THE staffing crisis in Scotland’s health service is spiralling out of control, new figures have revealed.

Data released by ISD Scotland shows that there are 2,812.7 WTE nursing and midwifery posts were unfilled across Scotland as of 31 March 2018. In Greater Glasgow and Clyde alone there were 564.1 WTE nursing and midwifery vacancies.

The number of vacant nursing and midwifery posts has increased rapidly, and there is now more than 14 times the amount of vacant posts in Greater Glasgow and Clyde than there was in 2011. For 2010-11 just 90.6 WTE nursing and midwifery vacancies were recorded across Scotland and just 39.9 WTE vacancies in NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.

Dumbarton MSP Jackie Baillie said: "Recent surveys have shown that only a third of NHS staff believe that there are enough of them to do their jobs properly. The significant increase in nursing and midwifery posts in NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde demonstrates that staff are right to be concerned, our health service is under significant strain."

Liberal Democrat Health spokesman Alex Cole-Hamilton added: “The diagnosis from health professionals is clear. It once again shows that they are stretched on every shift.

“They are battling to stay on top of their workloads which is why, when additional obstacles such as bad weather or flu come along, they simply don’t have the spare capacity needed.”

However, figures also showed a significant rise in the number of staff who were prepared to speak out if they suspected wrongdoing or negligence. A total of 65 per cent said they felt safe to do so, a rise of 9 per cent on 2015.

Health Secretary Shona Robison also highlighted findings suggesting that a clear majority of NHS workers would recommend it as a good place to work and felt their views were being heard.

“We gathered more views in one year than any of the previous staff surveys, almost three times as many compared to 2015," said Ms Robison.