STEVENSON WELCOMES NHS GRAMPIAN IMPROVEMENT IN A&E WAITING TIMES

Banff & Buchan MSP Stewart Stevenson has welcomed the news that more patients than ever before are being seen within the targeted four hours in A & E departments in NHS Grampian. According to figures collected by ISD Scotland, 98.5% of Accident and Emergency patients were seen within four hours in the last month, compared with just 91.7% in January to March 2007, before the last Holyrood elections.

This is the second quarter that waiting times have been published in a revised form - designed to provide a complete and open picture of waiting times in Scotland's hospitals. The New Ways system abolished the hidden waiting lists caused by availability status codes.

Commenting, Mr Stevenson said:

“I am delighted by these improvements to Accident and Emergency waiting times and extend my warmest congratulations to everyone at NHS Grampian who has worked so hard to deliver them.

“The Scottish Government has brought an end to hidden waiting lists and has worked hard to deliver a better quality of service for patients in Scotland. In the final quarter of our opponents’ eight years in power, there were still 1, 896 patients in the NHS Grampian area who had to wait more than four hours to be treated in A & E. There have been dramatic improvements since the SNP took power, and in the quarter that has just ended there were 807 patients who had to wait more than four hours to receive treatment, a significant reduction.

“However, I am sure that NHS Grampian, while undoubtedly proud of the strides it has made, will not rest on its laurels and will continue driving towards their goal of ensuring that nobody has to wait more than four hours to be treated in A & E”.