RELATIONS between Highland Regional Council and Highland Health Board

have begun to improve after months of strain over the health board's

proposals for care in the community.

However, a leading critic of the board's approach warned that

communities throughout the Highlands had to remain vigilant and be ready

to fight to defend their local hospitals, which could still be under

threat.

Yesterday, Highland convener Duncan McPherson issued a statement

welcoming confirmation from health board chairman John Robertson that in

developing draft local hospital plans, the board is prepared to take

into account council concerns about the future of long-term care of

elderly and disabled people.

Mr McPherson had been in correspondence with Mr Robertson over the

board's draft plans for the transfer to the regional council of

responsibility for services to those people for whom care in the

community is deemed more appropriate than hospital care, in line with

Government policy.

Over the past year, there had been widespread alarm at the health

board's apparent enthusiasm for reducing the number of long-stay beds in

local hospitals. However, shortly before Christmas, it became clear the

board was having a rethink, understood to be due in part to pressure

from the Scottish Office.

Yesterday, Mr McPherson said that Mr Robertson had confirmed the board

would not reduce or withdraw local hospital facilities unless local

alternative services, equivalent at least to those currently provided,

were available.

He also welcomed the assurance that, in determining the level of

future hospital provision, the board would also give further

consideration to estimates for the growth of the elderly population, and

would do so in liaison with regional officials.

This followed a similar assurance given by the board's chief

administrative medical officer, Dr Gordon Stone, to a huge public

meeting at Edinbane in Skye in the middle of last month.

Mr McPherson said yesterday: ''The health board has a job to do in

reviewing its hospital provision in the light of the change, and we have

a job to do in determining our policy in providing community care

services for elderly people for whom hospital care may not be

appropriate.''

Dr Iain Glen, consultant psychiatrist and regional councillor for

Cairngorm, however, struck a cautionary note: ''It would appear that

there has been some movement from the board's over-zealous

interpretation of the terms of the Community Care Act, which was known

to have concerned the Scottish Office and certainly alarmed everyone

living in the Highlands. But we should remember that their is still

enormous pressure to reduce the long-term beds in local hospitals, and

we will have to ensure that needs of the local communities are

protected.''