Nicola Sturgeon will today unveil the next steps for developing a major trauma centre in Aberdeen.
The Press and Journal understands the first minister will be joined by Health Secretary, Shona Robison, to announce an update on the development of the life-saving facility.
The event, which will take place in Dundee today, comes after Lewis Macdonald MSP criticised the pace of progress with the venture – despite a direct promise from Ms Sturgeon during May’s Holyrood election campaign.
Just a month later, Ms Robison reiterated that preparations for the major trauma centres – the amenities are also planned for Dundee, Glasgow and Edinburgh – would be completed by the end of the year.
However, Mr Macdonald claimed it was “high time” ministers got on with delivering the facility, which could save up to 40 lives a year in the Granite City.
He said: “Shona Robison gave a clear commitment in June that preparations for establishing major trauma centres in Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow would be completed by the end of the year, but there is no evidence the Scottish Government is now ready to put those centres into operation.
“If the preparatory work had been completed, we would expect SNP ministers to say so, and we would also expect substantial funding to be included in the Budget for 2017-18 to allow those centres to be put in place.
“Doctors, NHS unions and the general public united last year to fight for a major trauma centre at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, forcing ministers to abandon a planned downgrade.
“It is high time the Scottish Government moved from preparation to implementation, so the people of the north and north-east can have the highest standards of trauma care, as we were promised.”
Fears that the SNP administration intended to downgrade their commitment to build centres in Aberdeen and Dundee were waylaid in May by Ms Sturgeon, who gave a personal commitment they would go ahead.
SNP MSP Fulton MacGregor yesterday lodged an “inspired question” at Holyrood – a technical procedure – asking for “an update on the development of plans for trauma care in Scotland”.
