STEVENSON BLASTS GOVERNMENT FOR NHS24 INEFFICIENCIES AT BANFF MEETING

Local MSP Stewart Stevenson will be speaking to an NHS Public Involvement Group in the Banff Springs Hotel, Banff tonight.

Commenting in advance of the meeting Mr Stevenson said,

“The NHS has seen a great deal of change recently, and the government has failed to prepare the service to respond. In particular, with many more contacts between patient and NHS being through NHS24, the lack of proper access to the patient's health records is both dangerous and inefficient.

“A patient's GP practice is where they will be known best and where experienced primary care professionals can rapidly assess patients and respond appropriately. Is it little wonder that patients feel let down by 'diagnosis by telephone' when it is clear that the person at the other end knows little or nothing of their previous medical history. Nurses manning the service, despite being experienced professionals, are suffering the stress of working in an operation bogged down by having to gather information already held elsewhere in the NHS at the expense of rapid, effective patient support.

“In situations when time is critical, where information from a relative will rarely equal that previously recorded by medical staff, the risk to the patient is increased.”

Speaking about the inefficiencies introduced by recent changes Mr Stevenson, who worked for 30 years in delivering information systems, concluded,

“Changes such as re-organising out-of-hours working for GPs, providing new consultant contracts and investing in NHS24 are actually reducing efficiency in the NHS. Without shared information provided through modern computer systems, gathering information about the patient is duplicated needlessly, time is wasted and staff become dispirited.

“We need investment in infrastructure which will reduce workloads for front-line staff and allow more patient contact time. That will only come with significant investment over a number of years in new technologies. That is why we must start now.”