Hansard

Thank you, convener. I do not know whether the collective noun is a suite of MSPs. I thought of a posse of MSPs, but I like your description even better: a galaxy of talent. We will settle for that, convener, thank you very much. We are joined in the public gallery by Monica Sheen and Colleen Murphy, and by Alfie, who is probably the most well-behaved baby that I have ever seen. They have come specifically in support of this petition and they are joined in that support by many others who simply could not be here today. I also convey apologies from Mark Griffin. You will know that he has experience of the neonatal unit. He had another meeting, otherwise he would have been here today. Thank you for the opportunity to speak to this petition. I am not sure whether this is the first time that there have been so many MSPs engaged in the same subject at committee, but it shows how important the issue is. The number of signatures collected on the public petition and the Scottish Parliament petition is also significant. My colleagues and I will set out a number of reasons why the proposed downgrading of Wishaw neonatal unit is unsafe. As you have said, the rationale for downgrading Wishaw and keeping three units open in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen is set out in the Scottish Government’s demand and capacity modelling of NICU services. However, the data that was collected for that report on which these critical decisions are being made is, frankly, inconsistent. Different timeframes are used throughout: sometimes data taken over a year is compared to data taken over three years, and there is no rhyme nor reason to it. I understand that the exercise was rushed but it is so arbitrary. The review that was initiated by the Scottish Government, which we welcomed, acknowledged that the data was flawed, but nothing has been done about it. Therefore, people are proceeding at pace to implement proposals that we know are based on flawed data. I find that astonishing, given that this Parliament and the Scottish Government assert that decisions are all evidence based. They appear to have fallen at the first hurdle here, and there is little wonder that people have very little confidence in the report and its implementation. The report also fails to give consideration to maternity capacity. There is no analysis or consideration of workforce requirements. Although the report states that workforce data has been collected, the results of the analysis are not included. I have no idea why you would not put such a significant element into the report. I will come back to staffing in a minute. In 2017, the Scottish Government published the “Best Start” report, which stated that three to five neonatal units should be developed, supported by something like 10 to 12 local and special care units. That is fine. Since then, however, the Government has simply fixated on developing only three. There is no explanation why the number is not five or four. It is our contention and the petitioner’s contention, based on the data and the volumes of people being cared for, that there should be four units in Scotland, and that Wishaw should be one of them. Wishaw neonatal unit is the third busiest neonatal unit in Scotland. The critical mass of neonates exists within the central belt area. We know that Wishaw neonatal unit accepts the highest number of in-utero and out-of-utero babies, which clearly shows the skill set and the capability in the unit. There are transfers from other board areas all the time. Wishaw was named the best service in the UK last year, information that clearly has been ignored by the Scottish Government. My colleagues will explain that there are real concerns from staff and patients that level 3 neonatal units in Glasgow and Edinburgh are already facing staffing pressures and will not be able to cope with demand once Wishaw is downgraded. I recently uncovered statistics that show that health boards across Scotland, in particular in the central belt, with the knowledge of the Scottish Government, have cut paediatric and maternity vacancies. Let me stress that the numbers are not frozen, they are not still there; they have simply been cut from the complement of what was required. I therefore worry about safety due to the lack of staff. The staff shortages will also add to pressure on neonatal services and force mums and premature babies to be transferred not to Glasgow or Edinburgh but to Aberdeen. We are talking about the very sickest babies, and just think about the distance that that would involve. There is clearly appetite and scope for Wishaw neonatal unit to remain in place alongside units in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen as part of the best start strategy. I would be grateful if this committee would take this petition on—because I know that you have run with petitions before—and invite the minister or the cabinet secretary to explain why the Scottish Government is ignoring the evidence and putting at risk the safety of mothers and babies at Wishaw.