Patient care at risk as staff levels lowest in six years, warn nurses

SAVINGS in NHS budgets are “clearly” starting to hit patient care, nursing leaders will today tell MSPs.

The Royal College of nursing (RCN) has also cast doubt over Scottish Government claims that “efficiencies” are providing the same service for less money.

The evidence indicates these may be little more than service cuts, the body warns, although this is rejected by ministers.

• Read the full RCN report

MSPs on Holyrood’s health committee will today take evidence as part of an inquiry into the budget pressures facing the health service.

A submission from RCN says it has been monitoring the financial plans and performance of the country’s 14 area NHS boards in recent years.

It states: “Financial pressures are clearly impacting on patient services and staff locally.”

Nursing numbers are now at their lowest level in six years and continuing to drop, according to the submission.

“There is still no means for us to verify that the totality of “savings” planned and made are indeed true cash efficiencies (providing the same or greater service for less money), rather than straightforward service cuts,” it adds.

The Scottish Government has insisted that the NHS is being protected from the impact of the cuts in the public sector, but Labour last night seized on the nursing leaders’ concerns.

“It is clear the SNP’s NHS ‘efficiencies’ are just a euphemism for cuts,” Labour health spokeswoman Jackie Baillie said.

“Despite promising to ‘protect the NHS budget’, the SNP are doing exactly the opposite – cutting local NHS budgets by over £200 million.”

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “These figures are absolutely not cuts to the health budget – boards are looking to make some services more efficient and any savings will be reinvested in local front-line care. It’s right that boards make sure the taxpayer gets the best possible value for money.”