The latest ISD Statistics have revealed that NHS Borders has lost over 3000 beds due to delayed discharge this year.
The statistics for the first 3 months reveal that on average 1000 beds a month to delayed discharge.
January recorded 1,185; February 854 and March 1,106. In total 3,145 days have been lost with April still to be accounted for.
A delayed discharge is a hospital inpatient who is clinically ready for discharge from inpatient hospital care and who continues to occupy a hospital bed beyond the ready for discharge date.
Rachael Hamilton MSP said: ‘The latest ISD statistics once again show the extreme pressure that NHS Borders is under. It is real cause for concern that we are not seeing an improvement in the reduction of delayed discharge.
‘The SNP Government needs to support our rural health boards and help see the number of delayed discharges go down. That means that we need to see the integration of health and social care implemented as a matter of urgency and priority.
‘Each day a bed is taken up by someone that can go home is a day that bed can be used by someone else in need. We need to get it to the bottom of why the number of delayed discharges is not reducing to help ease pressure on our local NHS and to help Borders patients, too.’