Jackie Baillie MSP: No doubt on public's health priorities

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Almost 300 people attended local health meetings last month to discuss NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde’s Moving Forward Together programme – their acute services review by another name.

I do not regard their claims of having a blank sheet of paper as credible, especially when you consider that highly paid consultants and managers have been meeting for the best part of a year.

That said, we held a series of indicative votes at each meeting and there was unanimous support for retaining services at the Vale of Leven Hospital. So there’s no doubt what our local community wants to see.

Last month, I launched my member’s bill proposal to ensure that a wheelchair is provided to anyone assessed as needing one on a short-term basis.

There is no duty on the NHS to provide people experiencing a short-term mobility problem with a wheelchair. Under the current criteria, the mobility problem must be permanent in order to access the wheelchair service.

This leaves people who may have a short-term mobility problem isolated in their own home and dependent on others. In some cases this could lead to people being stuck in hospital for longer than necessary with a delayed discharge.

Arrangements can be made with charities, such as the British Red Cross in Helensburgh, to borrow a wheelchair, but provision is varied. Many people who would benefit from a wheelchair are left struggling to cope without one.

Having a temporary wheelchair can help with rehabilition, it cuts down recovery time, and it can reduce social isolation. Plus the proposal can save the NHS money in the long run.

I want to encourage people to give their views in the consultation, a link to which can be found on my website (jackiebaillie.laboursites.org).

I hope that by creating a statutory duty to provide access to short-term wheelchairs, this relatively small change will make a significant difference to people’s lives.