Patients waiting 3,000 days for mental health treatment

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader and health spokesperson Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP has today called on the Scottish Government to reverse devastating cuts to the mental health budget after new research from his party revealed shocking waits for psychological therapies across many of Scotland’s health boards.
 
A Scottish Liberal Democrat freedom of information request revealed that:     
  
•    Patients in NHS Highland, Lothian and Tayside are currently waiting more than 1,000 days to receive psychological therapies. The longest a patient has been waiting is 3,129 days in NHS Highland.     
•    The same three health boards also saw patients wait more than 1,000 days to start treatment in 2022/23, with the longest wait being 3,019 days in NHS Highland. Patients also waited 922 days in NHS Grampian and 850 days in NHS Western Isles.     
•    220 people waited more than two years for psychological therapies in NHS Lothian.     
•    69 patients are currently waiting more than two years for psychological therapies in NHS Highland.     

At the start of December, figures from Public Health Scotland revealed that the Scottish Government’s 18-week treatment target is being missed for a fifth of adults.   

Mr Cole-Hamilton said:     

“I do not understand how nationalist ministers can hear stories of people in mental torment and respond with budget cuts and inaction.  
   
“If people are put on hold for years on end, their mental state will simply deteriorate.    
 
“The SNP government is showing contempt for all those struggling. Last winter, they cut a staggering £50m, a reckless move that was swiftly followed by Humza Yousaf breaking his personal commitment to clear waiting lists by the spring. Now they are cutting a further £30m.
 
“In recent years, Scottish Liberal Democrats have led the Parliament in declaring a mental health crisis, against the wishes of the government. We’ve set out detailed plans for ensuring everyone has access to comprehensive mental health support, including training more professionals in key roles, from psychiatrists to mental health officers.     
 
“That’s how we will bring new hope to everyone struggling with their mental health.”