Ramsay Health Care Ltd (ASX: RHC, OTC: RMSYF) is Australia’s largest private hospital owner, and it has operations in the UK and France as well. It has 117 hospitals around the world, with around 10,000 beds, and employs approximately 30,000 people.

Twenty-two thousand doctors are attached to its service, and Ramsey is approaching 3 million patient days per year. All this put it in good position to capitalize on one of the surest trends alive, rising health care costs.

Most impressive about Ramsay is that it’s never failed–never–to boost its interim or its final dividend from one corresponding period to the next.

On Aug. 23, 2012, Ramsay followed through on this promise, announcing a 16.9 percent increase to its final fiscal 2012 dividend, to AUD0.345 per share from the AUD0.295 it paid for a final dividend in fiscal 2011. That brought the full-year dividend to AUD0.60, up 15.4 percent from the AUD0.52 per share it paid in respect of fiscal 2011.

Based on its consistent dividend growth and long-term prospects, St. Leonards, New South Wales-based Ramsay Health Care is a member of the AE Portfolio Conservative Holdings. It’s a buy under USD26.

Here’s more on Ramsay Health Care.