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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Row over wheelchair funding plans | Row over wheelchair funding plans |
| (20 minutes later) | |
| Managers of Scotland's wheelchair services have threatened to pull out of talks over their future unless there is a commitment for more funding. | |
| A recent review of the NHS Wheelchair and Seating Service said funding for it should be doubled to £30m a year. | A recent review of the NHS Wheelchair and Seating Service said funding for it should be doubled to £30m a year. |
| But the Scottish Executive has pledged only a one-off payment of £1m. | But the Scottish Executive has pledged only a one-off payment of £1m. |
| Deputy Health Minister Lewis Macdonald said the importance of short-term funding to assist with immediate problems should not be underestimated. | |
| Services for Scotland's 96,000 wheelchair users have been under review since 1982. | Services for Scotland's 96,000 wheelchair users have been under review since 1982. |
| Staff say the service has been under-funded for even longer. | Staff say the service has been under-funded for even longer. |
| 'Serious reservations' | |
| BBC Scotland has learned that the service has refused to commit to any further discussions with the executive unless there is a promise of extra resources. | |
| Roseanne Urquhart, the chair of wheelchair users' umbrella group ReTSAG (Rehabilitation Technology Services Advisory Group), said significant investment was needed to improve "what must be one of the oldest fleets of wheelchairs in Western Europe". | |
| She said: "I have serious reservations about asking senior NHS managers to invest more time in committee work to determine how best to implement the recommendations of the independent review, without some indication from the Scottish Executive on how they intend to support the implementation of these recommendations." | |
| The latest review, commissioned last year by the executive, recommended a doubling of the budget. | The latest review, commissioned last year by the executive, recommended a doubling of the budget. |
| Managers claim this means they can only give out the most basic wheelchairs - which are so heavy and unwieldy that many people are left prisoners in their own homes. | Managers claim this means they can only give out the most basic wheelchairs - which are so heavy and unwieldy that many people are left prisoners in their own homes. |
| An additional £1m will help a little. It is short-term. It is not going to be repeated Andy MenziesInverness wheelchair services | An additional £1m will help a little. It is short-term. It is not going to be repeated Andy MenziesInverness wheelchair services |
| Dr Geoff Bardsley, the head of Tayside's Seating & Wheelchair Service, said the basic wheelchair cost £120 but some of the more complicated powered chairs could cost more than £5,000. | Dr Geoff Bardsley, the head of Tayside's Seating & Wheelchair Service, said the basic wheelchair cost £120 but some of the more complicated powered chairs could cost more than £5,000. |
| He has an average budget of £166 per person. | He has an average budget of £166 per person. |
| The manager of wheelchair services based in Inverness, Andy Menzies, was not impressed by the extra £1m from the health minister. | The manager of wheelchair services based in Inverness, Andy Menzies, was not impressed by the extra £1m from the health minister. |
| He said: "An additional £1m will help a little. It is short-term. It is not going to be repeated. | He said: "An additional £1m will help a little. It is short-term. It is not going to be repeated. |
| "It is difficult to plan on that and in our particular case in Inverness it probably amounts to about £50,000." | "It is difficult to plan on that and in our particular case in Inverness it probably amounts to about £50,000." |
| Marie Parks, from Dumbarton, said her son Noah, who has cerebral palsy, applied for a new wheelchair in May last year. | Marie Parks, from Dumbarton, said her son Noah, who has cerebral palsy, applied for a new wheelchair in May last year. |
| "It was round about summer when he got his proper assessment. The wheelchair still was not reasy by December and eventually I ended up going up to the west of Scotland wheelchair service myself to say 'I'm taking it away'. | |
| "Actually when the wheelchair came he had already outgrown a part of it. Noah was almost falling out of the chair it was so small for him." | "Actually when the wheelchair came he had already outgrown a part of it. Noah was almost falling out of the chair it was so small for him." |
| Immediate problems | Immediate problems |
| The deputy health minister defended the £1m interim funding. | |
| Mr Macdonald said: "Don't underestimate the importance of making the interventions that allow the immediate problems to be addressed. | Mr Macdonald said: "Don't underestimate the importance of making the interventions that allow the immediate problems to be addressed. |
| "That's what we have done so that we can get to the point of the spending review where we are operating on the basis of a funded service that is delivering for patients' needs as quickly as we can. | "That's what we have done so that we can get to the point of the spending review where we are operating on the basis of a funded service that is delivering for patients' needs as quickly as we can. |
| "I'm not pretending that is a substitute for a long-term arrangement. I am saying it is important to recognise that short-term intervention makes a real difference." |