Secondary Care Matters

That the Parliament welcomes the recent report by the British Medical Association (BMA), Secondary care matters: shaping the future of safe, sustainable hospital-based healthcare in Scotland, which explores the future of secondary care in Scotland and the main challenges that it faces; notes with grave concern the view that 89% of surveyed doctors believe that current staffing levels to be inadequate to deliver quality patient care; understands that, in 2017-18, almost half of NHS expenditure, £5.7 billion, was on staffing costs; further understands that the projected NHS Scotland funding gap in 2023-24, based on Scottish Government analysis, is £159 million; is concerned that the number of patients in Scotland waiting for first hospital appointments has reportedly increased since 2014, by 26.9% for outpatient appointments and 34.9% for inpatient appointments; considers that, although consultant numbers have increased slightly, this remains outweighed by the number of consultant vacancies; recognises what it sees as the need to coherently and holistically plan secondary care to ensure its sustainability, and hopes that the Scottish Government will respond to the BMA's call for a collaborative and sustainable funded structure.