North women's health campaign group keen to play a part in improving services
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
Members of a women's health campaign group in the far north say they are committed to working with NHS Highland and the Scottish Government to help bring about improvements to services locally.
Representatives of the North Highland Women’s Wellbeing Hub raised a number of issues with Scotland's health secretary Humza Yousaf during his visit to Wick on Monday and are optimistic about the prospects.
Chairperson Kirsteen Campbell is running the hub along with vice-chairperson Rebecca Wymer and secretary/treasurer Claire Clark.
They took part in a "really positive" discussion with Mr Yousaf in the Queen's Hotel before his meeting with Caithness Health Action Team at the Norseman later in the day.
“It was a really good meeting, a very friendly meeting,” Mrs Campbell said.
“We're trying to work with NHS Highland every way that we can to try to improve things, and with government."
The hub representatives were keen to highlight how the downgrading at Caithness General Hospital in Wick has had an impact on local gynaecology provision.
“We do have one gynaecologist locally but one man can't do the job," Mrs Campbell said. "We used to have three.
"There is still a massive amount of people going out of the county and there's nothing in place for emergencies, which is a worry."
She pointed out that the campaigners had taken advice from the human rights organisation Making Rights Real on human rights in relation to gynaecology care.
“It was really important that we covered the cost," she went on. "Fuel is more expensive than ever, and Inverness is by far the most expensive city to stay."
Mrs Campbell, who works as Highland development officer for Let's Get On With It Together (LGOWIT), continued: “Also we fed back to him that I was in Raigmore on Thursday for a 10-minute appointment and that is a day's annual leave. We all work full-time.
“He was typing away as we were speaking so I think he took quite a lot on board.
“We also discussed the dangers of travelling after surgery and the increased risk of DVT [deep vein thrombosis]."
Mike Hayward, NHS Highland's deputy chief officer for rural general hospitals, also attended.
“We had spoken to Mike on Friday and had a really good meeting with him," Mrs Campbell explained. "He's got lots of great ideas to get us involved as well as I think we are going to have a really good relationship with NHS Highland.
“He has worked in A&E so he has got hands-on experience. We were really impressed – it was really positive."
She was pleased that Mr Yousaf was also visiting Orkney.
“Orkney's model is fantastic," Mrs Campbell said. "They've got their CMU [community midwifery unit] that works really well with the support of gynaecology, and I know that NHS Highland has started working with Orkney so that could be really positive."
She added: “The hub is gaining so much support, we're doing so much, and there's nothing to say that working with NHS Highland we might not be able to help make things really positive in the future to help with recruitment as well, opening up exciting opportunities.”
Mr Yousaf and Mr Hayward, as well as Mr Yousaf's aide, were each presented with a Groatie Buckie "as a symbol of something from Caithness", according to Mrs Campbell.
"Rebecca had made cakes," she added. "We had been tipped off that he has a sweet tooth so the cakes went down really well.”
Earlier, the hub team had met Maree Todd, the SNP MSP for Caithness, Sutherland and Ross and minister for women's health.
“We get on really well with Maree – we've got a good relationship with her," Mrs Campbell said. "We mentioned pelvic congestion syndrome because there is very little information about it.”
Mrs Campbell received the volunteer of the year award at Highland Heroes 2022.
