MP seeks assurances on future of orthopaedic services at St John's Hospital Livingston
Leaked five-year plan suggests surgery to be concentrated in regional centres
Livingston Labour MP Gregor Poynton is calling for urgent assurances about the future of orthopaedic services at St John's Hospital amid reports of a major overhaul of planned surgery across Scotland.
Leaked proposals in a five-year plan suggest orthopaedic surgery could be increasingly concentrated in regional centres to improve efficiency.
And now Mr Poynton has written to Health Secretary Angela Constance asking for a categorical assurance that services currently provided at St John's will not be removed, reduced or transferred elsewhere as a result of the changes.
He also raised concerns about the potential impact on patients who may have to travel further for treatment, as well as warnings from senior clinicians that removing elective surgery from district general hospitals could have wider consequences for emergency surgery, anaesthetic services and intensive care provision at hospitals such as St John's.
And he questioned why the proposed plan was said to be working towards a maximum 26-week wait for treatment by 2031, despite the Scottish Government's commitment to restore the statutory 12-week Treatment Time Guarantee by March 2029.
The leaked proposals, in a document entitled Transforming Elective Orthopaedic Care in Scotland 2026-2031, set out a major reorganisation of orthopaedic care which, according to The Herald, envisage operations being concentrated in specialist regional “centres of excellence” and National Treatment Centres, with patients being told that travelling for surgery “is to be expected”.
In his letter, Mr Poynton told Ms Constance, who is SNP MSP for Almond Valley: “As Cabinet Secretary for Health and Care, you have a responsibility to explain what these proposals mean in practice. As the local MSP for our area, you will also understand the importance of St John’s Hospital to the communities it serves.”
Mr Poynton said: "St John's Hospital plays a vital role in serving communities across Livingston constituency and West Lothian, and local patients deserve clarity about what these proposals could mean for the services they rely on.
"Reducing waiting times and improving access to treatment is an important objective, but reforms must deliver real improvements for patients rather than simply moving operations from one location to another.
"I am particularly concerned by reports that patients could be required to travel further for treatment, and by warnings from clinicians about the potential knock-on effects for other hospital services if elective surgery is removed from St John's.
"People in Livingston should not have to rely on leaked documents and newspaper reports to understand the future of their local NHS services.
"That is why I have asked Angela Constance to provide clear answers and a categorical assurance that orthopaedic services currently provided at St John's Hospital will not be reduced, removed or transferred elsewhere.
"Patients, staff and local communities deserve transparency. Any reforms must strengthen local healthcare provision and improve outcomes for patients, not undermine services that are highly valued by the communities they serve.
"I will continue pressing the Scottish Government for answers, and will always stand up for the future of St John's Hospital and the patients who depend upon it."
A Scottish Government spokesperson said a National Orthopaedics Plan was still in development with NHS boards and no final decisions had been taken about.
“Ministers will take any final decisions on how care will be delivered through two new strategic boards, taking into close consideration the views of staff, trade unions and any proposed impact on local communities.
“Ministers are clear the St John’s Hospital will be central in continuing to deliver local high-quality care and in driving further progress we’ve seen to date to bring down long waits in the past year.
“The Health Secretary chaired NHS Lothian’s annual review on Friday and heard first-hand about the work being done to support patients across Lothian to get the treatment they need as quickly as possible.”