Leadership and funding needed

EYE-WATERING sums of money are being spent on locum psychiatrists.

Spending tens of millions every year on these temporary consultants is not sustainable and something needs to change.

We previously told how the Western Isles health board had spent £1.2million on just two locum doctors for a year.

Now we can report that the combined bill for all health boards for locum psychiatrists has hit the £30million mark in one year.

The figure, which is likely to rise given recent trends, is unsustainable and should lead to a rethink on how our NHS provides mental health care across the country.

The Royal College of Psychiatrists argues we need properly trained and qualified consultant psychiatrists who can teach and train junior staff to do the job properly.

Politicians have echoed those demands, with calls for greater investment in training and capacity.

Locums are simply a short-term fix which places a huge financial burden on the public purse.

The only way to drive the bill down is to invest. A key part of this is training more staff but also looking seriously at how to attract new staff and retain those workers the NHS already has.

Mental health provision is an important – and growing – part of our NHS. The current system clearly isn’t working as efficiently as it should.

The calls for greater investment should be heeded. It will save money in the long run.

The Scottish Government must come up with a long-term workforce plan to get better value for the taxpayer and give patients the service they need.