South Scotland Labour MSP Colin Smyth has said that patients and staff in Dumfries and Galloway are being let down by the SNP Scottish Government as figures show Accident and Emergency (A&E) waiting time targets have only been met three times during 2019.

The latest figures released by the Scottish Government’s Information Services Division (ISD) Scotland show that between the start of 2019 and week ending the 14^th July 2019 the A&E waiting time target of 95% of patients being seen and subsequently admitted, transferred or discharged has only been met three weeks of the year – weeks ending 24^th March 2019, 31^st March 2019 and 2^nd June 2019.

So far in 2019 2,201 patients attending A&E in Dumfries and Galloway have had to wait over the four hour target. 208 patients had to wait over eight hours, with 23 patients being left for over 12 hours in A&E.

Colin Smyth said, “Behind these figures are patients attending A&E in Dumfries and Galloway who are being left for over 12 hours in extreme cases because hospitals are not being properly funded by this SNP Scottish Government to meet the waiting time targets they implemented.

NHS staff in our A&E departments work incredibly hard but they simply are not receiving the support they need to see and treat all patients within the targets set by this SNP Government. Cuts to out of hours services and a shortage of GPs means more people have to take themselves to A&E, putting more pressure on the service.”