Scottish Labour will promise to deliver a trauma centre for Dundee when it launches its manifesto on Wednesday, The Courier can reveal.
Kezia Dugdale’s party says its clear commitment to establish the centres in each of Scotland’s four biggest cities is at odds with the SNP’s “weasel words”.
The SNP pledged a “major trauma network” for Scotland, “utilising sites in Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, and Glasgow” in its manifesto last week.
That has been taken by Labour as an admission the North East will not get its own trauma centres, which treat the seriously injured including car crash and gunshot victims.
Jenny Marra, Labour’s spokeswoman for equality and Dundee West candidate, said: “In our manifesto on Wednesday, Labour will commit to four major trauma centres across Scotland, including in Dundee and Aberdeen. The NHS in the North East has been let down by the SNP and Labour will put this right.”
In 2014, the SNP’s then health secretary Alex Neil said four new major trauma centres would be set up in Dundee, Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow by the end of 2016.
Shona Robison, who is now in charge of the brief, said earlier this year there was disagreement between doctors over the viability of regional centres.
Doctors raised fears last month the trauma centres would only be built in the central belt, but some clinicians say pooling medical expertise in centralised units is more important than having regional ones.
The SNP’s manifesto reads: “We will create a major trauma network to reflect our unique geography, utilising sites in Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, and Glasgow.”
A major trauma centre (MTC) is a specialist hospital responsible for looking after the most seriously injured patients.
Major trauma networks connect the different stages of the treatment process, which includes ambulance response, MTC care and rehabilitation.
The Scottish Labour manifesto is being unveiled just eight days before the election on May 5.