First Minister urged to face the dangerous realities of Highland healthcare 

The First Minister John Swinney has been invited to travel the distance between Caithness and Inverness to experience for himself the distance that patients have to travel for vital healthcare.

The invite has been extended in a letter penned by Far North MP Jamie Stone, Chair of Caithness Health Action Team (CHAT) Ron Gunn, Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton and local Scottish Parliamentary candidate David Green.

The First Minister is being urged to speak with local residents in Caithness who are worried about the lack of maternity and gynaecological services. The campaigners are calling on the Scottish Government to restore consultant-led maternity services at Caithness General Hospital.

The intervention comes after a report by the Scottish Human Rights Commission, Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in the Highlands and Islands, detailed the critical state of sexual and reproductive health services in Caithness and Sutherland. It also warned centralisation of health services has led to 14,000 patients a year from Caithness and Sutherland travelling to Inverness for routine, emergency and acute care, with no risk assessments for patient safety.

These long journeys have culminated in mothers experiencing anxieties about giving birth en-route - especially during night time travel in adverse weather conditions - and has even led to women losing their fertility due to delays in accessing Raigmore in emergencies. For these reasons, human rights defenders included in the report described the reality of this issue as “barbaric”.

The leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats, Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP, raised this issue at First Minister’s Questions. In response, Mr Swinney acknowledged it was “a long and difficult journey” and said he would engage with the Liberal Democrats.

Far North MP Jamie Stone said:

“I have spent my political career tirelessly campaigning for better health services in the Highlands - particularly with regards to the dangerous state of maternity care in Caithness. Every time, I have been met with excuses from the SNP government, who have so far chosen to ignore the issue as opposed to solving it.

“I am grateful to our leader, Alex Cole-Hamilton, for supporting my calls. The First Minister assured the Parliament that he was aware of the issue and we will take up his offer of talks.

“That is why myself and my colleagues have invited Mr Swinney to Caithness to face the realities himself. This ought to happen without delay, in light of the severity of the report and the daily threat to the health and safety of people in the Highlands.”

Councillor Ron Gunn, Chair of Caithness Health Action Team, said:

“Since our maternity unit was downgraded in 2016, over 90% of our mums now travel over 100 miles in all weather and road conditions to give birth.

“We have been asking for ministers to both come and listen to the community but also take the journey themselves to see what women have to endure.

“The last health secretary that took up the invite, Humza Yousaf, told us he would not want his wife to go through that. Why are we therefore still waiting for action?”

David Green, the Liberal Democrat candidate for Caithness, Sutherland and Ross, added:

"It is absolutely wrong that women have been left to worry about long and dangerous journeys to access vital healthcare services.

“It shouldn’t take the Scottish Human Rights Commission to warn that human rights are under threat to see action from the Scottish Government.

“The Scottish Government should have made progress long before now. Restoring maternity services in Caithness must be a priority.”

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP said:

“The First Minister needs to grasp just how terrifying these 100-mile journeys are for new mothers.

“My party and I will continue to put pressure on the government and we won’t stop until we get the best for these mothers and their babies.”