Rhoda Grant: Problem of filling NHS vacancies needs a real solution
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Holyrood Notebook by Rhoda Grant
It was good to hear Scottish Government health secretary, Humza Yousaf, say in Parliament last week that he planned to meet representatives from the Caithness community about their concerns over maternity services.
Caithness Health Action Team (CHAT) and I have been urging him for some time to consult with those in the far north and have similar meetings to those involved in maternity services campaigns in Moray.
Hopefully Mr Yousaf will travel north, not to experience what pregnant women experience, as he wouldn’t come anywhere close, but to meet people face to face and hear what they have to say.
There are a range of other issues to be tackled including mental health and women’s health.
I still remember a previous health secretary, Shona Robison, meeting campaigners in 2018 but they had to travel to Holyrood. There was no pandemic then, but still it had to be held in the central belt.
At the time Labour pushed for the health secretary to make the journey, but it was not to be. It is beyond frustrating when those in power will not come to the people instead of summoning the people to come to them.
At the time of writing this column Mr Yousaf hasn’t published a date when he will meet campaigners, but I have written to him suggesting he travels to Caithness and asking if I could be part of that visit.
Readers will have seen the Scottish Government’s latest statement on Dr Gray’s Hospital in Elgin and its ambition to have consultant-led maternity services there in the longer term.
There is to be a £10 million investment, £5 million for Dr Gray’s and £5 million at Raigmore for an ‘interim’ measure, but that will not solve the underlying problem of the shortage of nurses, midwives and doctors as highlighted by NHS workers at Raigmore Hospital and by the unions.
Across Scotland nearly 10 per cent of all nursing and midwifery posts are vacant, a record high of 6674, including nearly 4500 registered nurse vacancies.
More locally, in NHS Highland, 341 nursing and midwifery posts are vacant, which is nine per cent of posts.
RCN Scotland’s survey showed that six in 10 of its members were thinking about or actively considering leaving their jobs, suggesting these figures are only going to get worse without urgent action.
I can’t see how Mr Yousaf is going to square that circle and, although there is a time frame for the interim solution, there is none for the reintroduction of a consultant-led system at Dr Gray’s.
Business survey
The Federation of Small Businesses has carried out a survey of its members in the HIE region.
Sixty per cent were optimistic about the future, which is good news – and I suspect because those businesses have weathered the pandemic storm to come out the other side. Many others will not have made it.
Worryingly, nearly half of those surveyed said they did not have enough staff to meet their needs this year, but they were looking to increase recruitment locally and to increase pay.
But here’s the problem, 81 per cent said there was a lack of available workforce locally.
A report published this year by Audit Scotland said the Scottish Government has not provided enough leadership on how to match training and education with the demands of the economy. This must improve as we progress out of Brexit and Covid.
- Rhoda Grant is a Labour MSP for the Highlands and Islands.
