Hospitals across Courier Country are frequently operating with higher than recommended levels of bed occupancy, new data has suggested.
Queen Margaret Hospital in Dunfermline and Dundee’s Victoria Hospital have regularly had more than 85% of beds occupied since January 2013, according to figures compiled by the BBC.
It comes despite the Royal College of Physicians warning that 85% is the maximum level at which patients can be safely treated.
Occupancy rates at QMH failed to drop below 94% between January 2013 and March of this year, while the Victoria Hospital in Dundee operated within “safe” levels for just five months in the same period.
The data also showed that 61 surgical procedures at the Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy were cancelled in January 2013, with a further 67 the following month.
However, a spokesperson for the Scottish Government said that new bed management tools were being introduced across Scotland.
The spokesperson added: “While we recognise that peaks in demand may require some beds to be used flexibly at times, we want to ensure that all NHS boards are managing their capacity effectively throughout the year for the benefit of their patients.
“This includes flexibility to open extra beds in specialities experiencing high demand in a managed and clinically effective way.”
Bed occupancy rates regularly exceeded 85% at large hospitals in Glasgow and Edinburgh, while the Inverclyde Royal Hospital in Greenock reported a rate of 133% in April last year.
However, the data showed ample availability of medical beds across Tayside at Perth Royal Infirmary and Ninewells in Dundee.
The highest occupancy rate at PRI was in February 2013, where 92% of beds were taken, although figures tend to settle in the low eighties.
Figures for Ninewells were extremely positive, never reaching higher than 76% in terms of bed occupancy.