Nearly 2,000 people experienced delayed discharge in June, figures show
Nearly 2,000 people experienced delayed discharge from hospital in June, according to figures from Public Health Scotland.
Some 1,857 people were delayed that month – slightly higher than the 1,840 figure recorded in May but less than April (1,868).
The average length of delay was 28 days, the same as the month before but lower than April at 29.
Delayed discharge is when a patient is considered medically able to leave hospital but is unable to for other reasons, often because of a lack of social care.
The average number of beds occupied per day due to delayed discharge in June was 1,860, up from 1,852 in May and 1,854 in April.
In June, there were 55,793 days spent in hospital by people whose discharge was delayed.
This is a decrease of 6% compared with the number of delayed days in June last year (59,485).
Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton accused the Scottish Government of breaking its promises on delayed discharge.
“That SNP promise is constantly being broken. They are failing to provide the care people need at home or in the community, leaving around 2,000 patients trapped in hospital every month.
“When people are delayed in leaving hospital, there is a shortage of beds for incoming patients, ramping up waiting times and pressures in emergency departments.”
Health Secretary Neil Gray said: “We have a clear plan to reduce delayed discharge and our investment of £200 million will help clear waiting list backlogs, improve capacity and remove blockages that keep some patients in hospital longer than they need to be.
“While we have seen a reduction in delayed discharges in a number of local authorities over the recent months, we are still not seeing this across the whole of Scotland.
“We are working closely with all health boards and local authorities to drive improvements and reduce variation.
“We have seen a welcome reduction in social care assessment waits – the number of standard delays due to people awaiting a social care assessment was 239 at the June 2025 census date, down 12% from May (273) and down 25% compared to June last year.”