A SERIOUS bed blocking problem is adding to the struggle to treat patients in Scotland's capital, staff said yesterday.
Flagship hospital Edinburgh Royal Infirmary is said to be operating close to capacity and across NHS Lothian the equivalent of four 30-bed wards are full of patients "who should not be there".
Eddie Egan, employee director for NHS Lothian, said around 130 beds on an ongoing basis were occupied by patients well enough to go home but waiting for care packages in the community.
We moderate all comments on HeraldScotland on either a pre-moderated or post-moderated basis. If you're a relatively new user then your comments will be reviewed before publication and if we know you well then your comments will be subject to moderation only if other users or the moderators believe you've broken the rules, which are available here.
Moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours. Please be patient if your posts are not approved instantly.
