The decision to cut funds for a youth crisis service in Edinburgh has been described as "short-sighted" by a leading doctor amid plans to expand the project in Glasgow.

NHS Lothian has cut funding for the Youth Navigator project, based at the Royal Hospital for Sick Children, which supports 12-16-year-olds who are treated in A&E for violence-related injuries, attempted suicide or self-harm.

The intervention aims to help prevent young people "self-medicating" with drugs or alcohol or offending.

The health board said it was waiting for an evaluation of the scheme, which is run by Medics against Violence, before it commits to long-term funding and it has closed the scheme to new referrals. 

Dr Christine Goodall, a director of the scheme and oral surgeon, said it had already been evaluated by an academic at Edinburgh University and showed promising results, although it is understood the report is not yet published.

She set up Medics against Violence after 12 years working in maxillofacial surgery treating patients with knife injuries. 

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Dr Goodall said she recognised the pressures on NHS funding but said the project was delivering positive outcomes.

"These are young people who seem to be carrying a lot of trauma and sometimes unfortunately that leads to them feeling like they want to end their lives," she said.

The Herald:

"Youth Navigator is just an attempt to get people earlier.

"Our concern for those young people is that if they don't get support at that stage, they potentially will start to self-medicate with alcohol and drugs and will become the navigator patients of the future (the project runs an adult service).

"They are not really embroiled in addiction or offending at a high level yet but that is what you are trying to head off at the pass.

"There is a lot of good evidence that if you have the support of a trusted adult during adolescence your ability to be resilient will be greater and hopefully the outcomes long-term will be better."

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The Glasgow and Edinburgh projects have supported more than 500 young people since they were launched. The Lothian service started taking referrals in July 2021

Young people are referred to Youth Navigator after being treated in hospital.

Support workers contact parents to get their consent to work with the young person in the community.

"Some of the underlying issues are to do with family life but it could be school. Bullying is a bit issue for young people," said Dr Goodall.

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"It's a bit of a slippery slope. If they don't get support for the trauma they are dealing with, it doesn't go away and then drugs become an option."

The project was set up with the help of paediatrician Alison McLuckie, who presented some findings to the health board at the end of the first year in 2021.

"We understood that that [year] was the pilot," said the director.

"The project has been evaluated. I haven't seen all the results but understand it's very positive."

She said there are plans to expand the Glasgow service, which has secured permanent funding and worked to support young people injured after a 14-year-old boy was stabbed to death at High Street train station.

A 17-year-old is to stand trial charged with killing Justin McLaughlin, 14, on October 16 2021.

"The [Glasgow] service probably see a bit more violence-related issues as you might expect but they are still seeing broadly the same issues," she said.