A STRATEGY has been agreed to battle the major financial deficit faced by NHS Dumfries and Galloway – and with the public asked to play a key role.
Facing a £33.6 million shortfall in the new financial year, the Board today agreed decisive, fast-tracked savings measures alongside transformation aimed at longer-term efficiencies.
However, even with this scale of savings the NHS Board recognised that the plan did not yet meet the requirements set out by the Scottish Government, and that a further financial plan would be required by the start of June.
Explaining the situation, Director of Finance Katy Kerr said: “These are undoubtedly very difficult times for NHS D&G.
“In the 2025/26 financial year which has just started we are facing an unprecedented budget deficit of £33.6 million. This represents the gap between the funding available and what is needed to maintain services in their current form.
“And the budget for NHS Dumfries and Galloway is not part of an unlimited national pot — it is a fixed local budget. The Health Board is obliged to deliver services within the budget allocated to it from Scottish Government.
“We’ve now agreed a plan aimed at keeping our essential services running while we transition to new approaches informed by our budget.
“However, we’re asking everyone to help, as every pound in our region that is wasted is a pound that can’t be used for frontline healthcare.”
Ambitious savings target
The Board has set an ambitious target of achieving five per cent savings each year, including 3 per cent recurring savings which equates to £21.3 million for 2025/26.
A range of moves are intended to achieve this, including work around medicines waste which is estimated to cost the Board more than £1 million every year. It is estimated that savings of £4 million can be released from medicines efficiencies alone.
However, saving money in the short term isn’t enough — the whole system needs to become more efficient.
The NHS Board discussed the impact of people remaining in hospital longer than necessary while they await social care packages.
And Interim Chair Marsali Caig voiced her disappointment at the lack of additional investment into social care during the recent local authority budget-settlement process.
She said: “Given our big challenge in getting people out of hospital who no longer need to be here, and the flow through our hospital services with delayed transfers of care and lack of capacity in social care, I’m disappointed in the settlement.”
NHS Dumfries and Galloway is pushing ahead with plans to make sure services are efficient, effective, and built to last. That means making sure people get the right care in the right place, using new technology to streamline services, and working with other NHS Boards to share solutions.
Your NHS needs you!
Tough choices have to be made to improve the financial position while ensuring that key services continue to deliver safe and effective patient care. The good news? You can help.
Katy Kerr said: “Every pound wasted on medication is a pound that could be spent on doctors, nurses, or hospital care.
“We don’t have an unlimited resources — if it’s spent on something unnecessary, it’s not there for something essential.”
The Board is launching a campaign urging people to only order the medicine they need. It’s a small change that when added together could make a massive difference.
The NHS cannot do this alone. Every choice counts. Watch out for more updates on how you can play your part in protecting the future of healthcare in Dumfries and Galloway.
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