Ulick McEvaddy said his decision to get involved in healthcare was inspired by his own personal experiences of the health service's failings. "We [McEvaddy and his brother Des] always had it in mind, especially when our mother was ill. If we had a private care centre nearby rather than having to bring her to Castlebar Hospital, it would have been much better," he said.

"So we thought that whenever we got the opportunity, we'd do it, and then a suitable site came up in Naas."

The aviation entrepreneur hopes the Vista Primary Care clinic in Naas, his first healthcare venture, will eventually lead to a string of similar facilities throughout the country. The Vista clinic is the first facility in the country to offer a walk-in service for patients, covering everything from minor injuries up to minor surgical procedures, he claims.

Personal experience also influenced the McEvaddys' decision to make the country's first 'wide bore' MRI scanner, which is ideal for scanning obese and claustrophobic patients, the centrepiece of their new development.

"The reason is that I brought a friend to an MRI machine a while back and because he was claustrophobic, he couldn't go through with it. Having had an MRI subsequently, I could understand why someone would get claustrophobic there, so we bought the 'wide bore' machine," he says.

McEvaddy hopes the clinic will lessen waiting times at nearby public hospitals by diverting non-emergency private cases away from them. He also said that Vista was in talks with the Health Service Executive (HSE) so that public patients could use its scanning facilities.

"It is wrong that somebody today in this country has to wait for six to eight weeks to have a scan. We want to provide the efficiency that you walk in, have your scan and get your results before you go home that day," he said.

McEvaddy said, however, that it was highly likely that Ireland would continue to have a two-tier health system in spite of private operators such as Vista making their facilities available to the HSE.

"As long as you have people who can afford it, it is inevitable that they will jump the queue at public hospitals by accessing private care in private facilities."

He believes that, given this situation, it is wrong for governments to grant universal entitlement to public healthcare to their citizens, regardless of income level. Unsurprisingly, he is a strong backer of the government's plan to introduce means testing for the over-70s medical card scheme.

"Clearly, the government has lost control of the cost of healthcare for the over-70s, and I think that it is unfair that a multimillionaire would automatically qualify for a medical card when they reach 70," he said.

"I think that the government's presentation wasn't as good as it could have been, but I think most people realise that something has to be done about runaway health costs."

"We need to cater for the underprivileged while not catering also for the millionaire class. Let's be honest, most people who can afford it don't go near the HSE anyway, but the doctor is still getting paid because they're on his list."

McEvaddy also believes that the HSE needs to launch a redundancy programme to get rid of surplus administrators, but warned that EU procurement rules meant that it could never be as efficient as a private business.

"Efficiency, computerisation and communication capability are all of the things we can do in a modern context. But were the HSE to do that, they would have to take three years of going through the tender process. So they will never get close to the efficiency of the private sector."

Although Vista has started talks with the HSE on providing access to its facilities for public patients, the clinic has yet to enter into discussions with the country's three health insurers. As a result, none of the insurers covers procedures at the clinic, but McEvaddy is confident that Vista will be able to negotiate a deal with them, despite the difficulties encountered by private operators in the past.

"I think the insurers should greet us with open arms. Remember this – we're going to save them money. If their patient goes into a hospital bed, their bill would be four times the price. They should realise that keeping hospital beds empty is the best policy for them."

He indicated, however, that he was concerned about the power that the insurers wielded over the provision of healthcare in Ireland. "In the United States, the health service is broken because of the insurers. It hasn't got there in Ireland yet, but we have to make sure it doesn't get there."

When McEvaddy's involvement in Vista first became known last year, there was speculation that he planned to open a chain of up to six clinics throughout the country.

Although McEvaddy confirmed that he planned to locate a second clinic in Swinford, Co Mayo, on family-owned land, he said that the expansion plan for Vista remained unclear.

"I'll come back to you in 12 to 18 months on that. If this one starts to work, yes. Clearly, if the model is not a success, we will have to reappraise the situation. But if it's a question of 'will I risk a second one before I know the first one is a success?', the answer is no."

One determining factor, besides patient numbers, is likely to be the global credit crunch, which has restricted the availability of finance for most construction projects.

"Had this banking crisis come down the tracks before, we would have had second thoughts about putting this project in. The reality is that we would have waited until conditions were better. But I'm hopeful that it won't last for a prolonged period of time."

Curriculum Vitae

Ulick McEvaddy

Age: 56

Family: He has three children

Interests: Horseriding and International Politics

Career: 2007 – Present: chairman, Vista Primary Care; 1980 – Present: Joint Chief Executive, Omega Air; 1972 – 1983: Irish Army Officer specialising in strategic studies