While increases in operating expenses, and in particular nursing costs, have hit hospitals significantly, the healthcare sector remains strong from a real estate fundamentals standpoint, according to one industry watcher.

"The healthcare services sector, and growth in demand for healthcare services, is uncorrelated with the economy, which is proven out by historical statistics," says Darryl E. Freling, Managing Principal, MedProperties Realty Advisors LLC and a panelist at this year's GlobeSt Healthcare conference next week in Scottsdale, Ariz. "Thus, growth in the demand for healthcare real estate will continue to grow, and high inflation has provided landlords the opportunity to push rents and escalations more than in the past decade…Capital demand for healthcare properties has grown considerably in recent years and will continue to do so as other less recession resistant sectors become out of favor."

Freling says the only big change for the sector has been interest rates, as the cost of borrowing has more than doubled over the past year.