By Democrat reporter
There is now a record number of bed days due to delayed discharge from hospital, according to Scottish Labour’s Health spokesperson Jackie Baillie.
She said: “Each of these bed days represents another day in limbo for a patient who is desperate to return home.
“It’s nearly a decade since the SNP promised to end delayed discharge yet numbers are at a record high.
“Rather than wasting money on a failed National Care Service Bill, the SNP must work with those delivering frontline care to create a genuine safety net for those who are well enough to leave hospital but need help and support at home.”
Labour MSP Jackie Baillie and LibDem leader Alex Cole-Hamilton.
Responding to the new figures showing that in 2023/24 there were 666,190 days spent in hospital by people whose discharge was delayed, the highest annual figure since records began, Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP said: “These record-high figures expose the SNP’s mismanagement of our NHS. Far too many are stuck in hospital unnecessarily because they can’t get the care they need at home or in the community.
“These delays are failing patients, contributing to agonising waits in A&E and creating untold pressure right across our NHS. It’s proof positive that you can’t save our NHS unless you fix the crisis in care.
“The SNP should now admit that their NHS Recovery Plan is bust and needs rewritten. Scottish Liberal Democrats are demanding that ministers stop wasting millions on their doomed takeover of social care because it is money that should be spent on services and staff to enable people to leave hospital on time.”