New figures reveal that in the last three years show that North Ayrshire ambulance services have been forced to attend 1,558 drink-related emergencies.
Across Scotland there have been 53,141 alcohol-related incidents in the past three years, the equivalent of nearly 50 a day.
West Scotland regional list MSP, Jamie Greene, raised concerns over these figures, saying that whilst there has been a drop in North Ayrshire, drink-related emergencies are still too common.
The Conservative parliamentarian commented: “These figures are troubling; we’re currently averaging 519 alcohol related emergencies in North Ayrshire each year. This puts incredible strain on our local health service and raises financial pressures on hospitals. It’s vital that the SNP government ensures that our NHS is adequately resourced to cope with this demand.
“Alcohol misuse and abuse has been a challenge for the west of Scotland for years now, it is important that we better educate people on the dangers of alcohol when excessively consumed.
“We need to start discussing measures that could take the pressure off paramedics when dealing with this, including the possible role of temporary units in towns and cities to deal with those who’ve consumed too much, meaning they wouldn’t need to go to A&E or trouble the ambulance service.