Nearly 23,000 Scots stuck on NHS waiting list to see psychologist
EXCLUSIVE: Freedom of Information Requests revealed that some 22,880 are currently on a psychologist waiting list - with NHS Lothian having the longest list.
Nearly 23,000 Scots are languishing on an NHS waiting list to see a psychologist. Freedom of Information Requests revealed that some 22,880 are currently on a psychologist waiting list.
Dr Pavan Srireddy, vice-chair of the Royal College of Psychiatrists in Scotland, said: 'While concerning, these figures come as no surprise. The unprecedented demand for services and critical gaps in the mental health workforce is already leading to unacceptably long waits for mental health care and treatment.
'Working on the frontline we see a postcode lottery of specialist mental health services across the country, but our patients deserve so much better than this.
'Alarmingly, waiting times may be even higher because the Scottish Government don't consider the rise in people seeking help for neurodevelopmental conditions such as Autism or ADHD."
NHS Lothian had the longest list, with 4,287 patients waiting to be seen. This was followed by Greater Glasgow and Clyde on 3,733 and Tayside on 2,821.
Grampian had 2,736 patients waiting, Forth Valley had 2,729 and Lanarkshire had 2,097.
The only other health board with more than 1,000 people waiting was NHS Fife, on 1,746.
Dr Srireddy continued: 'The situation is only set to get worse if there is no action. Targets are missed but what we need is ringfenced funding and resources ploughed in at local level.
'We also urgently need a strategy to not just recruit more psychiatrists, but to retain our experienced doctors who sadly face excessive workloads, stress and burnout due to staff shortages leading them to leave permanent roles.
'Above all, we need ring-fenced mental health funding to reach the government's own 10% budget commitment and ensure adequate resources are put in place urgently, for recruitment and retention.'
Campaigner Peter Todd - who waited five years for mental health treatment - said: "Many of our leaders have no idea much patient's lives are affected by waiting years for psychological treatment because they have no sense of what goes on in the real world.
"No doubt we will here covid being used as an excuse. But that doesn't wash because I was forced to wait 5 years back in 2018 due to being a victim of the MP Cyril Smith scandal which I gave evidence at the Historical Abuse Inquiry about.
"I look forward to John Swinney campaigning in Caithness in the run up to the Holyrood election, so he can hear my experience and how my Iife was ripped apart because of his parties inept running of mental health services which forced me to wait five years."
Scottish Labour Mental Health spokesperson Paul Sweeney said 'These shocking figures lay bare the true scale of Scotland's mental health crisis and the SNP's woeful failure to deliver the support needed.
'Behind these figures are people who have been failed in their darkest hour by an NHS that is no longer truly free and available at the point of need.
' NHS staff are working tirelessly to keep overstretched mental health services going, but they are being let down by an SNP government more interested in fiddling the figures than fixing the waiting lists.
'Scots needs NHS mental health services that they can count on and we need a change in government to deliver that.'
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: 'The latest Public Health Scotland data shows that more than 74,000 people started treatment in psychological therapies last year.
'One in two patients are starting treatment within three weeks of referral and there was a significant increase of 7.5% of patients starting treatment in the last quarter.
'This has been made possible by the hard work of our psychology services workforce which has increased by 61.8% in the last decade.
'We want to ensure that all people in Scotland can access the right help, at the right time to support their mental and physical health. We continue to work with NHS Boards that are not on track to meet the standard that 90% of patients begin treatment within 18 weeks of referral.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
35 minutes ago
- BBC News
Royal Berkshire Hospital's share of £4.4m funding 'not enough'
Funding awarded to a hospital for repairs and refurbishments is "not enough", a local MP has said. The government announced a £4.4m shared grant for Royal Berkshire Hospital (RBH) and Bracknell Liberal Democrat MP for Wokingham Clive Jones said the cash would "not touch the sides".The government said the funding would prevent appointments being cancelled and blamed "14 years of austerity" from previous administrations for the current problems in the NHS. The hospital, on Craven Road in Reading, was set to be rebuilt under the last government's new hospitals this has been delayed until at least 2037 by the current government, which said the previous plan was not affordable. Jones said the money was "very welcome" but "not enough"."We have £102m shortfall already and it's forecast to be up to £400m in the next 10 to 15 years," he said."So, £4.4m really does not touch the sides."He said he had met with Minister of State for Health Karen Smyth about the matter."Even if they give us £4.4m every year for the next 10 years we've still got a significant shortfall," he continued."I know the minister is well aware of the special circumstances of the Royal Berkshire and that there are parts of it that are 200 years old."Chief executive of RBH Steve McManus said he had also hoped for more funding. He said: "The hospital was in a losing battle against a constant need for repairs, with 50 operations being cancelled in 18 months due to estate disrepair, including power cuts, leaking roofs and collapsed ceilings."A spokesperson from the Department of Health and Social Care said: "We inherited a crumbling NHS following 14 years of austerity, including during the Lib Dems' time in office, but we are determined to turn this around."This week's investment is an essential step to make our hospitals safer and more efficient places to provide care."It added: "These works are funded through the Budget, which provided an extra £26 billion for health and care, and was voted against by the Lib Dems along with every other opposition party. Only Labour will rebuild our broken NHS." You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
North Wales Chronicle
an hour ago
- North Wales Chronicle
Alzheimer's blood test ‘can accurately pick up early symptoms'
Experts from the Mayo Clinic in the US have provided further evidence that blood tests can work to accurately diagnose dementia, by examining two proteins in blood plasma. These proteins – amyloid beta 42/40 and p-tau217 – are associated with amyloid plaque build-up, which is a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease. Researchers found the blood test was highly accurate, with 95% sensitivity, which means it was 95% accurate in picking up people with memory problems, with very few cases missed. It was also 82% for specificity, which means it was also highly accurate in ruling out people without dementia. The study was carried out on more than 500 people in an outpatient memory clinic, meaning it is real-world data. The blood test has already been approved by the Food and Drug Administration regulator in the US. Dr Gregg Day, who led the study in the Alzheimer's and Dementia journal, said the test was as good as more invasive tests currently in use. 'Our study found that blood testing affirmed the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease with 95% sensitivity and 82% specificity,' he said. 'When performed in the outpatient clinical setting, this is similar to the accuracy of cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers of the disease and is much more convenient and cost-effective.' Overall, researchers found that p-tau217 levels were higher in patients with Alzheimer's disease versus those without the disease. Dr Day said the next steps in the research were to evaluate blood-based testing in more diverse patient populations and people with early Alzheimer's who show no cognitive symptoms. Dr Richard Oakley, associate director for research and innovation at the Alzheimer's Society in the UK, said the results 'suggest this test is very accurate' and could be used alongside other tests and observations from a trained health professional. He added: 'This study shows how blood tests are making diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease quicker, easier and more accessible than ever before in a real-world setting. 'While focused on Alzheimer's disease, the test was evaluated in people with other types of dementias too, showing that it may help with differentiate causes of cognitive decline – though more research in diverse groups of individuals and in community-based setting is still needed. 'Currently diagnosis options in the UK are often slow, expensive and can be invasive, meaning thousands miss out on the benefits one can bring. 'It's great to see blood tests like this approved for clinical use in the US – we hope to see the same in the NHS, which is why we're part of the Blood Biomarker Challenge.' The Blood Biomarker Challenge is a multi-million-pound research programme supported by the Alzheimer's Society, Alzheimer's Research UK and the National Institute for Health and Care Research. Its goal is to bring blood tests for dementia diagnosis to the NHS by 2029. Dr Oakley said: 'Blood tests will be critical to accelerate diagnosis and give more people access to the care, support and treatments they desperately need faster than ever before. 'We must see long-term investment in the tools and workforce needed to ensure everyone living with dementia can get an early an accurate diagnosis, which is even more important with disease-modifying treatments on the horizon.' Dr Julia Dudley, head of research at Alzheimer's Research UK, said: 'We urgently need to improve how we diagnose dementia and it's great to see international research working towards this goal. 'Blood tests in this study look at p-tau217 and amyloid beta 42/40, and showed the tests offered high accuracy in confirming Alzheimer's disease. 'This study adds to the growing evidence that blood tests can detect the diseases that cause dementia in people with early memory and thinking problems. 'An important point to consider is that people taking part in research don't always reflect the full diversity of those affected by dementia, who might have additional conditions or other characteristics. 'That is why work is needed to understand whether these blood tests work in a real-world setting. 'In the UK, studies like the Blood Biomarker Challenge are helping to build this evidence. 'The study is testing blood tests, including p-tau217, in thousands of people from sites across the UK. 'This work will be a crucial part of making diagnosis easier and faster, which will bring us closer to a cure.'
South Wales Guardian
an hour ago
- South Wales Guardian
Alzheimer's blood test ‘can accurately pick up early symptoms'
Experts from the Mayo Clinic in the US have provided further evidence that blood tests can work to accurately diagnose dementia, by examining two proteins in blood plasma. These proteins – amyloid beta 42/40 and p-tau217 – are associated with amyloid plaque build-up, which is a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease. Researchers found the blood test was highly accurate, with 95% sensitivity, which means it was 95% accurate in picking up people with memory problems, with very few cases missed. It was also 82% for specificity, which means it was also highly accurate in ruling out people without dementia. The study was carried out on more than 500 people in an outpatient memory clinic, meaning it is real-world data. The blood test has already been approved by the Food and Drug Administration regulator in the US. Dr Gregg Day, who led the study in the Alzheimer's and Dementia journal, said the test was as good as more invasive tests currently in use. 'Our study found that blood testing affirmed the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease with 95% sensitivity and 82% specificity,' he said. 'When performed in the outpatient clinical setting, this is similar to the accuracy of cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers of the disease and is much more convenient and cost-effective.' Overall, researchers found that p-tau217 levels were higher in patients with Alzheimer's disease versus those without the disease. Dr Day said the next steps in the research were to evaluate blood-based testing in more diverse patient populations and people with early Alzheimer's who show no cognitive symptoms. Dr Richard Oakley, associate director for research and innovation at the Alzheimer's Society in the UK, said the results 'suggest this test is very accurate' and could be used alongside other tests and observations from a trained health professional. He added: 'This study shows how blood tests are making diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease quicker, easier and more accessible than ever before in a real-world setting. 'While focused on Alzheimer's disease, the test was evaluated in people with other types of dementias too, showing that it may help with differentiate causes of cognitive decline – though more research in diverse groups of individuals and in community-based setting is still needed. 'Currently diagnosis options in the UK are often slow, expensive and can be invasive, meaning thousands miss out on the benefits one can bring. 'It's great to see blood tests like this approved for clinical use in the US – we hope to see the same in the NHS, which is why we're part of the Blood Biomarker Challenge.' The Blood Biomarker Challenge is a multi-million-pound research programme supported by the Alzheimer's Society, Alzheimer's Research UK and the National Institute for Health and Care Research. Its goal is to bring blood tests for dementia diagnosis to the NHS by 2029. Dr Oakley said: 'Blood tests will be critical to accelerate diagnosis and give more people access to the care, support and treatments they desperately need faster than ever before. 'We must see long-term investment in the tools and workforce needed to ensure everyone living with dementia can get an early an accurate diagnosis, which is even more important with disease-modifying treatments on the horizon.' Dr Julia Dudley, head of research at Alzheimer's Research UK, said: 'We urgently need to improve how we diagnose dementia and it's great to see international research working towards this goal. 'Blood tests in this study look at p-tau217 and amyloid beta 42/40, and showed the tests offered high accuracy in confirming Alzheimer's disease. 'This study adds to the growing evidence that blood tests can detect the diseases that cause dementia in people with early memory and thinking problems. 'An important point to consider is that people taking part in research don't always reflect the full diversity of those affected by dementia, who might have additional conditions or other characteristics. 'That is why work is needed to understand whether these blood tests work in a real-world setting. 'In the UK, studies like the Blood Biomarker Challenge are helping to build this evidence. 'The study is testing blood tests, including p-tau217, in thousands of people from sites across the UK. 'This work will be a crucial part of making diagnosis easier and faster, which will bring us closer to a cure.'
