Local vaccination figures show that 80,066 people have been vaccinated in NHS Lothian, equivalent to 10.6% of the population over the age of 16.
Last week NHS Lothian said the Scottish Government vaccination figures were invalid, because they did not include vaccinations that had happened at GP practices in NHS Lothian.
At the Scottish Parliament on Tuesday Health Secretary Jeane Freeman admitted that “we do need to vaccinate faster in Scotland than we have been doing.”
Scotland is lagging behind the rest of the UK in the number of people vaccinated so far, with SNP Ministers rearranging their target for all over 70s to receive a letter to be vaccinated by the end of last week, to end of this week.
The delivery of vaccines to GP practices has been highlighted as a crucial area where the delivery of the vaccines is being held up, with GP practices limited to 100 vaccines doses a week.
Lothian MSP, Miles Briggs, said: “It is worrying that SNP Ministers are lagging behind other parts of the United Kingdom in the Covid-19 vaccine rollout.
“An efficient vaccination rollout is vital for protecting elderly and at risk people from Covid-19, but also so that our schools can fully reopen and businesses get going again.
“Every day that the vaccinations rollout is delayed is another day where pupils aren’t able to get back to school and businesses won’t be making any income.
“In NHS Lothian it is not clear whether GP practice vaccination numbers have been included in the total, and it is very concerning that SNP Ministers don’t know how many people have been vaccinated.”
The Conservative Lothians list MSP also expressed concern over Accident and Emergency waiting times figures released on Tuesday.
They revealed that 83.4% of patients were seen within the 4 hour waiting time target at A&E departments in Lothian, for the December 2020, the latest figures available.
The figure seen within 4 hours is comparable to December 2019, when 80.4% of patients were seen within the 4 hour standard in NHS Lothian, despite attendance dropping from 23,724 to 16,916.
The Royal College of Emergency Medicine warned that staff had been working relentlessly for 11 months and “Studies have shown many have face psychological distress, stress and even PTSD as a result of the pandemic.
Lothian MSP has called on SNP Ministers to step up their efforts to support NHS Lothian frontline staff, and said they that SNP Ministers have not done enough, despite unprecedented funding from the UK government to overcome Covid-19.
Mr Briggs said that members of the public also have a role to play in alleviating pressure on NHS services.
Lothian MSP, Miles Briggs, said: “NHS Lothian frontline staff have been working flat out to overcome Covid-19 for almost a year and we must all do everything we can to alleviate pressure on them as the Covid-19 vaccines is rolled out.
“It is important that people still go to A&E if they have an emergency, and not be put off by Covid-19, but people must make an appointment with their GP if they have a condition which doesn’t need immediate medical attention.”
“SNP Ministers have not done enough to support NHS Lothian frontline staff, despite record funding from the UK Government, with waiting times growing for A&E despite fewer people attending.
“Keeping socially distanced and following Covid-19 rules is crucial for a bit longer, as the vaccines is rolled out, so that our NHS doesn’t get overwhelmed.”
NHS Lothian attendance and waiting time figures:
https://beta.isdscotland.org/find-publications-and-data/health-services/hospital-care/ae-activity-and-waiting-times/ (in data tables)
NHS Lothian
| Episode and aggregate level data | Apr-2020 | May-2020 | Jun-2020 | Jul-2020 | Aug-2020 | Sep-2020 | Oct-2020 | Nov-2020 | Dec-2020 | |||
| Number of attendances | 12,030 | 16,150 | 17,737 | 18,984 | 21,136 | 20,470 | 19,328 | 17,776 | 16,916 | |||
| Total attendances for year to month | 271,907 | 263,517 | 257,058 | 251,908 | 247,864 | 243,117 | 237,364 | 230,625 | 223,817 | |||
| Rolling average attendance | 22,659 | 21,960 | 21,422 | 20,992 | 20,655 | 20,260 | 19,780 | 19,219 | 18,651 | |||
| Over 4 hours in A&E | 549 | 723 | 915 | 990 | 1,685 | 2,088 | 2,039 | 2,155 | 2,810 | |||
| % within 4 hours (month) | 95.4% | 95.5% | 94.8% | 94.8% | 92.0% | 89.8% | 89.5% | 87.9% | 83.4% | |||
| % within 4 hours (rolling annual) | 86.6% | 87.0% | 87.4% | 87.5% | 87.6% | 87.7% | 87.9% | 88.6% | 89.1% | |||
| Episode level data only | ||||||||||||
| Number of attendances | 11,980 | 16,073 | 17,601 | 18,911 | 20,999 | 20,411 | 19,262 | 17,696 | 16,851 | |||
| Over 8 hours in A&E | 24 | 24 | 50 | 57 | 92 | 202 | 231 | 219 | 481 | |||
| % within 8 hours (month) | 99.8% | 99.9% | 99.7% | 99.7% | 99.6% | 99.0% | 98.8% | 98.8% | 97.1% | |||
| Over 12 hours in A&E | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 10 | 39 | 26 | 37 | 124 | |||
| % within 12 hours (month) | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 99.8% | 99.9% | 99.8% | 99.3% | |||
| Episode and aggregate level data | Apr-2019 | May-2019 | Jun-2019 | Jul-2019 | Aug-2019 | Sep-2019 | Oct-2019 | Nov-2019 | Dec-2019 | Jan-2020 | Feb-2020 | Mar-2020 |
| Number of attendances | 23,831 | 24,540 | 24,196 | 24,134 | 25,180 | 25,217 | 25,081 | 24,515 | 23,724 | 23,617 | 21,909 | 17,764 |
| Total attendances for year to month | 282,525 | 282,583 | 283,569 | 284,742 | 285,857 | 287,956 | 289,785 | 290,805 | 290,817 | 290,699 | 290,349 | 283,708 |
| Rolling average attendance | 23,544 | 23,549 | 23,631 | 23,729 | 23,821 | 23,996 | 24,149 | 24,234 | 24,235 | 24,225 | 24,196 | 23,642 |
| Over 4 hours in A&E | 2,968 | 2,829 | 2,791 | 1,912 | 2,441 | 2,942 | 3,398 | 4,561 | 4,658 | 4,103 | 3,902 | 2,390 |
| % within 4 hours (month) | 87.5% | 88.5% | 88.5% | 92.1% | 90.3% | 88.3% | 86.5% | 81.4% | 80.4% | 82.6% | 82.2% | 86.5% |
| % within 4 hours (rolling annual) |
…
NOTE
The highest number of vaccinations in one day was recorded on Wednesday: 45,085 people had a jab, taking the total of those who have had a first injection to 694,347.