A FIFE MSP has raised concerns about "dangerous staffing levels" in the Kingdom's hospitals.

Alex Rowley has spoken to Holyrood about "deeply worrying" allegations of understaffing and breaches of protocol in NHS Fife.

"I have serious concerns around the issues raised by the letter I have received from UNISON’s Fife Health Branch," he said

"It seems that this is no longer simply about undue pressure on health and care staff in Fife, this is about very serious allegations of dangerous staffing levels and working practices, breaches of health and safety regulations and deeply worrying allegations that serious incidents are not being recorded through the NHS incident reporting system."

The Labour MSP was warned of the issues in a letter from UNISON, the union which represents public services.

They further claim that despite the Health and Care (Staffing) (Scotland) Act becoming law in June 2019, it is not being implemented.

The Act was the first piece of legislation in the UK to set out requirements for safe staffing across both health and social care services.

Mr Rowley says it is "crucial" that the "full extent" of the changes are fulfilled and has written to the Chief Executive of NHS Fife about his concerns.

The service say they have not yet received the correspondence, Medical Director, Dr Christopher McKenna, commented: "The safety of those in our care is our single biggest priority, and we are unequivocal in our commitment to ensure healthcare services in Fife remain safe.

"We do not compromise on safety. Within our acute hospital, a daily safety huddle takes place with representatives from every ward to ensure staffing is in place across the entirety of the site, and this is continually monitored over the course of each day.

"Furthermore, we want to be clear that staff are not prevented from reporting serious issues on our DATIX incident reporting platform. Indeed, DATIX is used daily by healthcare staff to log a range of issues in order that these can be addressed and prevented from reoccurring in future.

"To help ensure services are as safe as possible, we work alongside our staff-side colleagues, including Unison, to listen to any feedback they have from their members about healthcare services and importantly to take action jointly to address issues raised.

"There has been considerable effort throughout the pandemic to support the health and wellbeing of our workforce, and the safety of both staff and patients. Many of the positive changes put in place have been developed and implemented in partnership with our colleagues from the trade unions and professional bodies, and we are grateful for their constructive challenge and support during the most difficult of circumstances."

Previously, the Press has received several reports from nurses across the Kingdom highlighting their concerns about staffing in NHS Fife facilities.

Last week, one worker warned that staffing levels were at "danger levels" in Dunfermline's Lynebank hospital, and that staff were being "verbally and physically" attacked.

Director of Nursing, Janette Owens, added: "Where individual staff have concerns about any aspect of their role, we listen, and there are well-established processes across NHS Scotland to ensure these experiences are captured, and can be looked into and addressed. This feedback plays a valuable part in helping us to improve the services we provide.

"Work will commence imminently on the implementation the Health and Care (Staffing) (Scotland) Act, which was delayed due to COVID-19 pandemic. The implementation of the Act is a significant piece of work, which will take a period of time to implement and firmly establish within our services. Importantly, healthcare staff will play a vital role is shaping how that legislation is enacted.

"We accept there have been, and continues to be, considerable pressures on staffing – this is despite significant recruitment over recent years, with the most recent statistics showing that we have a greater number of staff in post than ever before. Our extensive efforts to recruit and increase the size of our clinical workforce continues, and this includes looking beyond the boundaries of the UK to source experienced staff from other parts of the globe.

"We are, however, seeing a far higher demand for our services, with those presenting often more frail and more acutely unwell than we have seen previously, and thus requiring a greater intensity of care as a result. This is adding significant pressure to services, and places greater demands on those staff working on our frontline.

"The dedication shown by staff across our services over recent years is indescribable, and we recognise that very many have been working in hugely challenging environments for a sustained period of time. We recognise also that the ongoing welfare of staff is imperative and we continue to make as much support available as we possibly can, as we have done since the start of the pandemic."