Delayed discharges in Ayrshire have increased by 5.2 per cent in the past year.
Figures released by Public Health Scotland have revealed that patients at NHS Ayrshire and Arran hospitals have spent 3,770 days extra in hospital in the year to October 2024.
In the year to October 2023, the figure was 3,583.
Although there was a year-on-year increase, delayed discharge is still 7.2 per cent lower than the last comparable period (the your to October 2019) before the Covid-19 pandemic.
Also known as bed blocking, delayed discharge is when a patient is medically cleared to go home but cannot leave hospital, often because a social care package is not in place or there is a lack of places in care homes or sheltered housing.
South Scotland MSP Colin Smyth has called for more to be done to reduce bed blocking and claimed that thousands of hours of assessed care is not being provided in homes because of a lack of carers
Commenting, Mr Smyth said: “The figures for Ayrshire and Arran are showing a small increase when compared to last year and it really isn’t good enough.
“Week after week I hear from constituents at their wits end because their loved ones cannot leave hospital because there isn’t the support for them to live at home or in a care setting.
“The Scottish Government vowed to eradicate delayed discharge but instead we are in a situation where we have more and more people remaining in hospital when they are fit to be discharged. This is not only piling pressure on our hospitals but threatening patients’ recovery.
“I am calling on the Scottish Government to honour this pledge and eradicate the misery of delayed discharge once and for all.
“Our social care system is crying out for help – our amazing local NHS is working as hard as they can to get people out of hospital, and local communities are doing what they can to support people at home, but they can’t work miracles.
“We need long term investment, including tackling the woeful low level of sheltered housing locally, and start paying care workers a fair wage, which would help with the recruitment crisis the sector pays. We also need to drive up the standards of care, because too often people receive just the very basic support, which often isn’t enough.”
Claire Burden, Chief Executive of NHS Ayrshire and Arran, responded: “Delayed discharges are one of a number of challenges for health boards in Scotland, including in Ayrshire and Arran.
“In the last few years, we have seen a change in the level of care some patients need, with frailty and our older population influencing demand throughout Ayrshire and Arran.
“It is helpful to remember that new patients are admitted and discharged every day and the majority – over 90 per cent – of patients are discharged home without delay.
“For those patients needing a care package it is important that the right care is in place for them before being discharged home.
“To address this complex system challenge, our health and social care partnerships (HSCP) in East, North and South Ayrshire have developed and put in place clear action plans to support patients being discharged into the community.
“These actions ensure that patients are discharged as safely as possible and make the best use the capacity in our community teams.
“As a system we are committed to support the delivery of care at home, and this includes working with a wide range of care home and specialty care providers who work across the health and care system to support some of our most vulnerable citizens in our communities.
“We will continue to work in partnership with our HSCPs to reduce any avoidable pressure points in our hospitals, which includes those patients identified as a delayed transfer of care.”
Don’t miss the latest Ayrshire headlines –sign up to our free daily newsletter