Maternity services plan approved for Dr Gray's Hospital

Dr Gray's Hospital has had staffing issues

An action plan aimed at reinstating maternity services at Dr Gray's Hospital in Elgin has been approved.

Services were downgraded in July last year, with women considered to be at risk having to have their babies elsewhere, such as in Aberdeen.

NHS Grampian said it wants to gradually return to a full maternity service at Dr Gray's over the next 11 months, as staff are recruited.

The Scottish government has approved the action plan.

• Maternity downgrading comes into effect

There have been staffing issues for maternity and child care provision.

The plan would see the implementation of a 24-hour short-stay paediatric unit at Dr Gray's, which would be open seven days a week.

This is aimed at reducing the need for children to be transferred to Aberdeen.

Sue Swift, NHS Grampian's women and children's divisional general manager, said: "While this is an evolving plan that will need to be further refined and updated following public feedback on the paediatric model and the detailed financial analysis that will take place over the next couple of months, the approval from the Scottish government is a significant and welcome step forward."

NHS Grampian said it had already begun training and recruiting more than a dozen extra specialists.