NHS to offer free ferry tickets to patients travelling to Lerwick Health Centre

Bressay residents heading to Lerwick for a health centre appointment will now be able to get their ferry fare covered by the NHS under a new six-month pilot scheme.

NHS Shetland said straight after their appointment at Lerwick Health Centre patients will be asked if they are returning to Bressay.

If this is the case then they will be issued with a ferry ticket.

A spokesperson for NHS Shetland said: “Currently, the scheme is designed for patients who are required to travel from Bressay to attend a primary care appointment and would otherwise not travel off Bressay and who are returning straight after the appointment and on the same day.

“Hospital appointments or appointments for podiatry or physiotherapy services, for example, are not included.

“A mix of tickets will be available depending on how patients usually travel.

“Patients will be asked to complete a form at the health centre reception in order for a ticket to be issued to them.”

Lerwick North and Bressay councillor Stephen Leask said he was glad to see the initiative being piloted.

“I feel we must make all aware of the inequalities the residents of Bressay face on a daily basis,” he said.

“I feel this pilot should be the future continuous model for the community, so there is no imbalance and disparity for the folk of Bressay regarding the priorities of their health care.”

Leask said Bressay folk have to “rely on Lerwick” for services like education and healthcare.

“For Bressay you’re always going to have to use the ferry to get across to Lerwick,” he said.

In a letter to the Bressay Community Council NHS Shetland chief executive Brian Chittick said the pilot was being undertaken after conversations with the council regarding a ferry fare review.

He said the aim of the pilot is to see if the scheme is workable and viable.

Chittick highlighted how NHS Shetland is not required to pay for transport for patients.

“We are undertaking this pilot as a part of our working in partnership workstream to tackle inequalities,” he wrote, “and I hope that this pilot demonstrates that NHS Shetland has listened.”

Chittick added: “I think it should be stated that we are focusing our pilot just within Bressay because most of the other outer isles have more readily access to residential nurses or health care support workers whereas Bressay has a monthly visiting service.

“There is no additional resource to roll this pilot out to other areas at this time as we simply are not funded to provide this additionality.

“Part of the pilot will focus on whether we can demonstrate the best value within the pilot.

“I think that it is important to understand that in the current fiscal position nationally (which affects our funding) that if the pilot is deemed not to align to best value principles or is financially unsustainable then it will not continue.”

An NHS Shetland spokesperson added that it is hoped the scheme will complement the drop-in service at the living well hub based at Speldiburn.