Charities and medics condemn cut to stroke treatment funding
Charities and medics have said plans to cut funding for a type of stroke treatment called thrombectomy are a mistake.
The treatment, which involves physically removing blood clots in the brain, can result in some patients being able to walk and talk again.
The Stroke Association and Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland (CHSS) charities say £7 million is being cut from the national thrombectomy service, and a recruitment freeze has been imposed. Their calls to reverse the cuts have been backed by more than 150 clinicians across Scotland.
Members of the thrombectomy advisory group, part of a national plan to improve stroke care, were advised of the cuts on October 14.
The government had committed to rolling out a national thrombectomy service which would carry out 800 procedures each year.
Jane-claire Judson, chief executive of CHSS, said: “CHSS and the Stroke Association are united in our plea to the Scottish Government to stand by its commitment to a national thrombectomy service.
“Itisunthinkablethescottish Government will deny Scots a treatment we know will make a huge difference to their lives for the sake of a small shortterm budget saving.”
John Watson, associate director at the Stroke Association, said: “Thrombectomy saves brains, money and lives. It can change the course of recovery from stroke in an instant, and is one of the most effective medical interventions ever developed.
“We understand the financial pressure the government is under, but to cut a service that improves patients’ lives while saving money would be a serious mistake. The current resource crisis should lead to thrombectomy being prioritised, not cut.”
Health Secretary Humza Yousaf said the financial situation facing the Scottish Government “is the most challenging since devolution” and he and his Welsh counterpart had called on Westminster for additional funding.
He said: “Despite this, thrombectomy expenditure of £7.9m is up by almost 20 per cent on the last financial year and we have managed to increase funding available to health boards this year.
“We’ve invested more than £16m delivering a thrombectomy service and we’ll continue … to further develop this.”