In response to the Account Commission briefing about Scotland’s Integration Joint Boards (IJBs), Katie MacGregor, Policy and Public Affairs Lead – Scotland, at the Royal College of Occupational Therapists, said:
‘It’s really concerning, yet not surprising, to read the figures published in this report about the funding gap for health and social care. Many of the issues identified in this research echo what we hear from members about community health and social care in Scotland.
‘The occupational therapy workforce is in crisis, and Integration Joint Boards and the Scottish Government need to take positive actions to urgently address these challenges and turn the tide.
‘It’s now even more important that we focus our efforts on prevention and early intervention to ensure we work to reduce the growing health inequality gaps and reduce the number of people who will need costly long-term care. We must work to address the causes, and not purely the symptoms, of this longstanding chronic underfunding.
‘That’s why we’re recommending the Scottish Government and Integration Joint Boards engage with membership bodies, the workforce, and people accessing services to develop budgets and strategic plans to ensure they use funds in the most efficient way and address the growing number of issues.’