Meeting of the Parliament 15 May 2019
We are again in the chamber, discussing healthcare in our NHS. At the outset, as always, I put on the record my thanks to our incredibly skilled and competent NHS staff across Scotland, many of whom are my former colleagues.
Our NHS delivers a wide range of complex specialist care and treatment to the people of Scotland. The diverse services that are provided in NHS hospitals range from complex diagnostic procedures to life-changing—and indeed life-saving—surgeries, both planned and emergency. There are a wide range of waiting times targets—surgical, medical, out-patient, in-patient and mental health.
I am interested in the Lib Dem motion. I recognise that there are challenges in our NHS when it comes to waiting times, but, under the SNP Scottish Government, the NHS in Scotland is outperforming the NHS in the rest of the UK.
The bill that became the Patient Rights (Scotland) Act 2011, which is mentioned in the motion, was introduced by the Scottish Government in 2011. Its principal aim was to enshrine in law that patients must be supported properly and their voices must be heard. Since October 2012, the act has set out a 12-week treatment time guarantee for planned in-patient and day cases. The 12-week target applies once the patient has been diagnosed and has agreed the treatment with their clinician. It is worth noting that it is the health boards’ responsibility to ensure that eligible patients receive their treatment within 12 weeks. That may mean that, with the patient’s consent, the health board will arrange for them to be treated in another health board area.
I am interested in addressing the points that Alex Cole-Hamilton raised about surgery being performed at private clinics in order to free up time. That is not the answer. Surgical procedures—
Alex Cole-Hamilton rose—