The ongoing closure of minor injuries units at Turriff and Banff community hospitals has been called into question by a north-east politician.
Operating hours at Turriff and Banff’s units reduced following a review by the Aberdeenshire Health and Social Care Partnership last year.
All minor injuries units in Aberdeenshire then closed when the coronavirus lockdown started in March, and though those in Fraserburgh, Peterhead and Huntly have reopened, health bosses are refusing to give a reopening date for others.
Now Banff and Buchan MP David Duguid has flagged up the apparent “two-tier approach to reopening” in a letter to Angie Wood, the partnership’s interim chief officer.
Mr Duguid said: “It is hard for people to understand why the minor injury units in Peterhead and Fraserburgh can be open when those in Banff and Turriff are not.
“Despite the restrictions on our day-to-day lives, there will still be demand for these services. And as we head into the winter months, that demand is likely to grow, with aa higher risk of people injuring themselves slipping on pavements, for example.
“I have asked the partnership to explain the rationale for not re-opening the Banff and Turriff sites and a date on which people can expect these services to resume.”
A petition over the closure of the Chalmers hospital unit is still ongoing by the Banff Macduff District Safety Group.
