Scottish Government announces £50million package to help reduce A&E waiting times
The latest figures show almost 30% of patients waited over four hours to be seen in Scottish hospitals
Last updated 2nd Jun 2022
The Scottish Government is hoping to reduce Accident and Emergency waiting times with a new £50million package.
Health Secretary Humza Yousaf says the funding will be shared between health boards this year - 2022/23 - in an effort to reshape unscheduled care services.
Patients be offered scheduled urgent appointments to avoid long waiting times in A&E, according to the Scottish Govenment.
Patients seeking urgent medical care will also have the option to have at-home care in a raft of measures coming into force.
The Urgent and Unscheduled Care Collaborative will see health boards adopt the new improvement programme which will include offering patients alternatives to hospital-based care.
3 out of 10 patients waiting too long
It comes as the latest weekly data shows that almost 30% of A&E patients waited longer than four hours for treatment.
Mr Yousaf said:
"It is absolutely critical we ensure people are receiving the right care at the right time and in the right place.
"That's why I'm pleased to confirm today's £50 million investment to help achieve our national and urgent unscheduled care priorities.
"Our twin approach of investment and reform in urgent and unscheduled care will help our boards see people need urgent attention more quickly.
"For many, A&E may not be the best place for their healthcare needs and our £50 million improvement programme will offer patients alternative routes to urgent care.
"Last year, 4,500 patients received care from a Hospital at Home service - without this these patients would have experienced an acute hospital stay, we are determined to build on this success."
"A sticking plaster" - Scottish Labour
Scottish Labour health spokeswoman Jackie Baillie said: "It is welcome to see Humza Yousaf finally take action on the on-going A&E crisis - but it will be cold comfort for the tens of thousands of Scots who have had their lives endangered during this crisis over several months.
"For nearly a year, Humza Yousaf has walked by on the other side of the road as Scots languished for hours in A&E with some losing their lives as a result. Make no mistake - Scots will have lost their lives due to this deadly delay.
"What we need to know is whether this is genuinely new money to deal with this deadly crisis or if it is yet another SNP re-badging exercise.
"Currently, this looks like another SNP sticking plaster that will do nothing to tackle fundamental issues like delayed discharge and a lack of beds."
In the week ending May 22, 70.2% of patients were seen within the four-hour standard, according to figures from Public Health Scotland.
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