CHILDREN across Scotland have been left “worried and waiting” for hospital treatment, with just one health board meeting target, paediatricians warned today.

The Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) detailed in their 2024 Worried and Waiting report that wait times doubled between 2012 and 2023, with almost half of all patients forced to wait over 12 weeks for treatment in 2023 compared with just 1 per cent in 2012.

Overall, waits have since fallen by 16 per cent, and waits over 12 weeks have fallen to 39 per cent.

But a year on, RCPCH has warned that 3,445 children still face that three-month wait as its report’s recommendations — including a call for a full review of the child health workforce to ensure it has the correct resources and funding available to tackle waiting times — continue to go unheeded.

RCPCH officer for Scotland, Mairi Stark said: “Despite some progress being made, no child should endure prolonged wait times.

“As a paediatrician, I have witnessed the profound harm these delays can inflict on children and their families, and how they can exacerbate long-term health inequalities.

“A 16 per cent decrease in children waiting reflects the fantastic efforts of the workforce, but ultimately the Scottish government’s failure to implement the recommendations we made in our Worried And Waiting report a year ago has hindered further progress.

“Children deserve substantial policy action now – they are Scotland’s future and cannot afford to wait for incremental improvements. We want to see the targets met across Scotland. Investing in children’s health today ensures a brighter, healthier future for all. The time to act is now.”

Scottish Labour Leader Anas Sarwar said: “The NHS in Scotland would be on life support without its hardworking and dedicated staff, yet under the SNP, that’s the direction we are heading.

“Scottish Labour will introduce a 10-year workforce plan that considers everything from encouraging students to study our much-needed specialisms to ensuring that trained specialists feel our NHS is somewhere they can learn and grow.”

A Scottish government spokesperson said: “We know many are facing unacceptable waits and we are determined to do more.

“That is why we are investing £200 million to reduce waits and enhance capacity. 

“We are making progress, with latest figures showing improvements in new outpatient, diagnostic and inpatient/day-case waiting times performance.”