Shortage Of Nurses Hits Cancer Jab

A SHORTAGE of school nurses could delay Scotland’s largest immunisation programme to protect girls against cervical cancer, it was claimed yesterday.

Official figures show the number of school nurses dropped by almost a third from 305 to 221 between September 2005 and 2007.

Labour, who were in power until May last year, said the Government had broken a pledge to increase posts, a claim denied by the SNP. Dr Richard Simpson, Labour’s public health spokesman, said: “The SNP have broken yet another manifesto promise.

“Their 2007 manifesto promised to double the number of school nurses.”

Around 90,000 teenagers are expected to receive the cervical cancer vaccine, which is being introduced in Scotland a year ahead of the rest of the UK.

The programme will cost £64million over the next three years and has been described as “one of the biggest and most complex immunisation programmes” in Scotland.

It is designed to protect against the two types of HPV (Human Papilloma Virus) that cause 70 per cent of cervical cancer cases. The vaccine is not compulsory but will be offered to all girls who are under 18 when immunisation starts in September.

Dr Simpson added: “School nurses will be in the frontline of delivering the new HPV vaccine to protect Scotland’s young women from cervical cancer, and so this drop in numbers could not come at a worse time.” He called on Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon to come to Parliament and explain how the target on school nurses is going to be met.

The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) Scotland said it fully supported the campaign and would be pressing health boards to ensure they have enough skilled nurses to implement the programme effectively.

Norman Provan, associate director for employment relations at RCN Scotland, said: “RCN Scotland is examining in detail how boards will resource the HPV programme and, where their response is inadequate, will raise this with individual boards.”

The Scottish Government last night said the declining figures related to September 2007, just four months after the Holyrood elections. Public Health Minister Shona Robison described Labour’s claims as “wholly irresponsible” and added: “The decline in the number of school nurses referred to by Dr Simpson occurred between 2005 and 2007, for the most part under the previous administration.

“The Scottish Government is developing a healthcare support model for children and young people to increase the number of school nurses and meet its manifesto commitment.”