NHS Ayrshire's delayed discharge crisis driven by South Ayrshire's reliance on private care

dailyrecord.co.uk:

There were almost five times as many delayed hospital discharges in South Ayrshire than in East Ayrshire according to recent health board figures.While the focus has been on delayed discharges role in Ayrshire hospitals being close to capacity, the gap in performance between the three authorities in the NHS Ayrshire and Arran boundaries is striking.Delayed discharges occur when patients who are medically fit to leave hospital cannot - due to insufficient care or accommodation.This often means that other patients are unable to get treatment until beds are freed up.Last week, Labour MSP Colin Smyth revealed that the 'bed blocking' had cost NHS Ayrshire and Arran £12,777,210, with a total of 46,044 bed days 'lost' in 2021/22.The Health and Social Care Partnerships associated with each authority are responsible for addressing issues that lead to delayed discharges, with NHS Ayrshire and Arran Health Board figures revealing that South Ayrshire is responsible for the vast majority of delays.In September 2022, a total of 5,975 bed days were lost across NHS Ayrshire and Arran.

South Ayrshire was responsible for 3,408 (57 per cent) of these. North Ayrshire lost 1,834 (30 per cent) days while East Ayrshire lost 733 (13 per cent).The disparity becomes even more apparent when it comes to the number of patients having to be kept in hospital for more than two weeks.East Ayrshire stands out as having had no patients delayed for more than two weeks, bar one month in 2018.In comparison, South Ayrshire accounted for around three quarters of the delayed discharges in Ayrshire in September 2022, with North Ayrshire making up the remaining 25 per cent.Total delayed discharges for September 2022 stood at 191, with 111 in South Ayrshire, 53 in