Dumfries and Galloway health bosses warn of difficult and challenging winter

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Health bosses are warning that a difficult and challenging winter lies ahead.Dumfries and Galloway Health and Social Care Partnership is anticipating massive pressures already hitting the system will continue to grow as the colder months arrive with staffing shortages also having an impact.Chief officer Julie White said: “As we enter the autumn, our services are already under the sorts of pressure we might more typically expect in the deepest depths of winter.“Over the summer we worked closely with our frontline teams to develop an ambitious plan that will help us recover from the challenges we faced throughout the pandemic.

Our plan was approved by the NHS Board on October 3 and sets out clear actions against six priority areas.“These focus on how we will support our staff, improve recruitment and retention, recover and protect planned care, modernise unscheduled care, develop social care and improve the sustainability of our local system.“However, even though we are already working to deliver against that plan, things are only likely to get more challenging as the weeks progress.

And while I wish I could offer a more comforting outlook, I think that every one of us needs to be prepared for a very tough next six months.”Ms White warned that further disruption is likely to scheduled elective procedures due to the “continued high volume of people presenting with urgent, unscheduled and complex needs”, with “very last minute” cancellations possible.She also urged people to visit NHSINform.scot or call NHS 24 on 111 in non-emergency situations.Ms White said: “Within social care, we continue to face a very significant challenge in meeting the volume of need.