| A £27 million funding package, aimed at bringing health services closer to patients and encouraging joint working between public agencies, was announced by the Executive today.
Dundee Community Health Service Centre was awarded £1.2 million, which will help fund the refurbishment of Ward 9 at Kings Cross Hospital to facilitate the relocation of the adult audiology unit at Ninewells and the paediatric audiology facility at Ryehill Health Centre in the city.
The renovation will also enable the community therapy and rehabilitation service to move into more modern premises at Kings Cross that will better fit its purpose.
The money will allow 10 dental chairs with NHS salaried dentists to be installed at Kings Cross. Some will cover general dental care, while four chairs will be used by the dental school for training purposes.
The announcement comes as the long- running dispute over a shortage of NHS dental services continues. In Tayside, little over half of the adult population and more than one quarter of children are not registered with an NHS dentist.
In addition, £250,000 was given to a joint health and education facility, which will be based at Menzieshill High School, Dundee.
The service will address significant health inequalities experienced by young people in the area. It will operate as a drop-in centre for people of all ages and be used by people throughout the city.
Volunteer Service Angus, based in Arbroath, was given £20,000, which will help the voluntary sector complement health services.
The Primary and Community Care Premises Modernisation Programme has been ongoing since 1999. A total of £65 million has been approved for the period 2006-08.
The first funding package of £30 million was targeted at dentistry, and allocations were announced in January this year.
A total of 21 projects across 10 health board areas share the cash from the Primary and Community Care Premises Modernisation Programme — targeted at developing modern facilities with a particular focus on delivering health improvements in areas of deprivation.
Health Minister Andy Kerr said, “The vast majority of our healthcare is already delivered in the community.
“As we have recognised in Delivering for Health there is, however, still the potential for further improvements in patient care by bringing even more services into the community and stimulating joint working with local authorities and other public agencies.
“This programme supports a wide range of infrastructure projects.
“They all have one thing in common — they are aimed at providing better and quicker health services for patients in their own communities.” |
