The lack of child bereavement counsellors in the NHS exposes the “brutal reality” of under-staffing, says Labour.
Nine of the 14 health boards said they did not have a full-time counsellor who is dedicated to supporting those who have lost a child.
Mary Fee, the Labour MSP, said: “It is surely self-evident that our health service should provide specialist counsellors for parents having to go through this kind of tragedy.
“This is the brutal reality of the under-staffing and under-resourcing of our NHS under the SNP.”
Tayside initially said in a freedom of information response they did not have one, but told The Courier they employ a maternity and neonatal bereavement counsellor, who performs the same role.
NHS Fife took on a bereavement specialist midwife in October in partnership with the charity Fife Sands.
Health Secretary Shona Robison said there is a long list of charities, such as Scottish Cot Death Trust and SiMBA, which support bereaved families.
She said they work closely with health professionals, who are “trained at both under and post-graduate level in bereavement care themselves”.
“Any miscarriage, stillbirth or loss of a baby is a tragedy for the family involved and our sympathies are always with them,” Ms Robison added.
