NHS Highland lost 40,000 nurse and midwife staff days due to ‘growing mental health crisis’ as Liberal Democrats say they ‘are being pushed beyond reasonable limits’
NHS Highland has lost 40,000 nurse and midwife staff days due to a “growing mental health crisis” in the last five years, according to the Liberal Democrats.
That is the equivalent of 107 years on shift – nationally the figure has hit one million days – amid warnings they “are being pushed beyond reasonable limits.”
David Green, the Caithness, Sutherland and Ross candidate, joined with party leader Alex Cole-Hamilton to call for action to support the frontline health workers.
The numbers rose in recent years with 11,501 days lost for nurses across NHS Highland in 2024/2025 – a 168.5 per cent increase from 4282 days in 2020/2021.
Midwives saw a 21.6 per cent spike over the same period, an increase from 564 days to 719 as experts warn about rising stress due to workload issues.
A Royal College of Nursing Scotland report published this year stated that “excessive workloads, low staffing levels, the impact of staff not getting breaks and heightened pressures all have consequences for the health and wellbeing of nursing staff.”
A report earlier this year found that Scotland’s NHS has “at no point” employed sufficient nursing staff to be able to deliver safe and effective care – legislation on safe staffing came into force in 2024.
Mr Green said: “With increasing levels of staff absences due to mental ill-health, nurses and midwives are being pushed beyond reasonable limits.
“While they work incredibly hard, an increasing workload is causing real problems with stress and having a serious knock on impact for both retention and recruitment. That isn’t good for them or their patients.
“The Scottish Government must wrestle with burnout and why their recovery plan isn’t working as it needs to. We need to put the experience and expertise of those who know our NHS services best at the heart of planning.”
Mr Cole-Hamilton, who is also the party’s health spokesperson, said: “Scottish Liberal Democrats have been raising concerns for years now about the stress and pressure that NHS staff are under.
“We believe Scotland deserves better than this. SNP health secretaries have come and gone but on their watch the situation is simply getting better. Mental health is still treated like a second class service.
“I want staff and patients to know that my party is on their side and we have a realistic plan to get things done. We want to deliver first-rate health care and an end to staff being run ragged on every shift so you can see your GP, dentist or mental health professional when you need them.
“The coming election is an opportunity for change with fairness at its heart and with the Scottish Liberal Democrats, you can vote for it.”
The story was broken by the Daily Record where health secretary Neil Gray said: “We are working to make Scotland the best place for nurses and midwives to work.
“Our NHS staff do incredible work every day, often in very challenging circumstances, and their welfare and mental health is a top priority.”