Nearly 100 mental health patients in the Borders have been sent to other health boards for treatment in the past three years, NHS Borders have confirmed.
Despite having a relatively small population, this was the 4th highest in Scotland, behind only NHS Fife, NHS Highlands and NHS Grampian.
Most patients were sent to NHS Lothian to access treatment, a round trip of 110 miles from NHS Borders, however some had to go as far as NHS Grampian, a 376m round trip, in order to access the mental health service they needed.
The Freedom of Information request from the Scottish Conservatives, also showed that some young patients were being transferred outside the Borders to access Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, Young Persons’ Mental Health unit and Eating Disorder Units.
Local Scottish Conservative politicians have said that while it was understandable that some patients had to travel to receive patient care, the numbers were too high given that mental health is supposed to be a priority issue for the Scottish Government.
John Lamont MP said: “It is understandable that in exceptional circumstances it will be in a patient’s best interest to be sent elsewhere for treatment.
“However, mental health patients can be very vulnerable and sending people away from their homes and families should be avoided where possible.
“It does seem that NHS Borders are sending patients to other parts of Scotland on a more regular basis than most health boards. This calls into question whether they are getting the support they need from the Scottish Government, who have claimed mental health is a priority.
“I am also concerned that those being sent elsewhere include vulnerable children and adolescents.”
Rachael Hamilton MSP added: “All sides of the political debate in Scotland agree that mental health should be treated as seriously as physical health. But if that’s to be the case, people need to be able to rely on their local health board for treatment as far as possible.
“These figures suggest that despite having a smaller population, NHS Borders is sending above average numbers of patients to other health boards. A round trip of 376 miles to access mental health treatment seems difficult to justify.
“In order to be able to get these figures down, the Scottish Government needs to do more to support NHS Borders in providing the specialist treatment patients need. Patients should have access to the best possible care here in the Borders, not elsewhere."
Commenting on their figures, Cliff Sharp, Medical Director at NHS Borders said: “NHS Borders aims to provide patient care within local services. In some circumstances, patients may require highly specialist interventions and care that cannot provided in the Borders.
“In these instances patients are referred to services within our regional network to receive the care that they require. In exceptional circumstances patients with complex needs may receive mental health care from services out with the network if this is the best option to accommodate their needs.”