NICOLA Sturgeon is under growing pressure to hold an inquiry into Scotland’s key children’s hospitals after cancer patients were forced to travel hours for treatment to avoid infections.

Labour said the country’s sickest children were being “let down time and time again” after it emerged infection problems in Glasgow meant patients having to go to Aberdeen.

It comes as Health Secretary Jeanne Freeman has appoints new boss to oversee the “safe delivery” of the delayed £160m Sick Kids hospital in Edinburgh.

The Daily Record reported patients at the Royal Hospital for Children in Glasgow had been moved to an adult ward in the adjacent £842m Queen Elizabeth University Hospital because of infection risks in their usual ward.

However that ward has now also closed because of infection concerns, and children have had to travel to NHS Grampian for treatment.

NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde health board said a “number of unusual infections” meant admissions were being diverted pending tests in ward 6A.

A spokeswoman said: “Based on clinical need, a small number of patients have either been diverted to NHS Lothian and NHS Grampian or are being treated elsewhere within Glasgow.”

A 10-year-old boy died after contracting a fungal infection linked to pigeon droppings at the four-year-old Glasgow hospital last December.

As the list of problems at the Glasgow and Edinburgh kids’ hospitals grows, Ms Freeman has agreed to meet parents of children with cancer worried about the Glasgow site.

They include Annemarie Kirkpatrick, whose daughter Stevie-Jo was struck with a rare bacteria while being treated at the QEUH for cancer, leaving lesions all over her body.

Alfie Rawson's daughter, three-year-old Paige, contracted a similar infection while also undergoing treatment for cancer.

On Sunday, the Herald revealed new details of the ventilation problems in Glasgow, where the systems do not change the air fast enough for low-immunity patients.

A leaked report revealed ceilings would need to be torn down and fixtures taken out of the children's cancer ward and the ventilation system replaced entirely.

Assessors estimated it would cost £2.8m and take at least a year to fix the one ward.

Labour MSP Monica Lennon said: “How long is this going to be allowed to continue?

“Scotland’s sickest children are being let down time and time again.

“Parents say they have lost confidence in our hospitals and the health boards. It’s a disgrace.

“Forcing the families of children with cancer to travel long distances to access care, adds unnecessary strain to an already difficult situation.

“Sick children should be able to find treatment close to their family and friends.

“Nicola Sturgeon must put patient safety before the SNP and finally agrees to an independent public inquiry into the crisis-hit QEUH and Edinburgh Sick Kids.”

LibDem MSP Alex Cole-Hamilton added: “We are now facing a situation in which there is serious disruption to children’s medical treatment in both Edinburgh and Glasgow. “Treating children so far from home is detrimental in many ways for patients and their families.

“The Health Secretary must ensure that these children and their families are appropriately supported to deal with these long journeys and disruption is kept to a minimum.”

The Scottish Government spokesman said Ms Freeman’s primary concern was the safety and wellbeing of all patients and their families.

"The Cabinet Secretary has instructed her officials to make arrangements for her to meet Mrs Kilpatrick and other families affected by the current situation as early as possible so she can hear directly of their concerns.

"Ms Freeman commissioned an independent review to look at the QEUH building's design, commissioning, handover and ongoing maintenance to establish how these matters contribute to effective infection prevention.

"In addition, the Cabinet Secretary also asked the Healthcare Environment Inspectorate to carry out an unannounced inspection of the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital site.”

Mr Freeman today appointed Mary Morgan, the current Director of Strategy, Performance and Service Transformation at NHS National Services Scotland, as Senior Programme Director on NHS Lothian’s stalled Royal Hospital for Children and Young People.

The £160m hospital, which was meant to open in 2013, was delayed for another year last week to allow a new ventilation system to be procured and installed.