Lessons Can Be Learned From NHS Project Success Says MSP

Banffshire & Buchan Coast MSP Stewart Stevenson has highlighted NHS Grampian’s success in a project which has resulted in shorter hospital stays for patients and saved the NHS £3million over 3 years.

The HAME (Home and Mobility Evaluation) project is a 3-year project which is being trialled until August this year. Two members of staff - an occupational therapist and a physiotherapist - have been based in Aberdeen Royal Infirmary's emergency department as part of the HAME (Home and Mobility Evaluation) project.

The move ensures the team can engage with patients as soon as they enter the hospital and means those coming into the acute facility have their mobility assessed much more quickly leading to more patients being discharged home and some directly to community hospitals.

Commenting, Stewart Stevenson said:

“I am delighted to hear of the success of this project and I congratulate Aberdeen Royal Infirmary staff on having carried the HAME project out over the last 3 years.

“This is a fantastic project that is helping NHS Grampian get the right treatment more quickly to patients but also saving vital NHS resources.

“Hopefully the lessons learned from this mean NHS Grampian will continue the HAME project onwards which may lead to even more resources saved and patients recovering more quickly.”

Tributes to Former Peterhead Councillor Michael Ross

Tributes have been paid to former Peterhead SNP councillor Michael Ross, who died on Tuesday at the age of 69.

Michael Ross was elected to the former Banff & Buchan District Council in 1988 for the Clerkhill Ward and re-elected again in 1992. When the authority was abolished in local government re-organisation, he stood down from elected office in 1996.

MSP for Banffshire & Buchan Coast Stewart Stevenson said:

“Michael was a well-respected and much-liked teacher at Clerkhill School and it was no surprise that he proved to be a popular local councillor.

“He was very much committed to the job of representing the people of Peterhead and did so with a ready wit and enthusiasm. My condolences go to his family at this time.”

Peterhead South & Cruden SNP councillor Stephen Smith, who represents Clerkhill, added:

“I worked on Michael’s successful election campaign back in 1988 and he made it a fun and enjoyable campaign to be part of.

“While not a teacher of mine, Michael taught a number of my academy school friends and it was clear he was held in high regard by them.

“Michael’s health wasn’t the best in recent years but his role in helping build support for the Scottish National Party in Peterhead was vital to our success in the 1980s and he will be missed.”

Local MSP Calls For New DEFRA Minister Robert Goodwill To Back Scottish Farmers In Funding Review

Westminster Continues to Withhold EU Millions from Scotland
DEFRA must choose whether to “back or betray” Scottish farmers, the SNP has said, by demanding that they receive £160m in funding to which they are entitled.

The call comes as Conservative MP Robert Goodwill, the newly-appointed UK Minister of State for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food visits the North-east tomorrow. Mr Goodwill was appointed following the resignation of former Minister George Eustice, a casualty of the latest round of Tory in-fighting over Brexit.

In October 2018, DEFRA, under pressure from the Scottish Government, announced a long-overdue review into funding for farmers post-Brexit, but have repeatedly failed to address Scottish farmers’ concerns about Westminster's decision to withhold £160m in convergence payments. This money is an uplift of EU CAP payments which the UK received because of the low per hectare rate of support received by Scottish farmers.

Commenting, Banffshire and Buchan Coast MSP Stewart Stevenson said:

“Scottish farmers have not forgotten that the UK Tory Government has withheld £160m in funding rightfully due to them. It is solely because of Scotland that the UK, as the Member State, qualified for this funding.

“The new Minister has an opportunity early in his tenure to set right this historic wrong. With future arrangements for agriculture still unclear amidst the turmoil around Brexit, it is vital Scottish agriculture benefits from the EU support to which the sector is entitled while it still can.

“It is overwhelmingly in the interests of Scottish farmers to, at the very least, remain in the Customs Union and Single Market. The fact that we are a week from potentially crashing out of the EU with no deal at all, and with no indication of the UK’s plans for agricultural support in the medium to longer term, is causing immense anxiety to farmers.

“Farmers will be expecting more than warm words from Mr Goodwill. He needs to send a clear signal to Scottish farmers that he understands their distinct challenges and is prepared to pay them what is rightfully theirs. In other words, he needs to decide whether he will back Scotland’s farmers, or betray them.”