Ministry of Health financial and moral support ensured the hospital stayed open during its restructuring period, the report, released this week, said.
The charitable trust hopes to form closer ties with the public sector, including for the first time a Ministry of Health appointment to its board, expected next year.
Last year's restructuring, when 10 full-time jobs were lost, appeared to be the first time in the hospital's 130-year history it had been forced to reduce staff. This was despite other periods of financial difficulty, the report said.
The downturn affected both private and public sector referrals, and the clinic last year faced a $1 million shortfall. This year it was on track to make a small surplus.
Business manager Lindsay Smith told the Otago Daily Times the clinic's patient volumes were still well down on previous levels although demand was rising.
Much of last year's loss comprised the cost of the restructuring.
Ashburn Clinic anticipated an upcoming Southern District Health Board mental health and addiction sector plan would recommend outsourcing programmes to the private sector, increasing funding options, Mr Smith said.
He expected the report, to be released for consultation in February, would be of public interest.
"I suspect any move to contract out services will be controversial, but we would just like an opportunity to promote what we could do."
Ashburn Clinic, New Zealand's only private psychiatric hospital aside from iwi services, had overheads far lower than the public sector, Mr Smith said.
The clinic was well placed to take on DHB work as it had an excellent reputation and highly trained staff, including at consultant psychiatrist level.
He said it was a time of change in mental health services, with a revision of the national funding blueprint under way.
DHBs were an important source of referrals, with public psychiatric facilities not working for some patients.
Financially, the clinic faces an insurance shock, with a decision next week on whether to self-insure the facilities, which mostly date from 1882, or pay an annual premium of $49,000, up from $10,000 previously.
Southern DHB funding and finance general manager Robert Mackway-Jones said people should wait until the draft mental health and addiction plan was released before drawing conclusions. The plan was to have been launched in October.
