MSP blasts health boss over ‘no change’ at the under-pressure RAH
A&E waiting times at Paisley’s Royal Alexandra Hospital have rocketed as performance plunges once more.
And the news has prompted one politician to hit out, saying hardpressed staff are burning out while they “get nothing” from Scottish health supremo Humza Yousaf.
New NHS data shows patients are again waiting longer for treatment at the Corsebar Road hospital.
It comes amid a picture of poor performance across the country, as NHS chiefs blame covid for delays.
The picture at Paisley’s Royal Alexandra Hospital had been improving, with data in recent weeks showing more patients had been seen in line with the Scottish Government’s four hour treatment target.
Although targets call for 95 per cent of A&E patients to be treated, admitted, transferred or discharged within four hours, the standard has rarely been met across the nation since the pandemic struck.
In recent weeks performance at the Paisley hospital’s emergency department had, however, climbed above 60 per cent, with 67.3 per cent of patients being seen in line with the four hour standard during one week in April.
However, latest figures show that just 58.3 per cent of the 1,110 patients who passed through the RAH’s A&E department in the week until May 8 were dealt with in the four hour window.
Now Scottish Labour’s Shadow Health Minister Paul O’Kane has branded the news “very worrying” and blasted the apparent inaction of Scottish Government Health Secretary Humza Yousaf.
Mr O’Kane said: “We are watching a very worrying situation play out in our A&E departments and every week it shows no signs that it will improve but instead signs that it could get worse
“You only have to look at the Royal Alexandra Hospital, a hospital visited by the Health Secretary in response to pleas from staff and patients, that almost no change has materialised by the Scottish Government to help lessen the pressure.”
Mr Yousaf visited the RAH in March in a bid to iron out pressing issues at the site after staff had been warning that they were burning out amid “chronic” shortages of staff from as far back as last October.
Union leaders had described the situation as “dire”.
But little appears to have changed since Mr Yousaf ’s visit.
Mr O’Kane added: “A&E staff are dedicated to their jobs, committing long and hard hours and in return they’re getting nothing from Humza Yousaf.
“Last week I put it to the Health Secretary during a meeting of the Health, Social Care and Sport committee that there had been historical failures by his government to implement a workforce plan and reach necessary levels of recruitment even before the pandemic but he didn’t want to hear that.
“What else has to happen for the Scottish Government to realise that A&E services are stagnating and that it’s not statistics that are the consequences of that but people’s health and lives?”
“After a year of nothing happening except a clearly a staged PR visit to the RAH, I honestly don’t see Humza Yousaf’s inaction ending.”
Figures reveal that 463 patients waited more than four hours, while 172 waited more than eight.
Some 51 patients waited more than 12 hours to be treated, transferred or admitted.
The figure falls well below NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde’s board standard performance of 65.4 per cent and is well out of line with the Scottish figure of 69.6 per cent.
Stablemate, Govan’s Queen Elizabeth University Hospital was the worst performer in Scotland against A&E targets, treating just 44.7 per cent of 1,719 patients in line with the figure.
The struggling hospital - also in the NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde portfolio - is consistently Scotland’s worst performing A&E against the four hour target.
Even Edinburgh’s Royal Infirmary, which dealt with a whopping 2,345 patients in the same week, returned a figure of 51.1 per cent against the four hour treatment time target.
NHS Tayside’s Ninewells Hospital in Dundee logged a 90.2 per cent performance against target, with 1,198 patients.
Bosses at NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde did not confirm to the Express how many covid patients are currently housed within the RAH or how many staff are missing due to the virus.
A spokesman for the board, said: “Covid-19 is still very much with us.
“Our hospitals are near capacity, with large numbers of patients admitted to hospital – either as direct result of the virus, or admitted for another illness but having tested positive with no symptoms.
“This is putting significant pressure on capacity and available bed numbers and is having a knock-on effect at our A&E departments and assessment units.
“The rise in patient numbers and the logistical challenges this brings to our teams is being further compounded by the difficulties we face due to delayed discharges, which we are working hard to resolve.”
He added: “An additional pressure, is the challenge Covid-19 infection is creating across our workforce, with significant numbers absent as a result of the virus.
“We are sorry if anyone experiences in a delay in being treated and we are reminding the public not to come to A&E unless suffering from a very urgent or lifethreatening condition.
“Everyone else who thinks they need urgent medical attention should speak to their GP first, or, call NHS24 on 111.”
You only have to look at the RAH... that no change has materialised by the Scottish Government to lessen the pressure