NHS Highland falls behind national child and adolescent mental health treatment times as Scotland reaches target for the first time as wellbeing minister and far north MSP Maree Todd hails ‘encouraging’ figures
The Highlands still lag behind the rest of Scotland when it comes to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) service treatment target times.
The Scottish Government revealed it met its own CAMHS standard for the first time between October and December last year since it was set back in 2014.
The treatment target time is for 90 per cent of patients to receive a referral within 18 weeks.
The figures for the for NHS Highland tell a different story as they show that for the same period just 67.8 per cent of referrals were made within 18 weeks.
The waiting times are broken down into yearly quarters and then waiting period times: the target 0-18 weeks; 19-35 weeks; 36-52 weeks; and 53 weeks and more.
Using the same numbers provided, it is clear that they do not apply to the Highlands where the number of referrals to CAMHS actually fell.
For NHS Highland, those seen within 18 weeks in the October-December of 2024 stood at just 67.8 per cent – that is 22.8 per cent behind the national rate.
It also shows a decline on the same period in 2023 when the figure was 71.5 per cent but the numbers have seesawed up and down over that time.
Also compared to the national rates, the north health board had more than four times as many people in the 36-52 week and 53 week and more waiting periods.
Far north MSP and wellbeing minister Maree Todd did not address that directly but seemed to recognise the discrepancy between the national picture and the local one.
She said: “Clearly, reaching the national standard is encouraging but I know there is much more to be done if this is to be sustained and consistent across Scotland”.
“This continued progress is testament to the dedication of the staff who work so hard to help the children and young people they care for.
“We want everyone to get the support they need, when they need it.
However, we are on the right path and the £123 million we have allocated to NHS Boards this year will mean the quality and delivery of all mental health services – including CAMHS - will continue to improve.”
