Routine psychiatric appointments are being cancelled in Angus as NHS Tayside struggles to recruit mental health specialists.
Patients have been sent letters by the Angus Health and Social Care Partnership apologising for the situation and explaining it is due to a national shortage of psychiatrists.
The partnership says it has been unable to fill two of its four community consultant psychiatry posts.
The health board’s remaining psychiatry consultants are being made available for emergency and urgent cover in all areas of Angus community mental health services.
It comes after shocking new waiting list figures showed 44 patients in Tayside had to wait 12 months to begin treatment for mental health issues in 2017/18 — with one person enduring a wait of nearly two years.
North East Scottish Conservative MSP Bill Bowman said he was concerned the issue would spread to other areas.
He said: “Residents elsewhere in Tayside may be affected because of the sudden unavailability of specialists.
“It is not as if there were a surfeit of consultants in Dundee or Perthshire to begin with.
“These letters come after a sudden spike was witnessed in the waiting times for psychological therapy within Tayside board area.
“This may be a preface to similar letters coming out across Tayside.
“These are all important planks in the treatment of mental illness.”
He said the Scottish Government’s “fixation” on centralising health services had led to major changes in general acute psychiatry.
Angus Health and Social Care Partnership said the recruitment issue was presenting a challenge for authorities across Scotland.
A spokesperson said: “There is a national shortage of some specialist staff, including psychiatrists.
“Despite extensive advertising, two community consultant psychiatric posts remain vacant in Angus.
“As result of this, we have reviewed the delivery of community mental health services and have temporarily prioritised some community appointments to enable us to continue to provide a service which best meets the needs of our patients.
“This will mean that for some patients routine appointments will be rescheduled. We apologise for this as we understand that this may be distressing for patients and their families.
“We would like to reassure the Angus communities that all patients requiring emergency or urgent appointments will continue to be seen as a priority.”
