Staff planning around Dr Gray’s maternity unit disappointing
Highlands and Islands MSP Jamie Halcro has criticised the approach to workforce planning around the downgrading of maternity services at Dr Gray’s Hospital in Elgin following a written response from NHS Grampian.
The health board has revealed that additional staff will be recruited locally by the Scottish Ambulance Service, with more women expected to have to travel to other hospitals in Aberdeen and Inverness to receive maternity services.
However NHS Grampian also noted that there have been problems with retention of recently appointed staff, fewer vacancies being filled and an increasing reliance on “supplementary staffing”.
Jamie Halcro Johnston said:
“I recognise that a number of the issues around recruitment of medical staff are being experienced across Scotland, particularly in remote or rural parts of the country. However, I am disappointed that NHS Grampian has said that ‘innovative recruitment methods’ and finding accommodation for doctors willing to locate have only been part of discussions ‘in recent weeks’.
“While the health board are bringing forward plans to address the staff shortage that caused the downgrading of the maternity unit at Dr Gray’s, it has been made clear that it will take considerable time before they bring positive results.
“It is disappointing that proactive workforce planning does not seem to have taken place at an earlier stage. It is vitally important that the NHS in our region is well-staffed in order to protect local services as well as to reduce workload for existing staff.”
“The reality is that a number of local NHS Boards in Scotland are facing similar pressures. It is a growing crisis that NHS Grampian has clearly been unprepared to tackle. This shows the need for the Scottish Government in Edinburgh to ensure crucial workforce planning is got right, rather than simply issuing diktats from the Health Secretary to health boards when services are already threatened or no longer able to operate.”