The high cost of heath care provision and the shortage of qualified health care professionals are forcing health care providers to seek new approaches to operational efficiency and service provision. When linked to changing customer expectations we have the potential for a clash of decreasing service provision and increasing service expectations. This paper addresses this dilemma and proposes a way forward by empirically examining the theoretical concept of a Zone of Tolerance in a private hospital setting, investigating those areas where expectations may demonstrate a capacity to satisfactorily tolerate a variation in the levels of service provided. This will allow the private hospital provider prioritisation of scare resources.