Meeting of the Parliament 19 February 2020
Anyone out in the real world who has been watching the debate so far will think that the cabinet secretary does not have a grasp of what is going on in our health service. Her turning up for a photo call is one thing, but the daily emails that I receive from members of the NHS workforce show the trouble that they are in and that the cabinet secretary is not listening.
I welcome the debate, which builds on the debate that I led in the chamber in April 2019 on standing up for all those who work in our health service.
As in last April’s debate, I put on record my party’s gratitude to and support for each and every member of NHS staff in Scotland. Our NHS staff are, fundamentally, our NHS. They are the most valuable resource that we have. They are incredibly hard working and, despite the pressures that are put on them by ministers, they provide each of our constituents with first-class healthcare.
I am disappointed that the Scottish Government has not done more since last April’s debate to introduce some of the positive measures that members suggested to address workforce issues, staff workload concerns and working conditions, or to tackle the severe staff shortages in the NHS.
Earlier, Monica Lennon mentioned junior doctors working hours, which I have raised before. Last year, I was pleased to host a round-table meeting in Parliament with Brian Connelly, the father of a 23-year-old junior doctor who, sadly, was killed driving home after a 12-hour night shift. I pay tribute to Mr Connelly again on his campaigning. However, we need action on the issue, so I would be grateful if, in closing the debate, ministers could use the opportunity to tell us about what has come out of the work of the expert working group that is chaired by Professor Cachia. We should have heard about that earlier, and it is important for members and any junior doctors in the public gallery to understand where the Government is going with that work.
I have given my backing to the Royal College of Anaesthetists’ excellent fight fatigue campaign, which is a suggestion-based solution to how to support NHS staff.
The briefings from the BMA and the RCN for the debate highlight workforce concerns that we should all be acutely aware of. In the RCN’s 2019 employment survey, 60 per cent of respondents agreed that they are “under too much pressure” at work, with 70 per cent reporting that they work over
“their contracted hours at least once a week”
and 52 per cent reporting that they work beyond their contracted hours in each hospital shift. That demonstrates just how much more needs to be done to support NHS staff in Scotland. We need to look at such support holistically, which means looking at pre-shift and post-shift support.
Having rest facilities in hospitals and properly timetabled rotas so that staff can get a break are measures that could improve NHS staff wellbeing and effectiveness and, most important, their safety. For example, we have been calling for the Scottish Government to introduce sleep pods in hospital campuses, where which staff can rest before they head home or start shifts. I urge ministers to work with our health boards across Scotland to take that issue forward.
We want every health board to provide quality mental health and financial support and advice to NHS staff. With NHS staff absentee rates at such high levels, we need to look to invest now in better mental health support for our NHS workforce.
Issues and difficulties around parking are constantly raised with me. NHS staff at hospitals in Edinburgh and Glasgow and at Ninewells hospital still have to face parking charges. In campaigning to end that unfair charging, the Scottish Conservatives have put forward a solution: a refund scheme for NHS staff. The Government can take that forward, and I hope that all members can get behind it. The Scottish Government’s proposed budget does not include a refund scheme, but we can implement one—and it is costed. I hope that ministers will look to implement such a scheme. The charges must come to an end for NHS staff who work at those sites and still pay them. Ministers have had the powers to deal with that for 13 years.
We also want to see a comprehensive national review of parking for patients. In many cases—including many in Edinburgh, as I know from my own mailbag—when people go to hospital, they find the stress of parking, or there being no capacity to park, a significant issue. As a Parliament, we can address that. Money can be made available, given the £7 million in Barnett consequentials for parking that is coming to the Parliament. I hope that ministers will try to take that issue forward.