HEALTH secretary Alex Neil has pledged to learn first hand about standards of care in Scottish hospitals.

Speaking at his first major conference since being appointed this month, Mr Neil said he would carry out a series of visits to staff including paramedics, ward nurses and staff involved in elderly care.

He outlined the plans at a nursing conference in Glasgow organised by Unison and said visits would get under way by the end of the year.

Mr Neil confirmed his commitment to main-taining the policy of no compulsory redund-ancies in the NHS.

It comes after official figures showed the number of midwives and nurses at its lowest for almost seven years.

Statistics showed there were the equivalent of 56,183.7 full-time nursing and midwifery staff across Scotland at the end of June. That is the lowest number since Septem-ber 2005

Mr Neil said: "I am absolutely clear that what we must do better is to listen to the people delivering healthcare services across NHS Scotland.

"That is why I am announcing my personal commitment to talk to practitioners on the ground about their experiences of providing patient care.

"I recognise that in any process of change there will be concerns for nurses who are directly involved, so it is vitally important that all NHS staff, with all their experience and expertise, are directly involved in changing how we work.

"As we move to integrate health and social care, the way people are treated is starting to change.

"Hospital stays are shorter than ever before and more people are being treated in the community, by more nurses based in the community.

"The need for us all to work together in new and innovative ways has never been greater."

caroline.wilson@ eveningtimes.co.uk