The chair of the British Medical Association Scotland has warned coronavirus restrictions should be “considered” if cases rise again.
Dr Lewis Morrison said “the case needs to be made they would genuinely take the pressure off the NHS” if coronavirus restrictions are reintroduced.
He told BBC’s Good Morning Scotland that it would be a “mistake” to “single out Covid-19” as the reason behind the pressure facing the NHS.
The leader of the professional body in Scotland added there is “general pressure” facing the health service, along with staff shortages.
He said: “At any stage if cases start to rise again, reintroduction needs to be considered but it needs to be done in a way that takes everybody with that decision because I think people have had a very long 20 months.”
Health Secretary Humza Yousaf admitted on Sunday there is “absolutely a risk” of Covid cases rising after the COP26 summit in Glasgow.
However, he said the Scottish Government was not currently considering imposing more restrictions.
‘Not a sustainable situation’
The BMA Scotland chair told the BBC the use of the military to alleviate pressures on the NHS is “not a sustainable situation for months on end”.
The army has been deployed to help struggling hospital departments and drive ambulance vehicles.
It echoes remarks from UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace who cautioned political leaders across the UK against relying on the military to plug gaps beyond the immediate crisis.
Dr Morrison added: “At the moment, every health board is doing what it must to protect urgent and emergency care.
“I think we can expect that approach to continue right through the winter and it may require the help of other agencies such as the military at times in a variety of places.
“But I think the scale of the issue is not one that can be solved by some personnel from the armed forces.”