EDWARD MOUNTAIN: Returning proper maternity service to Caithness should be a top priority
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Holyrood Notebook by Edward Mountain
An era of Scottish politics is ending following Nicola Sturgeon’s resignation as First Minister.
Change at the top of the Scottish Government has been needed for a while and the next incumbent of the First Minister’s office will find an in-tray overflowing with urgent priorities on their first day in the job.
Near the top of the to-do list for the next First Minister must be resolving maternity care provision in Caithness and across the Highlands. Nicola Sturgeon comprehensively failed to solve this issue during her eight-year tenure – her successor must do better.
A new First Minister will probably entail a reshuffle in the Cabinet too. However, what cannot change is a commitment from the Scottish Government for NHS Highland to undertake an equality impact assessment of women’s health services in Caithness.
This assessment will feed into NHS Highland’s broader review of gynaecology services across the region and has been welcomed by both the North Highland Women’s Wellbeing Hub and Caithness Health Action Team.
While this action is not the fully independent review I have called for, it is a start and one that indicates that the SNP’s health ministers are finally softening their hearts towards the issue and beginning to listen to the concerns raised by maternity campaigners.
Whether or not Humza Yousaf and Maree Todd continue to preside over maternity health matters remains to be seen, nevertheless I welcome their recent conversion to the cause in Caithness. Better late than never.
Frankly, downgrading maternity services in Caithness has been disastrous. Many predicted it would be back in 2017 and new birth figures are providing proof that the Scottish Government simply cannot ignore any longer.
When the new Caithness maternity model was established in 2017 it was expected that 25 to 30 per cent of births would take place locally.
However, recent statistics show that only eight mothers gave birth at Caithness General – that’s just four per cent of the total for Caithness mothers. Downgrading local maternity services simply isn’t working.
Unless significant changes are made, we will continue to see hundreds of Caithness mothers take the long gruelling journey down the A9 to Inverness to give birth.
As long as this is the case, we will need the full support of the air ambulance to provide emergency transfers to Raigmore Hospital too.
Relocating more maternity patients via helicopter is often safer than the road journey south to Inverness or further afield. However, the air ambulance is dependent on good weather conditions and the continued provision of air links from Caithness.
That is why I am also concerned about the latest reports of the Wick PSO route to Aberdeen being at risk of service failure due to low passenger numbers.
A huge effort was made by local businesses, stakeholders and politicians to secure PSO funding from the Scottish Government and Highland Council. Caithness cannot afford to lose air passenger services again.
Anything that jeopardies the commercial viability of Wick John O’Groats Airport could also endanger the long-term future of the airport too.
Rest assured, I am pressing the Scottish Government to ensure that the PSO funding is protected.
Whether it’s for business, leisure or medical care, Wick John O’Groats Airport has a vital role to play when it comes to connectivity in the Highlands.
- Edward Mountain is a Highlands and Islands MSP for the Scottish Conservatives.
