volumes and hurricane-related impacts.

Management said cost controls helped cushion the impact, with gross margins holding broadly steady and administrative expenses declining modestly over the period.

Strategically, the company has continued to push ahead with expansion. During the quarter, Image Plus completed the acquisition of the diagnostic imaging operations of The Woman’s Place for approximately $69.8 million, marking its entry into a more specialised mammography-focused platform under the Apex Radiology brand.

“On November 1, 2025 the company acquired the diagnostic imaging operations of The Woman’s Place for total consideration of approximately $69.8 million…Seventy-five per cent of the acquisition price was paid in cash with the remaining 25 per cent to be paid in October 2026 and recorded as a deferred consideration,” the company said in the notes of the third-quarter financials.

The newly acquired unit contributed more than eight per cent of total scan volume in its first full month of operation, reinforcing management’s confidence in the acquisition’s longer-term contribution. Further, the acquisition of the assets of The Woman’s Place resulted in the recognition of intangible assets totalling $49.4 million.

Looking ahead, the company has signalled that further inorganic growth remains on the agenda, with management indicating that details of a second acquisition are expected to be announced in the final quarter of the 2026 financial year. Construction of the 33 LMR building is also ongoing and is expected to come on stream in 2026, expanding capacity and improving patient throughput.

— Karena Bennett

Dr Karlene McDonnough, founder of Image Plus Consultants Limited, will retire as chairman at the end of February, after 30 years in the role, but will remain on the board as an executive director and continue as lead consultant radiologist for nuclear medicine.