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UHI Can Help Transform Rural Health Services

NORTH MSP Mary Scanlon said she hopes the qualifications on rural health studies will help ease the burden on a struggling health service in the Highlands and Islands.

The Scottish Conservative communities� spokesman wrote to the UHI Millennium Institute to ask whether it had any plans to develop a rural healthcare facility, in light of the health minister confirming to Mary that it is up to organisations such as UHI to develop.

The UHI Millennium Institute�s response stated: �Meeting the educational and training needs of health care professionals in the Highlands and Islands is a top priority for us. Shortly we will be advertising a chair in remote and rural health care (funded by the Western Isles health Board) and a chair in health sciences (funded by Inverness Medical).

UHI currently offers a certificate, diploma and degree in rural health studies; a diploma and masters degree in infection control; and the programme in the care of the acutely ill.

She said: The threats of downgrading our hospital services in Fort William and Wick on top of the out-of-hours and consultant contract problems pose very serious problems for access to care and treatment for the Highlands and Islands.

�I welcome the professorship in rural health care and hope that this will focus attention on, and find answers to, the huge challenges currently facing NHS Highlands and the Islands.�