A moratorium should be introduced to halt the decline in hospital beds, the Scottish Conservatives have said.
At First Minister’s Questions today, leader Ruth Davidson said the trend of reducing bed numbers should be stopped, to allow the NHS to cope with new pressures further down the line.
In 2016/17, there were 21,340 beds in Scotland’s hospitals, compared to more than 23,000 in 2012/13.
It was also revealed that the number of social care places for elderly patients has reduced.
In 2012/13 there were 38,465 places, but that’s now fallen to 37,746.
That means there are not only fewer hospital beds, but fewer options for elderly patients who are ready to be discharged.
Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson said:
“We know the SNP rationale for reducing bed numbers is that more care should be delivered in the community.
“That’s laudable enough, but if it’s going to work we need more places available in the community.
“As it stands, the SNP has cut bed numbers, and cut social care places.
“That means when issues like the recent flu crisis occur, our NHS reaches breaking point.
“The SNP can’t blame anyone else for this. It has been well-warned about the consequences of inaction, and now patients are paying the price.
“We need a moratorium on bed reductions until the SNP government finds somewhere for patients to go.”