Annual sense of deja vu as Scotland's NHS buckles while winter approaches
Annual problems should ring alarm bells across Scotland and provoke much-needed debate on NHS and social care
NHS Grampian’s declaration of a “critical incident” at its accident and emergency services because of increased demand should ring alarm bells across Scotland.
Friends and family of patients leaving hospital have been asked to help “discharge them promptly” so that beds can be made available for others.
Meanwhile, some ambulances are being diverted hundreds of miles to other regions, including NHS Tayside and NHS Highland.
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The health board’s executive director on call, Shantini Paranjothy, said the hospitals had faced a “challenging weekend”.
She said: “Our teams are facing a particularly challenging weekend due to the local public holiday on Monday, capacity within our hospitals, and extreme pressures on care within the community.
The announcement is a clear and unambiguous warning that services are under severe strain, and that patient care is being badly affected.
Furthermore, it does not bode well for the months ahead, with the prospect of yet another winter emergency looming large.
Health Secretary Angela Constance has sought to reassure patients and health workers that the Scottish government is taking meaningful action to reduce waiting times and improve A&E performance.
Ms Constance points to £90 million of funding directed towards support for those waiting longest for treatment, and a national plan to improve the flow of patients through hospitals.
She is correct to note that pressures in A&E departments are directed linked to the delayed discharge of patients into social care settings, where there is also clear need for reforms.
Nevertheless, it is difficult to escape an annual sense of deja vu as these same problems resurface each year.
With each winter emergency that passes, the case surely grows stronger for radical thinking on how best to address what is clearly deep-rooted dysfunction in our health and social care systems.
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