Bed Cuts Revealed

1, 000 beds have been cut from Scotland's NHS in the past two years, according to the Scottish Liberal Democrats.

Their figures show Fife alone has lost 173 places since 2012.

Now the Scottish Government's being accused of taking its eye off the ball, something it denies.

Scottish Liberal Democrat health spokesperson Jim Hume MSP said:
 
"The SNP in the Scottish Government spent so long campaigning for independence that they took their eye off the ball. These figures show in black and white that as a result, over 1,000 beds have been lost from Scotland’s hospitals in the space of just two years.
 
"It's little wonder that more patients are being treated in the wrong department, waiting times aren't being met and patients are being kept in hospital despite being clinically ready to leave. Health campaigners and professionals including the BMA and RCN Scotland have long complained about the severe capacity and staffing issues facing our NHS.
 
"We were promised that integrating health and social care would take pressure off of hospitals. But the jumbled approach of cutting beds without proper community care in place has resulted in patients bearing the brunt of SNP mismanagement.
 
"Scottish Liberal Democrats will be keeping up the pressure on the SNP to give our NHS the support is so badly needs."