NHS is 'dying before our eyes', warns doctors' union

The NHS is "dying before our very eyes", the chair of the British Medical Association (BMA) Scotland will warn today.

Dr Iain Kennedy will sound the alarm after a survey found almost a third of Scots (29 per cent) said they or someone they lived with had used private care in the past two years.

In a speech to the BMA’s annual representative meeting in Liverpool, Dr Iain Kennedy will say it is “abundantly clear” there is now a divide in Scotland between those who can afford private healthcare and those “languishing” on NHS waiting lists.

Staff on an NHS hospital ward | PA

And he will warn the situation is likely to only get worse, as 43 per cent of respondents said they are now more likely to go private.

Dr Kennedy is expected to say: “Our NHS should be free at the point of need. But, through today’s research, I can reveal that almost a third of Scots say either they or someone in their household have had to use private healthcare within the last two years.

"Our survey showed that the majority are forced to do so, as waiting lists are simply too long. They just can’t get the timely care they need. And it will only get worse, because 43 per cent of those surveyed feel they are now more likely to go private.

"It is abundantly clear that Scotland has been divided into those who can afford private healthcare and those languishing on ever longer NHS waiting lists.

“Now, I don’t believe anyone made an active choice to pursue this path towards a private health service. Rather, it is a failure to get to grips with an evolving population and its health needs. But, be in no doubt, the NHS is dying before our very eyes.”

Diffley Parternship surveyed 1,203 Scots on behalf of the BMA between May 30 and June 4.

It found 17 per cent of respondents had accessed private medical care in the past two years and 14 per cent said a member of their household had.

A total of 64 per cent of those who reported accessing private care for themselves or someone they lived with said it was because the NHS waiting list was too long.

Of those who accessed private care, 45 per cent used personal savings and 20 per cent said they had to cut back on leisure activities.

Another 9 per cent had to cut back on essential items such as energy and groceries, while 9 per cent had to borrow money to fund private treatment.

Nearly half (46 per cent) of those who did not use private care in the past two years said it was because they could not afford to.

Some 43 per cent said their likelihood of using private healthcare had significantly or somewhat increased in the past few years.

Meanwhile, 63 per cent of respondents said their confidence in being able to access a timely hospital appointment through the NHS had significantly or somewhat decreased in the past few years, and 60 per cent said the same for GP appointments.

In his speech today, Dr Kennedy is expected to say: “The chance to save our NHS remains. If we want to provide timely care to all, which is free at the point of need, then immediate action is required.

“We did ask the Scottish Government for a national conversation but were largely ignored. So, instead, NHS reform must now happen.”

He will add: “The impact of the Scottish Government repeatedly ignoring the warnings made by the BMA and many others is clear. Patients are suffering, unable to access the care they need when they need it, or having to use their own hard-earned money to go private.

“Everyone knows it is unacceptable.That’s why BMA Scotland will continue to shine a light on the dire state and worsening position of the Scottish NHS.

“And it’s why we will go on fighting for our members, for our patients, and for a better future for Scotland’s health service.”

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Scottish Conservative health spokesman Dr Sandesh Gulhane, who is a practising GP, said: “If BMA Scotland’s devastating warning doesn’t rouse failing SNP ministers, nothing will. Scotland’s NHS is on life support thanks to 18 years of chronic mismanagement by the Nationalists.

“The fact that so many Scots are having to raid their life savings to go private for treatment isn’t just unfair, it’s immoral and at odds with the founding principles of our health service. The ability to access care should not be determined by the size of your bank balance.”

Scottish Labour deputy leader Jackie Baillie said: “This damning research shows the SNP has taken a wrecking ball to the founding principles of our NHS and left too many Scots without free and available healthcare in their hour of need.

“John Swinney must heed these stark warnings from those on the frontline of his NHS crisis. It is a scandal that so many Scots are spending their life savings or being plunged into debt to pay to get the care desperately they need.

“The truth is if the SNP had any answers we would have seen them by now – our NHS needs a change in direction and a change in government.”

SNP Health Secretary Neil Gray said: “We will always protect the founding principles of the NHS – publicly owned and free at the point of need.

“That’s why we are investing a record £21.7 billion in health and social care this year, including £106 million to deliver over 150,000 additional appointments and procedures.

“But we recognise some of the concerns raised by the BMA, and we are determined to deliver the reform our NHS needs to ensure it provides quality care for everyone who needs it now and into the future.

“The First Minister set out his plan to renew our health service by investing in prevention while harnessing technology to support earlier diagnosis and tailor medical treatment to individual patients.”