SNP health secretary Humza Yousaf admits fully restoring Moray maternity services will take “years”, but promises definitive timescales will be set within months.
In an exclusive interview with the Press and Journal, the senior government minister was pressed to commit to a target one day after he promised consultant-led services will be brought back to Dr Gray’s Hospital in Elgin.
The unit was downgraded in summer 2018 due to a staff shortage with families facing trips to Aberdeen and Inverness for births instead.
But in terms of timescales, the SNP minister said he “won’t pre-empt the work that’s being undertaken right now”.
He also would not confirm whether the return to a consultant-led unit would be achieved in the current parliamentary term, which ends in 2026.
What we’re looking to do over the coming years is incrementally be able to increase the number of women who have given birth at Dr Gray’s.”
Mr Yousaf added: “I won’t pre-empt it with what’s achievable in the next couple of years, what’s achievable in the next few years and what’s longer term.”
However, he committed to deliver “whatever level of investment is required” at both Dr Gray’s and Raigmore Hospital in Inverness.
An initial £10 million – to be split evenly between the two hospitals – is a “demonstration of that commitment”, he said.
Timetable expected ‘late autumn’
A timetable for getting back to a full consultant-led maternity unit in Elgin is expected by “late autumn”.
But the health secretary said if the government “rush and try and cut corners then we will just end up at square one”.
He said: “I don’t want to put in all this work and investment only for things to unravel if we don’t do it properly.”
Campaigners in the region have welcomed the Scottish Government announcement with “cautious optimism” but have recognised it will be a “difficult route back”.
Asked if pregnant women across Moray have been failed, Mr Yousaf said he does not doubt the anxiety suffered as a consequence of the situation.
He added: “You just think about the story of Ms Naylor who gave birth on the A96 in a lay-by.
“That is not what anybody wants to see happen.
“I don’t doubt the physical and mental health impacts we’ve had to make but I hope people do understand the reason why we’ve had to make them and it’s because of overarching concerns around safety.
“What we’re looking to do over the coming years is incrementally be able to increase the number of women who have given birth at Dr Gray’s.”
Caithness maternity services
The health secretary was also quizzed on the situation facing women further north who have to travel up to 200 miles to give birth.
The Scottish Government has so far refused to commit to an independent review of Caithness maternity services.
This has prompted Caithness MP Jamie Stone to accuse Mr Yousaf of having “selective hearing” in hearing the calls for a consultant-led service in Moray but not for the north.
The Liberal Democrat politician said: “If an inquiry was good enough for Moray, then exactly the same should apply to Caithness.”
The SNP minister said he “does not subscribe to that characterisation”.
He added the Best Start review is currently ongoing into maternity services across rural parts of Scotland, including in Caithness.
When this concludes the government will look at its findings.