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NHS Grampian patients wait longest for appointments

Aberdeen Royal Infirmary
Aberdeen Royal Infirmary

Patients due to start hospital treatment at NHS Grampian are facing some of the longest delays in Scotland for their care to begin.

Figures show that a key Scottish Government target to have treatment start within 12 weeks of it being approved has been missed again in the north east.

Of patients who started treatment in September, 135 patients (6%) had waited more than three months for their inpatient or day case appointment.

It was the second-worst performance in Scotland, following NHS Lothian.

The 12 Week Treatment Time Guarantee – which is now set in law – has not been met in the north east since the tail end of 2012.

It earlier emerged that NHS Grampian had spent more than £7million over two years on sending patients to private hospitals for treatment in order to meet waiting times.

North-east Labour MSP Richard Baker called on the SNP to apologise after former Health Secretary Alex Neil, who was replaced last week, claimed the target would be met at NHS Grampian.

Mr Baker said: “The situation at NHS Grampian has reached a critical point where waiting times targets have not been met since the final quarter in 2012 despite assurances given to me from the former Cabinet Secretary for Health Alex Neil that they would be.

“The continued struggle to meet waiting times targets is down to the chronic underfunding of our local NHS and I would hope that the new Cabinet Secretary, Shona Robison, would make a fair deal her first priority for NHS Grampian.”

Patients at NHS Grampian made up around one-fifth (22.5%) of those still waiting for treatment across Scotland after 12 weeks.

Further figures show that of 5,936 waiting on the list for an inpatient and day case appointment at NHS Grampian, 320 had already been waiting for more than 12 weeks.

The waits come amid staff shortages and serious discontent among senior clinical figures at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, which led to the resignation of chief executive Richard Carey last month.

A Scottish Government spokeswoman said a rapid review of demand and capacity at NHS Grampian was now being carried out, with funding to increase by £34.3million next year.

The spokeswoman added: “Further recruitment of additional medical and nursing staff at NHS Grampian is also underway, in addition to the 3.6% increase in numbers of staff working at the health board under this government.”

A spokeswoman for NHS Grampian said: “The ISD figures show an improvement in the numbers of patients waiting over 12 weeks. However, there is ongoing work in NHS Grampian with support from the Scottish Government to work on meeting the target sustainably.”