Health chief fends off criticism on missed targets

Published on Friday 28 November 2008 20:04

SCOTLAND'S most senior health official has insisted there was no complacency on targets as the first national report since 1999 showed some had not been met.

Dr Kevin Woods, the chief executive of NHS Scotland, in particular fended off criticisms over the interpretation of progress against hospital infections, such as C difficile and MRSA, and insisted they were "on target".

However, he admitted NHS Scotland fell short on cancer waiting times and failed on getting 75 per cent of ambulance response times within eight minutes and on staff sickness absence.

The service also recorded some targets as "effectively" or "almost" met in areas such as childhood vaccination and cardiac investigation.

The statistics on hospital-associated infections provoked most concern, especially against a background of 18 deaths related to C diff at Vale of Leven hospital in NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.

The figures showed an 8.8 per cent fall, to 2,531 infections in 2007 from a high of 2,774 in 2005-6. But there appeared to be still some way to go before the 30 per cent fall target was reached. .

Labour MSP Jackie Baillie, whose Dumbarton constituency includes Vale of Leven hospital, said she was "gobsmacked" that the report said the target was "on track".

She said: "To say that they are on target when C diff is on the rise in Scotland, the country has just had the worst outbreak in the history of the UK and it is quite probable that there were many more than the 18 reported deaths, is frankly quite astonishing."

But Dr Woods said that "the general direction" of the figures showed they were on track to meet the target and insisted that health boards "are working very hard" to tackle hospital acquired infections.