We have an A&E in name only
When is an accident and emergency unit not an accident and emergency unit?
When it doesn’t deal with emergencies.
That is the issue which is currently concerning Perthshire residents, following the announcement last month by the new SNP health secretary, Jeane Freeman MSP, about changes at Perth Royal Infirmary.
This stated:“All unscheduled admissions in Tayside will be directed to Ninewells Hospital to ensure that all patients have access to a dedicated acute surgical receiving unit and a staffed 24/7 theatre for unscheduled surgery.”
What does this mean for the vital A&E that we have at PRI?
If we are no longer to have emergency medicine at PRI, then emergencies will be redirected to Ninewells.
This leaves us with what is actually little more than a minor injuries unit in our city – an A&E in name only.
What infuriates me about this move is that it directly contradicts assurances given to me in the Scottish Parliament by Ms Freeman’s predecessor, Shona Robison.
On two occasions in the last year I asked her about the future of the PRI A&E.
She told me:“NHS Tayside has given a clear commitment that urgent unscheduled care will continue to be provided from the PRI, as have I… Therefore, I hope to get rid of any scaremongering that might have been taking place on that issue.”
Well, it now appears that, far from‘scaremongering’, these fears have been realised.
And done so in the most cynical way, announced in the first week of the parliamentary recess, with no opportunity to quiz the new health secretary directly until September.
With a growing population in Perth and Kinross, and an ageing one, what sense is there in downgrading the A&E here and asking local residents to make the extra journey to Dundee?
Can Ninewells really cope with the extra patients?
Perthshire folk have got used to a slow erosion of services at PRI in recent years, with increasing centralisation to Dundee.
But, as we have already seen from the public reaction to this latest move, SNP politicians will not be forgiven if they allow the butchering of our A&E to continue.
Tonight (Tuesday), Liz Smith MSP, Luke Graham MP, and I, are hosting a public meeting at the parish church, Auchterarder (7pm) to discuss these issues.
Representatives of NHS Tayside will be there to take questions, and I would encourage anyone interested in this issue to attend.
Ultimately, though, this was a decision by the SNP government, who once again are showing their contempt for the people of Perth and Kinross.
At least the Scottish Conservatives will stand up for local residents and fight to save our A&E. Murdo Fraser claims former health secretary Shona Robison told him the A&E in Perth was safe