Scottish Labour MSP warns Forth Valley unfilled CAMHS roles damaging health service
Concerns over vacancies in CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service) in Forth Valley have been raised by a Labour MSP.
A Freedom of Information (FOI) request by Central Scotland and Lothians West MSP Jenny Young revealed that 56 per cent of CAMHS positions in NHS Forth Valley remain unfilled.
The information obtained by the MSP disclosed there are ten unfilled positions within the CAMHS service including for a speech and language therapist, clinical psychologist and mental health nurse.
The response also detailed the amount of time several of the vacancies have been unfilled, with a speech and language therapist role remaining vacant for more than nine months.
In addition, a systemic therapist role has remained unfilled for 24 months and a consultant clinical psychologist role has stayed open for 26 months.
Ms Young raised the case of a constituent in the Scottish Parliament who was forced to pay privately for an ADHD diagnosis and medication after their case was rejected by CAMHS. The individual is now on a waiting list for the paediatric neurodevelopmental service.
She said: “There has been a huge rise in demand for CAMHS in recent years, but a service lacking over 50 per cent of the required staff will never be able to meet the demand.
“That leaves young people and families in limbo, waiting years for treatment, and it piles yet more pressure on staff who are already stretched too thin.
“So many constituents tell me they have endured long, stressful waits for CAMHS treatment. This revelation about the CAMHS workforce will shed a little bit more light on why they have had to wait so long.
However, an NHS Forth Valley spokesperson said the figures doesn’t accurately reflect the current vacancies situation.
They said: “The 56 per cent figure quoted does not reflect vacancies across the whole CAMHS service. The FOI response related primarily to psychology posts and was not intended to represent the full multidisciplinary CAMHS workforce.
“Across NHS Forth Valley CAMHS, there are currently 61.29 WTE established posts, with 9.6 WTE vacancies, representing an overall vacancy rate of 15.66 per cent.
“As with many health services across Scotland, we continue to experience recruitment challenges in some specialist roles, alongside wider financial pressures. However, recruitment is ongoing and a number of posts referenced in the FOI response are currently at different stages of the recruitment process.”
They added: “While we cannot comment on individual cases, referrals to CAMHS and the paediatric neurodevelopmental service are assessed against agreed clinical criteria to ensure children and young people are directed to the most appropriate service for their needs.
“We recognise the impact that waiting for assessment or treatment can have on children, young people and their families and continue to work across services to improve access, reduce waiting times and strengthen support pathways.
“Despite these challenges, CAMHS continues to provide assessment, treatment and support for children and young people across Forth Valley. We remain committed to strengthening our workforce and improving access to services for the children, young people and families who rely on our care.”