THE Scottish Ambulance Service is aiming to halve the number of people taken to hospital by increasing the use of on-site treatment methods.
In a recent publication, the service announced a new model that would actively reduce the number of patients treated at accident and emergency departments.
The Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) argues the plans are to reduce the number of avoidable transfers for those who do not need them.
However, a separate report has also highlighted a need to make £12.2 million in efficiency savings.
The SAS currently responds to 500,000 call-outs each year with about 80% of those patients taken to hospital. Under new targets, the conveyance rate will be reduced to about 35% of emergency calls.
Life-threatening cases will not be affected as only less serious cases will be treated on site.
Alternatives to admittance include over- the-phone advice and referrals to local GPs.
Margaret Watt, chairwoman of the Scotland Patients' Association, described the proposal as a big risk to the provision of emergency care. She said: "There is a potential here for a serious misdiagnosis if someone is being treated over the phone."
Jackson Carlaw MSP, the health spokesman for the Scottish Conservatives, added: "There is certainly an issue over the sheer number of people who attend A&E, so many of whom don't need to be there."
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