Speech by the Chairman of Scottish Council
Dr John Garner
Wednesday 3 July
Chairman, as the agenda committee has seen fit to half the time allocated to Scotland this year I will curtail my speech so that there is sufficient time to consider a couple of motions in this section. I would like to start by paying tribute to the staff of the BMA in Scotland. All have worked extremely hard to support the organisation, elected representatives and members. I would however like to single out five for particular mention.
Helen Reilly has wonderfully supported me whilst keeping me on my toes.
Mairi McKenzie as Secretary of Scottish Council has steered us through a full and busy year.
Gail Grant our press and parliamentary officer has been first-class in projecting the BMA.
And finally, Bill O’Neill, with Donald Harley’s help, has orchestrated the staff to get the team motoring effectively and efficiently.
On behalf of Scottish members, thanks to you all.
We are now at home in our new building in Edinburgh. Our location, in the heart of Edinburgh, has enabled us, over the last 12 months, to build and strengthen our relationships with the CMO, the Scottish Executive, politicians of all parties and other organisations.
MMR has been a major issue in Scotland. A Health Committee report was published in Spring and, despite our anxieties that politicians would go for the populist response and introduce single dose vaccinations, I must give them credit for standing by the scientific evidence, maintaining that the triple vaccine was the right choice for Scotland. This is illustrative of the common sense that can be shown by politicians.
I would also like to applaud two of the first pieces of legislation to be created by our Parliament. The Adults with Incapacity Act and the Community Care and Health Act have brought in appropriate reforms for those vulnerable and elderly members of society. Hopefully they will be trailblazers for the rest of the UK. Both came into practice on Monday.
However all is not perfect. Over the last year we have seen continued pressure to reduce bed numbers, causing difficulties with blocked beds and cancelled operations. We could have seen the Scottish NHS in crisis had we not had the mildest winter for some time. We hope that the injection of up to 540 extra beds at the HCI hospital in Clydebank will go some way to solving this problem, but Government must address the underlying problems that create these year on year pressures.
We are critical of the spin surrounding Scottish Health Service announcements; new initiatives, new targets, new little envelopes of money. Each one attracting a catchy headline in the media. Less spin and more straight talking is needed.
We have moved from two parliamentary debates on Scottish health in five years – pre-devolution, to more than 20 specific health debates and hundreds questions asked in a single year in the Scottish Parliament. From famine to feast.
Political involvement has its benefits, but the BMA in Scotland believes there is a middle ground, dare I say a third way, where managers are allowed to manage, professionals are allowed to practice their art, and politicians concentrate on providing the resources and setting the long term strategy. Of course the NHS must be accountable to parliament, but politicians must delegate the running of the NHS to allow for long term planning which is not affected by changes to the political landscape.
Despite the difficulties we face, we have a very precious relationship with our patients. In Scotland I am aware that many doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers are suffering from COMPASSION FATIGUE. We have less time with our patients, more restrictions on how we practice and are starved of resources. Work is intensifying, bureaucracy is increasing and we are starved of secretarial and nursing support. The media fuel emotions with bad news stories about doctors and hospitals, ignoring the tremendous work of all health care workers. The sufferers are our patients. It is inevitable that in the face of such pressures we are not as sympathetic to our patients as we once were.
There needs to be a culture change - in the media, in the managers, in the health service planners and above all in our politicians. The service must start to support doctors and nurses. Pay them an honest wage, but much more than that encourage them to develop and innovate. Recognise their worth and acknowledge it publicly.
Compassion fatigue is a reality and we need their help to turn the Scottish health service around. Only then can we as professionals deliver a true caring compassionate service for the people of Scotland.
Chairman, I move.