£1BN SHOT INTHE ARM FOR NHS
»»First minister announces plan for recovery of health service after pandemic »»Critics say it’s not enough and doesn’t tackle A&E waiting times or impact of Long Covid
NICOLA Sturgeon has announced a £1billion boost for the National Health Service to help it recover following the devastating Covid pandemic.
The NHS Recovery Plan will aim to “improve care” and tackle the backlog of cases that have mounted up since the pandemic took hold in March 2020.
A return to face-to-face GP appointments is also a key part of the plan.
The Scottish Government’s strategy sets out a number of key areas that it wants to improve in the NHS and increase capacity by at least 10 per cent over the next five years.
Reforms to primary and acute services will help the health service recover and get people the treatment they need.
Throughout the course of the pandemic, the NHS was crippled by a high number of people in hospitals and in intensive care units across the country.
Cancer treatments, planned operations and face-to-face GP appointments were just some of the services cancelled during the first wave of the deadly virus.
The First Minister unveiled the plan alongside the Health Secretary Humza Yousaf while on a visit to the new national Centre for Sustainable Delivery at the Golden Jubilee National Hospital in Clydebank.
She said: “This plan will drive the recovery of our NHS – not just to its pre-pandemic level, but beyond.
“As we maintain our resilience against Covid-19 and other pressures, the Scottish Government is providing targeted investment to increase capacity, reform the system and ultimately get everyone the treatment they need as quickly as possible.
“Tackling the backlog of care is essential and will be a priority. But we want to go further than that and deliver an NHS that is innovative, sustainable and stronger than ever before.”
Plans to see the return of face-toface GP appointments will be welcome relief for patients across Scotland. The Daily Record revealed earlier this week that Scots unable to get in-person appointments said they had developed more serious symptoms.
We told of one patient, Fiona Weir, from Castlemilk, Glasgow, who is afraid a delayed skin cancer diagnosis has put her life at risk. She had treatment for malignant melanoma and now faces years of scans and tests to ensure the cancer hasn’t spread or returned.
Under the plan, £130million will be ploughed in to increase the number of cancer cases detected early and improve treatment for those with the disease.
The government pledges to invest over £400million in national treatment centres, which it says could mean an additional 40,000 more planned operations and procedures to take place each year.
Around £29million will be invested
to reduce waiting times for diagnostic tests. According to ministers, it would allow for 78,000 more procedures to be carried out this year.
Recruiting more staff is also part of the plan, with £11million being spent on national and international campaigns aimed at taking on 1500 staff for national treatment centres, as well as 1000 mental health link workers in the community and 800 additional GPs.
To respond to the mental health crisis, the government plans to invest £8million to support the mental health and wellbeing of health and care workers.
The Scottish Government is also proposing a £23million transformation of urgent care, saying it wants people to have rapid access to senior medics via telephone or video consultation where possible, claiming this should help reduce the pressure on accident and emergency services. Yousaf said the plan will be “reviewed regularly” and that the government will be open to new ideas and initiatives over the next five years.
He added: “This NHS Recovery Plan sets out key headline ambitions and actions to be developed and delivered now and over the next five years.
“The plan will be reviewed regularly and reported on annually to ensure its actions and outcomes are delivered.
“We will also remain open to new ideas and initiatives that can help accelerate recovery and shape sustainable ways of working.
Opposition parties have taken aim at the government, saying the plan doesn’t go far enough.
Scottish Labour’s health spokesperson Jackie Baillie said: “Frankly, this plan does not even begin to chart a path to the full re-mobilisation of our NHS. And targets promised before the election have disappeared from the plan.
“Most disappointing of all is that the SNP has entirely failed to comprehend the size of the NHS backlog. Services are being cut, A&E is in crisis, and hospitals are at breaking point.”
Scottish Tory health spokesperson Annie Wells said: “This delayed plan is mostly a lift from their manifesto and a regurgitation of undelivered promises from failed SNP health ministers of old.
“There is not a single mention of Long Covid. There’s no new funding for A&E, despite waiting times hitting their worst level in six years, and nothing new to tackle alcohol and drug deaths, which have both hit record highs.”