Nurse calls for action on hospital parking

The Scotsman
15th June 06
Louise Gray

A STUDENT nurse who had to spend more than half her living allowance to pay for parking at the hospital where she worked called yesterday for a public inquiry into the excessive charges that are hitting patients, staff and visitors to hospitals across Scotland.
Louise MacLeod, a mother of three, needed to drive to work to meet her child-care needs. She spent up to £4,000 of her £6,000 bursary on £46-a-week parking charges at Edinburgh's Royal Infirmary (RIE) over a two-year placement.

Now fully trained, she, like many nurses, is reluctant to take a job at the hospital because of the high parking fees.
In the past, patients have been charged up to £1,600 for visiting ill relatives over a prolonged period at the RIE, where it costs £10 to park for the day.
An investigation by The Scotsman found the charge varies from £1 to £7 a day in other hospitals across Scotland, despite Executive guidelines advising boards against charging patients or relatives of severely ill patients.
An ongoing inquiry into hospital parking charges by the health committee recently branded the practice "morally wrong", and yesterday the public petitions committee agreed that it was an "absolute disgrace".
Ms MacLeod and union representatives called for action, rather than further discussion of the issue by bringing forward a public inquiry into parking charges at Scottish hospitals as soon as possible.
The PFI-built RIE charges the most for parking in Scotland at £10 for more than six hours, compared with £1 per day at St John's in Livingston and £7 for more than four hours at the Western General in Edinburgh.
Other hospitals that charge include Glasgow Royal Infirmary at £1 per hour and Dundee's Ninewells Hospital at £1.50 a day.