FIGHTING FOR LIFE
Nurses under pressure as staff crisis hits hospitals One overworked doctor in charge of 200 patients
Turning 30 is a special day in anyone’s life – and even more so when you have Jennifer Lopez to help you celebrate.
Vanessa Hudgens and J-Lo appeared on a chat show in Miami to talk about their new film Second Act. And while they were there, High School Musical star Vanessa was
Julie-Anne Barnes Doctors have been left to care for hundreds of patients single- handedly as a staffing crisis grips Scotland’s hospitals.
A Sunday Mail investigation today reveals a worrying recruitment black hole and critics warn the shortage has put patients’ lives at risk.
In one health board, one doctor was left to care for up to 200 patients as nurses battled to pick up the pieces.
And nurses have been ferried by taxi between hospital sites to make up staff shortfalls.
A Healthcare Staf f ing Bi l l is progressing through parliament. It would mean a legal framework to help managers ensure they have the right people in place to treat patients.
Figures released to the Sunday Mail by NHS Ayrshire and Arran show that on November 29, Crosshouse hospital had three consultants in charge of more than 500 patients.
One nurse who works at the Kilmarnock hospital said: “We’re short of doctors and nurses. I’ve been presented with a three-layer cake to mark her big day.
J-Lo, 49, and Vanessa have been at each other’s sides during a promotional tour for the film.
The co-stars clearly have a good laugh together – which must be the icing on the cake. anxious about patient care. Other nurses feel the same. There have been times I’ve had to move to another site to make sure they had enough staff.”
Royal College of Nursing Scotland director Theresa Fyffe said: “Nurses and health care support workers in hospitals, community teams and care homes are stretched to breaking point.”
And a nurse at Glasgow’s Queen Elizabeth University Hospital said wards were “chronically understaffed”.
Simon Barker, of the Brit ish Medical Association Scotland, added: “It’s clear doctors feel workloads often go beyond their capability.”
Labour health spokeswoman Monica Lennon said: “NHS staff speak out time and time again about their workforce. The SNP Government have failed to support existing staff and the result is operations cancelled, waiting time laws broken and more patients waiting in pain.”
Health Secretary Jeane Freeman said: “It’s crucial we understand the workload required to meet needs.
“This will allow us to be confident we have the right number of staff, in the right place, at the right time.”
Dr Phil Korsah, of University Hospital Crosshouse, said: “NHS Ayrshire & Arran are committed to providing safe and effective healthcare. Our workforce planning is flexible to cope with extra demands.”