MSP Jackie Baillie has called for a new health centre for Dumbarton to be delivered as an “urgent priority” after the ageing facility suffered flooding following sudden heavy rainfall. Interior ceilings collapsed as rainwater poured in, leaving areas of the facility unusable on Friday, June 26. Staff hurried to catch water in storage boxes and buckets to cope with the flooding.
MSP Demands Action
The Dumbarton MSP has been urging the Scottish Government to fund a replacement for the ageing Station Road health centre. She questioned Deputy First Minister Jenny Gilruth about funding for the site in the Scottish Parliament in recent weeks and secured a visit from then Cabinet Secretary for Health, Neil Gray, in January. However, the Dumbarton centre, opened in 1973, was not on the SNP Government’s priority list, despite it being a priority for NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde with a town centre site identified. Port Glasgow has instead been prioritised for funding.
Jackie said: “It has been clear for some time that a replacement health centre for Dumbarton is desperately needed. This should now be an urgent priority for the SNP Government and Greater Glasgow & Clyde Health Board. Staff and clinicians are clear that the facility is not fit for purpose – a view shared by patients. It cannot be right that the team at Dumbarton Health Centre are forced to resort to catching water in buckets every time it rains. This is not how modern healthcare should be provided and it is high time that a new health centre is delivered for patients in Dumbarton.”
Previous Damage and Comparisons
The Station Road facility suffered damage following Storm Eowyn in January last year. Ms Baillie favours a new town centre-based state-of-the-art replacement for the facility. She has written to both the Scottish Government and NHS bosses, seeking a commitment to replacement. Alexandria’s ageing Bank Street Medical Centre was replaced by the state-of-the-art Vale Centre for Health and Care in 2013. The modern facility in the grounds of the Vale of Leven Hospital now provides a base for combined medical, dental and support services. Clydebank’s 1970s Medical Centre was also replaced in 2022.
NHS Response
An NHSGGC spokesperson said: “Following exceptionally heavy rainfall on Friday, some areas within Dumbarton Health Centre were affected by water ingress. Estates teams attended promptly and remained on site until the situation was fully addressed. There has been no impact on patient care or service delivery. Affected areas have been cleaned and made safe, and repairs are now underway. All services continue to function as normal, with no disruption experienced.” On investment, they said: “NHSGGC remains committed to strengthening primary care facilities across our communities in the short, medium, and long term. We continue to work closely with the Scottish Government and their national investment programmes.”
Scottish Government Position
Health Secretary Angela Constance MSP said: “As Jackie Baillie knows, we are developing an NHS infrastructure plan which includes a programme of investment in primary care. We made this clear when we set out our budget in February which regrettably neither Jackie Baillie nor her Labour MSP colleagues voted for. Ms Baillie also failed to make the case for a new Dumbarton Health Centre during budget discussions with the SNP. We will continue to consider Dumbarton in the next phase of this programme and in the meantime, I hope Jackie Baillie and her Labour colleagues will welcome the progress we are making to deliver more services in communities through our walk-in GP services network, including one which will be delivered in Dumbarton.”
