HEALTH board chiefs are now saying they will carry out a full review into the future of the Inverclyde Royal's intensive care unit - when the pandemic is over.

This last development comes two months after NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde told the Tele that they had no plans to start treating 'level three patients' - the most critically ill - at the hospital again.

Last year health chiefs made a sudden and controversial decision to transfer patients in need of invasive ventilation to the Queen Elizabeth for treatment in response to Covid-19.

Local MSP Jamie Greene confronted Nicola Sturgeon about the changes and the future of Inverclyde Royal at Holyrood on Thursday.

The First Minister said she didn't believe the changes were permanent, which follows a Tele report after a top health civil servant indicated that the changes to the ICU would need to undergo a full consultation exercise.

Now Inverclyde MSP Stuart McMillan has released a private letter from the board's chief executive Jane Grant saying no decision was taken to make the ICU move permanent.

In a statement Greater Glasgow and Clyde Health Board said: "We continue to keep the model under review.

"When the NHS is no longer operating on an emergency footing, we will consider all options for the patient pathway.

"We are aware that the very important issue of the ICU at Inverclyde Royal was raised this week at First Minister’s Questions."

The Tele asked health chiefs in July when the intensive care unit would be fully reinstated and a spokesman said: "The current ICU model at Inverclyde Royal Hospital is working well and there are no current plans to change it."

This sparked a furious response from health campaigners, led by Councillor Chris McEleny, who demanded answers from the Health Secretary.

West Scotland MSP Mr Greene said: "Residents are rightly worried about the ongoing erosion of services, often without properly taking their views into account, which is why it’s vital that the Scottish Government confirm this chipping away will stop.

“In recent years, we have lost our ENT service, orthopaedic surgery, the physical disability rehabilitation unit and now trauma is being scaled back – the question on people’s minds is what is next?"

Before the Covid-19 pandemic hit, we revealed plans by Greater Glasgow and Clyde to review the future Inverclyde Royal's intensive care unit with a proposal to move level three patients out of the hospital.

At that time they were looking at moving level three to the RAH instead and keeping level one and two at Inverclyde Royal.

A Scottish Government official said at the time there were concerns about consultant and nursing vacancies.

Today a Glasgow and Clyde spokesman confirmed the patient pathway procedure would be further reviews.

They added: "We remain steadfast in our commitment to Inverclyde Royal Hospital. With this in mind, we will continue to ensure that the people of Inverclyde have access to the highest quality of care and the ICU at the hospital remains open and operational.

"The current patient pathway, which was introduced as part of our response to the pandemic, is working well for the small number of patients affected.

"The arrangements were introduced in the best interests of our patients, to treat the very sickest patients at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital where they could benefit from the wide range of expertise and specialties.

"Unfortunately we remain in the grip the pandemic and essentially on an emergency footing. This is consistent with Scottish Government guidance.

"We are still committed to looking at our future plans for this patient pathway when this situation improves and we move on from this state of emergency."