No gain from extra NHS spending

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Higher spending on health services in Scotland is failing to achieve any clear results, a new report has claimed.

According to government figures, £200 per head more is spent on health in Scotland than in England. The extra cash has traditionally been explained by the different demands of population spread and poverty and the latest figures show spending on health in Scotland has doubled over the past 10 years. Staffing levels north of the border are also about 30 per cent higher than those in England.

But a report by the Centre for Public Policy in the Regions has revealed a "mysterious Scottish effect" which went beyond deprivation and made Scots sicker and more likely to die early.

The study by the CPPR and auditors KPMG found that despite improvements in death rates from cancer, heart disease and strokes in Scotland, there had been similar improvements in other countries.

John McLaren, of CPPR, said: "Our research has shown that while health spending and staffing levels per head in Scotland appear to be greater than in England, we are not experiencing the improved health outcomes that might have been hoped would have followed.

"This could be due to worsening needs in Scotland relative to England, for example due to differing behavioural patterns, but at present it is difficult to convert any such higher needs into extra costs."

Jenny Stewart, head of public sector for KPMG in Scotland, said: "We are now spending just short of £2,000 per head per year on the NHS in Scotland - some £212 to £267 per head more than in England. Huge improvements have been made in death rates, particularly cancer, heart disease and strokes, but the rate of improvement is no more than other countries.

"Given that funding will become ever tighter - while demand increases - we need to find more innovative ways to secure better health outcomes and focus strongly on productivity."