The SNP leader took aim at Sarwar after raised a report from the Royal College of Nurses (RCN) which detailed a “devastating collapse” in NHS services across the UK, including in Scotland.
Testimony of some 5000 NHS nurses, around 500 of whom were in Scotland, was brought up by both the Conservatives and Labour at FMQs.
Raising the report, Sarwar said: “The reality is we have a permanent crisis in the NHS on John Swinney’s watch, and the RCN report details the human cost of John Swinney and [Health Secretary] Neil Grey’s incompetence.
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“Nurses are delivering care in overcrowded or unsuitable places like corridors, cupboards, and even car parks on a daily basis.
“Staff are caring for multiple patients in a single corridor, unable to access oxygen, cardiac monitors and other life saving equipment. Patients are going into cardiac arrest while in a corridor.
“Incontinent patients are left with no privacy, and almost 90% of nurses say patient safety is being compromised.”
Swinney denied the conditions described in the RCN report were due to the SNP Government
NEW: John Swinney tears into Anas Sarwar at FMQs, saying he “epitomises the fundamental dishonesty of the Labour Party” 👇 pic.twitter.com/kW7Cd8jESs
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“What we are doing is we are focusing within the resources available to us on maximising the effectiveness of patient care for individuals,” he said.
“So what has the Government done in recent years? Well, the Government has, for example. Increased NHS staffing by 26.6% in the period in which we have been in office.
“We’ve increased consultant numbers, particularly in emergency care, we’ve also increased the capacity of NHS 24. We’ve introduced innovations such as ‘hospital at home’ to ensure that more patients are treated in the circumstances that best meet their circumstances.
“The Government will continue to innovate and reform to address the needs of the public, but there is a harsh reality about the increased demand that we are facing as a consequence of the upsurge in flu cases.”
Sarwar said it was not only a winter crisis caused by flu, but a permanent one.
He added: “The RCN in Scotland this morning said, and I quote, ‘this is a wake up call for the Scottish Government’.
“But clearly from John Swinney’s answers, he’s asleep at the wheel, and that’s why we need a change of direction in this country.”
Responding, the First Minister said Sarwar had delivered a slogan of “change” without any substance – and accused Labour of being dishonest with voters.
“I hear the slogan from Anas Sarwar every week, but I just want to point out to Parliament there wasn’t a single word of substance to back up the rhetoric of ‘new direction’ from Anas Sarwar,” Swinney said.
“The last word that Anas Sarwar used was change. He argued that a Labour government in London would change the circumstances for people in this country.
“Well, a Labour government didn’t change the circumstances for Waspi women in this country who’ve been betrayed by the Labour Party in the United Kingdom.
“Now the Secretary of State for Scotland was in Parliament yesterday and was telling us all that the people couldn’t cope with the honesty of the Labour Government.
“Well, I think on the basis of the last few months, what people in Scotland are waking up to is the fundamental dishonesty of the Labour Party – and Mr Sarwar epitomises it.”
Scottish Tory leader Russell Findlay also raised the RCN report with the First Minister.
He said there was a “stark disconnect between what SNP politicians think about the NHS and the reality of what the nurses are actually saying”.
Findlay went on: “Here’s a reality check. Some nurses are being forced to quit in desperation and disgust.
Scottish Conservative group leader Russell Findlay (Image: Holyrood TV) “A nurse of 10 years service said people are dying as a result of ambulances being held at hospitals.
“Another said, it’s disgusting and we’re on our knees, but nothing seems to be getting done.
“Another said, it breaks my heart at the pathetic care that we are able to give. It cannot continue. It’s absolutely heartbreaking.
“So when will this Government bring forward a serious plan to fix Scotland’s NHS?”
Swinney responded that “reforms were undertaken in the redesign of the urgent care programme in December 2020, and the independent evaluation of that programme has demonstrated that the patient experience from the redesign of urgent care has resulted in, for many patients, shorter waits”.
Swinney further said that the flu season had worsened the issues facing the NHS, but Findlay said the RCN report did not only cover the recent period.