Meeting of the Parliament 13 January 2016
We work closely with all NHS boards to enable them to provide safe, effective and high-quality care for Scotland’s people at all times. That remains our absolute priority.
Under this Government, staffing levels in NHS Lanarkshire have increased by 13.3 per cent, which is more than 1,200 whole-time equivalent staff. There have also been significant increases in the number of medical consultants—a 63.2 per cent increase in all specialties, including emergency medicine, since September 2006. Over the same period, consultant vacancies in Lanarkshire have fallen by 4 per cent as a percentage of establishment.
NHS Lanarkshire continues to fill vacancies successfully in a number of specialties, it has approved further investment to recruit additional medical consultants and it is proactively recruiting to available vacancies.