Thurso patient claims NHS Highland 'using Covid' to reduce face-to-face mental health care in Caithness

NHS Highland is being accused of using Covid as a cover for running down its psychology service in the far north.

A Thurso patient this week complained that there is no sign of any plans to reinstate face-to-face appointments in outlying areas like his.

And he accused the health board of squeezing its service to the far north at a time when there is a fast-rising demand for it.

Peter Todd (38) has been receiving counselling for a mental health condition and has been making bus trips for overnight stays in Inverness to attend weekly appointments at New Craigs Hospital.

Mr Todd said pre-Covid, twice weekly outpatient clinics were held at Caithness General Hospital in Wick.

He has not heard of any plans to restore these despite face-to-face appointments having become re-established elsewhere in the NHS.

Mr Todd said: "You can't do mental health therapy over the phone or by a video-link – you need human contact.

"It has to be face-to-face for safety reasons as if the patient goes into crisis and puts the phone down or turns the screen off, it's impossible to manage them.

"The management's obsession with getting as much as possible of the service online is putting patients' mental health at risk.

"They are using Covid as an excuse for extending this."

Mr Todd said that up until 2017, a psychologist based in Golspie covered Caithness and Sutherland.

After that post was vacated, the outpatient clinics in Wick were started up.

He said: "My understanding is that management now believe it is a waste of clinical time for the staff to travel to Wick or maybe other outlying parts of the Highlands.

"With the clinics in Wick, at least we had something in the county. Now we have nothing."

Currently a locum psychiatrist comes to Caithness two days a week.

But Mr Todd said the waiting list to see the psychiatrist is lengthy so people are struggling to get a referral.

He insisted the rising demand for the service justifies the creation of a full-time psychologist and psychiatrist covering Caithness and Sutherland.

An NHS Highland spokesman said its mental health teams resumed face-to-face clinical appointments some time ago following the restrictions caused by the pandemic.

He said: "We cannot comment on individual cases, however we offer face-to-face appointments when it is clinically appropriate to do so.

"Our mental health teams across Highland are working at a reduced capacity and their workload has increased significantly as a result of the pandemic."

The spokesman acknowledged the vital importance of the personal connection between patient and clinician.

He added: "Where possible, we try to arrange clinics in our remote and rural areas to deliver as many face-to-face sessions as possible in one day.

"We recognise that any delay in accessing face-to-face appointments can be frustrating for some patients and apologise for any inconvenience this may cause."