Bosses claim bed cuts will speed up discharges
Nearly 90 beds are to go at the University Hospital at Crosshouse in a shake-up of services aimed at reducing delayed discharges.
Affected departments – though not clarified in detail – will include elderly and orthopaedic services while diabetes sufferers could also be hit by the loss of 30 beds which have already been removed from the endocrine ward.
But the move, which is said to be part of new models for care and services, has been criticised by politicians who have accused NHS Ayrshire and Arran of having a ‘culture of secrecy’.
Liz Moore, director for acute services, has defended the move. She said: ‘The new service models will allow patients to be transferred or discharged from hospital more quickly to the most appropriate environment for their needs. This will reduce the need for the additional beds, which were created at the hospital to accommodate patients who had finished their treatment but were unable to be discharged.
‘As a result of these new models of care, the additional beds will be reduced as patients will be discharged or transferred more quickly once their hospital treatment ends. These 89 beds will be reduced incrementally over the coming months.’
However, South Scotland Labour MSP Colin Smyth said: ‘It is no secret that NHS Ayrshire and Arran face a huge financial headache and part of the projected £23m deficit is these additional beds because of the problem of delayed discharge.
‘The local NHS have not set out any detailed plans showing how they plan to end the problem and what these so-called new models of care are. Local people will be concerned that these beds will be reduced to close the massive funding gap but the care needed still won’t be there in the community.’
Jamie Greene, regional MSP for west Scotland, has also spoken out about his concerns about the costs involved in delayed discharges. In March of this year, NHS Ayrshire and Arran had 100 delayed discharges – five of which have been ongoing for between six to 11 months at an estimated cost of £233 per day each – meaning that these five cases could cost the taxpayer £390,00 alone.’
Mr Greene said: ‘This highlights the government’s continued inability to provide value for money to the Scottish taxpayer and to manage our health service. Delayed discharges mean fewer hospital beds for those who really need them. It’s vital that those who are able to be discharged are done so in order to free up hospital beds for other admissions.
‘Doctors, nurses and staff in NHS Ayrshire and Arran work tirelessly to provide excellent service for their patients and I think it’s high time that the government take action to make sure that medical staff are better equipped to do their roles. This starts with properly arranging assessment protocols, care arrangements and transport, which have all contributed to the problem.’
The health board says there are no job losses associated with the reduction of beds and any additional staff who work in the affected departments will be transferred to other departments within the NHS.