Edward Mountain launches campaign to secure a replacement for Raigmore hospital
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Highland MSP Edward Mountain has launched a campaign to secure a new general hospital to replace Raigmore.
He has also called on the trio of candidates to be the next First Minister to back the move before the Inverness Courier Leadership Debate a week today.
Mr Mountain said the region requires a new acute general hospital which is fit for the 21st century and which can more effectively answer the specialist healthcare needs of Highlanders.
Raigmore was opened in 1970 making it 53 years old and though still able to treat people well has seen better days with access to the site more challenging for emergency vehicles due to heavy traffic on Old Perth Road.
He wrote to Kate Forbes, Ash Regan and Humza Yousaf saying whoever becomes the next Scottish leader must make the construction of a new general hospital “a top priority.”
The MSP has written to each SNP leadership candidate asking them for their support, saying: “It’s time the Highlands had a new General Hospital and the next First Minister must make it a top priority.”
The Highland regional MSP has direct experience of Raigmore after a recent battle with bowel cancer, which he was very open about and used the illness to raise awareness about the warning signs among the public.
The latest effort is one of a series of campaigns by Mr Mountain, including several that concerned the NHS, like fairer hospital TV charges, Raigmore parking and Time to Talk.
“If the next First Minister is serious about supporting our region, then they should make a new Highland Hospital a top priority," he said:
“I campaigned for and welcomed the construction of the National Treatment Centre – Highland, but the modernising of the Highland’s health facilities can’t stop there.
“Indeed, the current Raigmore Hospital was not originally designed for all the healthcare needs it must meet today.
“While we’ve seen upgrades to the operating theatres in recent years and proposals to update the maternity unit, there comes a time when renovating an ageing building, which is no longer fit for purpose, is the wrong answer.
“That’s why we need a new hospital fit for the 21st century needs of the Highlands.
He added: “I am campaigning to ensure, whoever emerges as the winner of the SNP’s leadership contest, that this issue is at the top of their priority list moving forward.”
