Highlands and Islands MSP, Edward Mountain MSP has called out the Minister for Children and Young People for letting down children with disabilities in the Highlands.
On Monday, the Press & Journal reported that coronavirus-related delays have seen over 460 children left on NHS Highland’s waiting lists for neurodevelopmental assessment.
The Minister for Children and Young People today admitted that Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services have faced “operational difficulties” as a result of the pandemic.
Edward Mountain MSP raised the issue during Education and Skills Questions at the Scottish Parliament.
Edward Mountain MSP asked:
“NHS Highland have confirmed that, as at 16 December 2020, 463 children are on the waiting list waiting for a neurodevelopmental assessment, with a waiting time of 18 months.
“These children just simply cannot be getting the best educational start in life that they should be. Therefore, Minister, can you confirm what actions are being taken to ensure children in this position will receive an appointment as quickly as possible to fully assess the additional support needs they obviously require?”
The Minister for Children and Young People said:
“We acknowledge the obvious operational difficulties that the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services may be having due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the associated restrictions. Whilst boards have responded very creatively to continue to treat significant numbers of children and young people, their priority has been to ensure that emergency and urgent cases are seen. And that means that regrettably some people have had to wait longer.
“CAMHS are now working hard to return to previous activity levels and to deal with any backlogs that have developed and we see this in the most recent waiting times figures. So, CAMHS activity is higher now than in the same period last year. Boards also increased access to CAMHS services online and CAMHS are now the largest mental health user of NHS Scotland’s video conferencing platform, NHS Near Me.”
The Minister added: “It is really important to stress that children do not need a formal assessment or diagnosis to access additional support for learning. Where a child is identified as requiring extra support through practitioners’ observations or conversations with parents or carers, support should be put in place immediately even if the underlying reasons for this are still uncertain.”
Following Portfolio Questions, Edward Mountain MSP commented:
“The fact that children with learning disabilities are waiting more than 18 months for an appointment is far more than regrettable, it is absolutely unacceptable.
"These waiting times have happened under Maree Todd’s watch and she is letting down children with learning disabilities in the Highlands.
"We now need an urgent action plan to ensure children aren’t waiting 18 months or more for a neurodevelopmental assessment.
“The Scottish Government and NHS Highland must work together to ensure children with learning disabilities receive their appointments and diagnosis as soon as possible.”
