POLICY: The Modern Outpatient

RCN Scotland response to the Scottish Government consultation on The Modern Outpatient: A Collaborative Approach 2017-2020

In broad terms, there are key messages in the Modern Outpatients document which align to RCN priorities. However, the document sets out an ambitious programme of reform in just three years. We are concerned that these aspirations are reliant on:

• Effective delivery of other national and local programmes of major change, which are at quite different stages of maturity
• The public accepting the assumption of a new model of care focused on far greater self-management and reliance on family/community supports, without clear indications of either the appetite for such change or the impact of this shift on Scotland’s significant health inequalities
• The relocation of work across settings and professions at a time of significant resource restraints

If you have any comments or would like to find out more information then please contact the RCN Scotland Policy team by emailing them at policyscotland@rcn.org.uk or by filling in the attached feedback form and sending it to Policy, RCN Scotland, 42 South Oswald Road, Edinburgh, EH9 2HH