Trainee nurses may be unable to travel to Dundee if their Kirkcaldy-based course is scrapped, a Fife councillor has warned.
David Ross was reacting to the announcement by Dundee University that it is considering the future of its mental health nursing programme after a fall in student numbers. Options include doing all the training on one site.
The university has briefed Fife politicians on its review, with nursing school dean Professor Margaret Smith saying one possibility is moving staff and students to Dundee. She has given an assurance that academic posts will not be lost.
Mr Ross, the Labour councillor for Kirkcaldy, is concerned about the impact of a transfer.
”The Dundee University campus in Kirkcaldy has a proud history of delivering high-quality training programmes over many years,” he said. ”It would be a huge loss to our town if the mental health programme is moved.
”Travelling to Dundee every day is simply not an option for many students who live locally, particularly those with young children.”
Mr Ross added that it was ”grossly unfair” that people in Fife who wanted to learn new skills could be ”forced to bear the brunt of SNP cuts”.
Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon announced that the intake for nursing students for 2012-13 would be cut by 270 places.
Labour MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife Claire Baker said: ”The SNP Government has imposed a 10% cut in the number of students starting a nursing or midwifery degree next year and this comes on top of a 12% cut this year, meaning that total nursing and midwifery student intake numbers will be the lowest for 15 years.
”When you consider how long waiting lists are for mental health services, the SNP Government’s decision to cut nurse training places is short-sighted at best. But what’s most concerning for me is the impact that SNP cuts are having on the lives of local people right here in Fife.”