The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Politicians press for answers over timeline
Question mark over when mental health facility will return
Concern has been raised that NHS Tayside is unable to provide a timetable for the return of a local mental health facility to Angus.
The Mulberry Unit at Stracathro Hospital is temporarily closed on safety grounds due to a shortage of junior doctors but question marks remain over its future as NHS Tayside reviews its three mental health bases in Perth, Dundee and near Brechin.
The health board has said the relocation of the Mulberry Unit back to Stracathro Hospital will depend on the availability of junior doctors in the area.
Politicians have criticised the delay of a decision which is now unlikely to be made before June.
It has been suggested that it is the result of “political expediency rather than the best interest of patients”.
NHS Tayside chief executive Lesley McLay said that a redesign of services for people with mental illness and learning disabilities is ongoing and that a number of options, still being evaluated, will be put to a three-month public consultation.
In a letter to North East Scotland Conservative MSP Liam Kerr, the chief executive said: “The length of this interim move will depend on the availability of junior doctors at each future rotation and, specifically, the numbers available to work in Tayside.
“It is worth highlighting that mental health and learning disability services are provided in people’s homes, in the communities in which they live and, when necessary, in hospital.
“Our priority is to provide safe and effective services and specifically to make sure those who have the most complex health requirements have access to high quality care when it is required.”
Mr Kerr has campaigned on this issue for several months and has spoken out regularly about the financial difficulties facing NHS Tayside.
In February, the most senior NHS official in Scotland also told MSPs that NHS Tayside would have to “consolidate assets”, which was viewed as a signal closure could be made permanent.
Mr Kerr said: “I am concerned that there is no timetable for the relocation of the Mulberry Unit back to Stracathro.
“This will do nothing to address the concerns of residents who suspect that the closure will be made permanent.
“If the return of the facility to the local area is dependent on the availability of junior doctors, then, with the best will in the world, that could be some time away.
“But the reality is that this is a very important facility, built very recently, that has now been taken out of the local area.
“That means families and friends are having to travel more than 30 miles to visit their loved ones.”
North East Scotland Lib Dem MSP Mike Rumbles said: “I have previously raised concerns with the Scottish Ministers regarding the future of services at Stracathro Hospital and the Mulberry Unit, and I will continue to do so.”
If the return of the facility to the local area is dependent on the availability of junior doctors, then, with the best will in the world, that could be some time away. LIAM KERR MSP