Scotland’s new rural affairs minister has been called upon to address shortages of GPs.
Mairi Gougeon, who represents Angus North and Mearns, was invited to open a new country path by the River Dee in Ballater yesterday.
She also visited Speyside, including Grantown-on-Spey and Tomintoul, on what was described as a “whistle stop tour” of the north-east.
And one north-east MSP urged the newly-appointed minister use her trip as an opportunity to listen to locals amid growing concern over a lack of GP provision in his constituency and further afield.
Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, said: “GP shortages in rural parts of Aberdeenshire West are just one area that requires the attention of this SNP government.
“It is clear that more needs to be done to address pressure on local services. A planned ‘golden hello’ last attracted just three doctors for the whole of Grampian, which was a disappointing return for such a high profile campaign.
“NHS Grampian does not get a fair funding deal from Holyrood. It is time that was addressed and it is time that this government took more action to deal with staffing issues in the north-east.
“Far too often, the SNP and Nicola Sturgeon appear only focused on pushing the case for breaking up the UK rather than dealing with the issues that matter to local communities.”
Last year’s primary care workforce survey found a “consistent decline” in the estimated number of GPs in four years, down by 160, or more than 4%, since 2013.
Almost a quarter of the GP practices responding to the survey also reported current GP vacancies, taking the vacancy rate from 1.7% in 2013 to 5.6% in 2017, the study said.
A Scottish Government spokesman said: “Ms Gougeon was pleased to visit Cairngorms National Park as part of National Parks Week. She helped to open a stretch of path, met with a range of dedicated local people who support the park, and saw first-hand the sights that bring visitors from across the world to this beautiful region.
“We recognise that the north-east faces a range of complex challenges, including recruiting and retaining GPs and clinical staff. To help address this, we are increasing NHS Grampian’s budget by more than £315 million – despite Scotland’s fiscal resource budget being cut by the UK Government – and are delivering an increase of more than 800 staff.
“We have also negotiated a new GP contract to stabilise income, reduce workload, and improve patient care. This is backed by investment of £110 million this year and ensures GPs can spend more time with patients and less time on bureaucracy.
“However, NHS recruitment and retention overall remains threatened by the UK Government’s misguided and damaging Brexit policies, and we will continue to call for a more sensible and pragmatic approach to negotiations.”
