Iain Smith

MORE than 7000 people have signed a petition calling for better parking and transport links for patients and staff at Glasgow's new multi-million flagship hospital.

Campaigners claim that poor facilities at the site of £842 million state of the art New South Glasgow University Hospital, which opens in May, will affect patient care and leave workers struggling to reach their shifts on time.

The expansion will see a 1,109-bed hospital and a 256-bed Royal Hospital for Sick Children on the site in Govan.

But the influx of extra patients has been highlighted by the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), who are planning to present the petition at a meeting of the local health board, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Health Board (NHSGGC) tomorrow and are also calling on Glasgow City Council to help.

Anne Thomson, senior officer for the RCN in Greater Glasgow, said: "The new hospital is going to be state of the art and is fantastic news for patient care. However, if nurses and others can't get to work in time for their shifts because parking and public transport are inadequate, the care the hospital offers will be undermined.

"We have repeatedly pressed the health board and council for solutions to this, but with eight weeks to go, our members still don't know how they are going to get to work.

"Some will have to set off the night before their 8.30am shift if they are to get to work on time via public transport, which is clearly ludicrous."

People arriving at the current Southern General site already have to park on the street if there are no spaces in the free car-parks.

The nearest Subway station is at Govan Cross and Cardonald railway station is around a 20 minutes walk away.

The Scottish Conservatives have backed the RCN's petition and urged NHSGGC to do all they can to ensure the opinions of staff are taken into account.

The party's health spokesman Jackson Carlaw said: "Staff cannot make shifts using public transport that does not exist or which is so complicated it involves an unreasonable number of changes.

"Also, patients using the maternity hospital on site are also complaining of not being able to park when rushing to the hospital with mothers in the throes of delivery.

"We cannot afford a brand new hospital devoid of qualified staff nor a hospital to which access is only convenient for a minority."

The campus replaces Yorkhill Sick Kids Hospital, the Southern General Hospital, which is on the same site, Western and Victoria Infirmaries and Mansionhouse Unit.

The first patients will begin arriving in April, with the transfer of outpatients from the Southern General along with GP out-of-hours, therapy department and renal dialysis from the Western and Royal Infirmaries.

The Southern General inpatients department will the move to the new complex, along with the emergency department, theatres, intensive therapy unit and high dependency units.

A number of other transfer dates have been set down until mid June when the NSGH becomes fully operational following the transfer of the Royal Hospital for Sick Children.

By then, the hospital will be a base for up to 10,000 staff, with space for around 1300 patients.

However, the question of inadequate transport links remains a contentious subject as last week the RCN warned that a number of workers are considering resignation due to transport concerns.

NHSGCC said it is looking at a number of ways to invest in both transport and parking infrastructure.

Rosslyn Crocket, Nurse Director, said: "The RCN needs to understand that the parking policy is Monday to Friday between 8am and 5pm and nurses working at night and at the weekend will be able to park on site as is the case at the moment.

"The number of spaces we can provide is regulated nationally by the campus carbon sustainability plan and the green travel plan."

She added: "We are investing £5.2m as part of a detailed travel plan and are working closely in partnership Strathclyde Partnership for Transport and Glasgow City Council to ensure that the investment is targeted at communities where there is currently insufficient public transport.

"We have also been working closely with the council and a planning application has been submitted to increase the car parking capacity by a further temporary 500 spaces."

The Scottish Government has funded a new bus service, but the Fastlink shuttle service will not be up and running by the end of April.