A health boss has hit back at claims that NHS Tayside has failed to address its spiralling debt.
Chairman Professor John Connell told the Tele the health board had been “instrumental in driving the transformation required” as it looks to save almost £60 million to balance its books.
Professor Connell spoke out following a report by the Auditor General for Scotland last week.
The report notes NHS Tayside’s “unprecedented” savings target of £58.4 million for 2016-17, adding that the board was at “significant risk” of requiring more Scottish Government aid just to break even.
It was revealed that NHS Tayside has already received £24.3m in additional Holyrood support over the last four years.
Jenny Marra, Labour MSP for North East Scotland, branded the situation “utterly unacceptable”, adding: “These financial issues are at the level they are because of managers in NHS Tayside failing to address overspending, irresponsible prescribing of drugs and huge agency staff costs.
“The board was warned about this problem years ago but failed to do anything about it.”
Speaking to the Tele, Professor Connell said it was “very disappointing” to hear the claim that board members had failed to do anything about the financial position.
He said: “Our actions to date would suggest the contrary.
“The board has been instrumental in driving the transformation required to address the problems identified by the Auditor General by establishing a transformation programme board, which ensures scrutiny of all aspects of our ambitious plans.
“That includes detailed analysis of NHS Tayside’s financial position on a monthly basis, as well as a focus on expenditure on nursing agency costs and prescribing.”
Agency spending is a large outlay for the board, with costs more than trebling to £3.14m for agency nurses and midwives between April 2014 and April 2015 — up from £1.02m the previous year.
Meanwhile, prescription charges cost the board £138m annually — with an overspend total of more than £1m a month.
Professor Connell added: “The board’s key driver is to ensure our health services are safe and sustainable. We have always said that patient safety and high-quality care comes first and these are the principles upon which we base all our decisions.
“We are realistic about the time-frames involved in achieving our transformation but we are also committed to ensuring we continue to provide the best care for our patients now and into the future.
“Therefore we will continue with our work, which has been undertaken with the full support of the Scottish Government Health Department, and our dedicated staff will keep providing high-quality care and services for the people of Tayside.”