Moray MP Douglas Ross says NHS Grampian needs to provide a slicker service for patients and for staff in Moray next year, as complaints about waiting lists and delayed procedures dominated his post bag in 2018 and are taking their toll on everyone concerned, with no obvious signs of improvment.
Douglas said: “We owe a great debt to everyone who works for the NHS including the doctors, nurses and midwives, to all the medical support staff. I know they all work extremely hard and do a fantastic job under immense pressure. Sadly, there just don’t seem to be enough of them to go around and ultimately it is the patients who suffer because of this.
“I have had an extremely busy case load this year after being contacted by patients in Moray who have all had issues with the amount of time that they have had to wait for a consultant’s appointment and after that for a procedure. In some cases, patients are in a lot of pain and this can affect them at home and sometimes leaves them unable to work as a result.
“When these patients are eventually seen, most tell me that the standard of care is fantastic, and they cannot praise the staff highly enough. I have absolutely no doubt medical staff are doing the best job they can, despite a lack of resources and support.
“The Cabinet Secretary for Health needs to look at this urgently. In Moray we have seen downgrading of Dr Gray’s Hospital which has had very serious implications for our paediatric services and the maternity unit. People are having to wait across a range of services for a consultant’s appointment which has been the theme throughout 2018.
“Patients have contacted me to complain about waits for orthopaedic procedures, while others waiting for cataract operations or to see an ophthalmologist are lucky if they get an appointment within a year. As if this isn’t bad enough, I have also been made aware that there are now delays in general surgery at Dr Gray’s and also at Aberdeen.
“It is surely no coincidence that NHS Grampian is the worst-funded health board in Scotland and I fear this is affecting our ability to attract staff to come and work here in Moray.”
“When these are all stacked up, it makes for a very worrying situation and I will be seeking a meeting with the Scottish Health Secretary and Chief Executive of NHS Grampian in the New Year. We need to ascertain how the SNP Scottish Government is going to steer NHS Grampian out of this crisis which is affecting so many of the constituents I represent.”