West of Scotland MSP Jamie Greene has written to Cabinet Secretary for Health, Wellbeing and Sport Shona Robison concerning the recent ISD figures that showed that NHS North Ayrshire and Arran had the highest hospital waiting times in Scotland.

Jamie said: “I have written to Shona Robison asking what the Scottish Government can do to help alleviate the pressure on NHS North Ayrshire and Arran and what support it can give to it in tackling these skyrocketing waiting times. I have also asked for the Cabinet Secretary to set out a timetable for waiting times to fall back into the Scottish Government’s own targets.”

“Our hospital times are currently way too high and people should not have to be waiting 16 weeks to get seen. This desperately needs addressing and I urge the Scottish Government to offer support to NHS Ayrshire and Arran to ensure that waiting times are reasonable and demand is manageable.”

In his letter, Jamie wrote: "These waiting times can have a significant impact on people's lives. For example, many conditions such as cancer need to be quickly diagnosed to give the patient a better chance of overcoming the condition. More-over long waits can also cause emotional distress to patients or leave them in pain whilst they wait to be diagnosed and eventually treated."