As thousands still wait more than the four-hour standard in Scotland’s A&E, the crisis in our NHS is far from over, warns Jackie Baillie.

A&E wait times remain dismal as only 68.6 percent of attendees were seen and admitted, transferred, or discharged within four hours. At the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley, just over two thirds (66.9 percent) of patients were dealt with within the Scottish Government’s own target time.

Attendance levels at the RAH were below 1000 patients for the fourth week in a row yet performance against the target is among the worst in the country.

Dumbarton constituency MSP Jackie Baillie said: “We may be through the worst of the winter in our A&E, but these dismal figures tell us that the crisis in our NHS is far from over.

“Just two thirds of patients at the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley, including people from Dumbarton, the Vale of Leven, Helensburgh and Lomond are being seen within the four-hour standard.

“Each week patients are being forced to wait for hours on end to receive treatment in A&E. Staff and patient safety is still at risk, and delayed discharge is at breaking point.

“The SNP have known for months now what they need to do to end this chaos yet there has been no sustained effort to tackle it.

“Humza Yousaf lauds every small improvement we see but then the next week it feels like we are back to square one. The Health Secretary also need to acknowledge that attendances are falling at A&E units and they must make sure that people are not slipping through the net because they don’t want to bother hard-pressed healthcare staff.

“When nearly a third of patients are waiting too long at A&E, the SNP need to take serious action, sustain improvements, end delayed discharge and prioritise primary care so that illnesses can be treated before they reach A&E.”