New figures reveal Paisley’s struggling A&E department continues to feel the pressure as figures for patients waiting hours to be seen soar.
It comes after one politician warned last week that “health and lives” are “at risk” before wait times for emergency treatment increased again this week and performance against targets dropped further.
Data published this week shows performance at the site is once again plummeting to dismal levels.
Fresh figures show just 60.3 per cent of the 1,117 patients who attended the Royal Alexandra Hospital’s emergency department in the week until March 6 were treated within four hours.
Scottish Government targets demand that 95 per cent of patients who attend A&E are treated, admitted, transferred or discharged within a four hour time frame.
But under-pressure hospitals have largely failed to meet the targets since the covid pandemic began, with figures for the RAH consistently amongst the worst in Scotland.
They plunged again two weeks ago to 65.6 per cent - with data showing some 518 patients waited more than four hours - before the latest round of data revealed they have fallen further.
It comes as Scottish Government Health Secretary Humza Yousaf visited the RAH on Friday to meet with staff leaders and management.
The move followed pressure from Paisley-based Labour MSP Neil Bibby, who had been calling on Mr Yousaf to visit the trouble-hit hospital since last November, after union reps at the site begged for help amidst claims there are “chronic” shortages of staff and that workers are “on their knees”.
Labour’s Shadow Health Minister Paul O’Kane claimed last week that health supremo Mr Yousaf was presiding over “predictable chaos” at Scotland’s hospitals.
The West Scotland MSP added: “The efforts of dedicated staff are not repaid with investment and support from the Scottish Government, rather they are met with hundreds of Scots who are waiting over 12 hours to be seen in A&E.
Don't miss the latest headlines from around Renfrewshire. Sign up to our newsletters here.
“A&E staff have repeatedly called for help from the Health Secretary and he repeatedly doesn’t answer the call –it’s becoming a very predictable kind of chaos. The SNP’s failure to act will be putting people’s health and lives at risk, it doesn’t get more serious than that.”
Some 443 patients attending A&E at the RAH last week waited more than four hours for treatment, while 180 waited over eight hours.
Records show 66 patients were still waiting after 12 hours.
The RAH’s figures fell below NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde’s board average of 66 per cent of patients treated within the four hour window and well below the Scottish average figure last week of 70.5 per cent.
Paisley’s A&E performance figures currently are amongst some of the worst recorded since available records began in 2017.
They plunged to a record low of 62.3 per cent compliance with the target last October - still better than the latest figures.
The site also returned the third worst A&E performance figures in Scotland at the height of the Omicron outbreak during the last week of January, which at 67 per cent, were still higher than current figures.
Govan’s Queen Elizabeth University Hospital returned dismal figures after just 46.1 per cent of the 1,741 patients who attended there were treated against four hour targets, with 939 waiting longer than the target time frame.
Health chiefs have blamed rising numbers of covid cases for the slump as hospitals fill with patients suffering from the virus once again.
A spokesperson for NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde said: “Covid-19 is still very much with us. Our hospitals are near capacity, with more than 660 Covid-19 positive patients on our wards with a diagnosis of 28 days or less.
“While the overall trend suggests the virus is less severe, and our ICUs remain relatively free from Covid-19 patients for the moment, it is still very transmissible. Large numbers of positive patients admitted to hospital – either as direct result of the virus, or admitted for another illness but having tested positive with no symptoms – is putting significant pressure on capacity and available bed numbers. This is having a knock-on effect at our A&E Departments and assessment units.”
He added: “The rise in patient numbers and the logistical challenges this brings to our teams is being further compounded by the difficulties we face due to delayed discharges. This is a serious issue for us and is causing considerable concern. We continue to work closely with HSCP colleagues, care homes, patients and families to arrange supported discharge for patients as quickly as possible.
“We are reminding the public not to come to A&E unless suffering from a very urgent or life-threatening condition. Everyone else who thinks they need urgent medical attention should speak to their GP first, or, call NHS24 on 111.”
Download the FREE Renfrewshire Live app now for all the latest news, features and sport in your area. Available on both Android and Apple. Download here:smarturl.it/RenfrewLiveSocial
