£3m winter funding boost for Scots hospitals

An extra £3 million is to be given to NHS boards to help ease the expected increase in demand over winter.

Health Secretary Shona Robison has announced £3 million of extra funding for Scottish hospitals.

The money will be used to improve patient flow through A&E departments, hospitals wards and support people to return to their homes as soon as possible.

It comes as the latest weekly figures show only 92.9 per cent of people attending emergency departments up to November 13 were seen within four hours, down from 93.6 per cent in the previous week.

Health Secretary Shona Robison said the £3 million funding adds to the previously announced £9 million to support A&E departments over winter, and £30 million specifically to reduce delayed discharge this year.

She said: “We know that over winter, demand on our health service increases.

“That is why we are working closely with our NHS and social care services to ensure they have the right plans in place.”

But Scottish Labour health spokesman Anas Sarwar said the government needed to “ditch the crisis management approach” and come up with a long term plan for the NHS.