THERE’S a staffing crisis in the NHS. We have many hard-working and dedicated NHS staff in Inverclyde but they are under pressure as a result of workforce shortages.

Time and again the SNP government say they are protecting the NHS but for patients and staff on the frontline the reality is somewhat different.

Don’t just take my word for it. Here are the facts on the NHS staffing crisis.

A hard-hitting report by the government spending watchdog, Audit Scotland, found that the NHS has had to double spending on agency staff since 2011/12 to plug gaps in the workforce. One in three NHS staff are now over the age of 50.

The vacancy rate in nursing and midwifery is now 4.5 per cent — up from 1.8 per cent in 2011/12.

For consultants the vacancy rate is 7.4 per cent –— up from 3.6 per cent over the same period.

In evidence to the Scottish Parliament’s Health Committee, the Royal College of Nursing warned that half of nurses believe patient care is being compromised by staff shortages.

A report by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health found that one in four Scottish paediatric inpatient units, and more than 40 per cent of Scottish neonatal units, closed their doors to new admissions in the 12 months to October 2015, again due to concerns over staffing.

In the face of the crisis, the first instinct of the health board bosses and government ministers seems to be to centralise.

Cuts and closures, instead of recruitment, reform and investment. Just look at proposals we have seen recently for yet more centralisation away from the IRH and out of Inverclyde.

There has to be a different way of doing things, a better balance to be struck. My Labour colleague and Shadow Health Secretary, Anas Sarwar MSP, met with Inverclyde Labour last weekend and he spoke about an alternative way forward for the NHS.

He has established an expert-led commission to address the staff shortages and skills gaps that the professionals tell us are blighting the health service.

The NHS Workforce Commission, under the chairmanship of Dr Miles Mack from the Royal College of GPs, will consider how best to decide the appropriate number of training places for health care workers, how to attract and retain students through enhanced support and how to improve staff morale.

Dr Mack and his commission will remain independent and politically neutral but their recommendations will nonetheless guide Scottish Labour, and I hope the Scottish Government too, as we find solutions to the NHS staffing crisis and put the workforce on a stronger footing for the future.