Scottish Ambulance Service in recruitment drive to ease pressure

The Scottish Ambulance Service says it is "accelerating" staff recruitment to boost capacity after pressures caused by the Covid pandemic.

A total of 356 paramedics, technicians and ambulance care assistants will join the service by March.

The service faced high levels of demand and staff shortages in recent months.

Long waits for ambulances prompted the Scottish government to call in help from the Army and firefighters to drive some non-emergency vehicles.

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Between October and November, 179 new staff will have joined the Scottish Ambulance Service and a further 177 will be recruited by March 2022.

The new intake follows the recruitment and training of 210 staff over the last six months.

It brings the current total of frontline staff to 3266.

Soldiers were drafted in to drive non emergency vehicles.

Scottish Ambulance Service chief executive Pauline Howie said it was one of the most significant periods of pressure on the NHS since its inception.

She said: "We know that there will be little let up in those pressures over the next few months so we are accelerating our efforts to increase capacity and do everything we can to support staff.

"These new staff coming in will be a real boost."

Ms Howie said the service was taking a range of actions to reduce waits, including working closely with NHS boards to address hospital turnaround times.

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Survival figures for patients in the most acute response category have reached the highest ever level, Ms Howie said, and that was "a testament to the service's ability to deliver despite the wider pressures on the system".

The ambulance service said there had been a rise in the 30-day survival rate for the most seriously ill patients, with the latest data showing the number of people surviving is at its highest ever level.

It said that from January to May 2021, 30-day survival data steadily rose month on month to a high of 50.4% of people in this category.