The NHS in Scotland is employing more staff than ever before, according to new Scottish Government figures.

NHS Scotland had 138,310 workers as of December 31, 2015, a record high and an increase of 8.9% under the current government.

The figure was reached using a whole-time equivalent (WTE) calculation, under which one member of staff working a 40-hour week would constitute one WTE.

The total headcount of actual NHS staff is currently at 161, 415, with part-time staff added together to reach the WTE figure released today.

Nearly 800 WTE staff were hired by NHS Scotland last year, including 280 additional nurses and midwives, and a further 170 extra consultants.

The figures also indicate the number of consultant vacancies has decreased, leaving 5.9% of posts left unfilled at the end of the year.

Health secretary Shona Robison heralded the figures as evidence of the Scottish Government's commitment to providing proper health service funding.

She said: "These latest figures show staffing in the NHS again reaching a record high, with more nurses and more consultants working in Scotland’s health service than ever before.

"Under this government, there are now over 11,000 more staff working in our NHS and this number continues to rise.

"This reflects the record levels of investment in our health and care services, with next year’s NHS and social care budget recently confirmed to be over £13bn for the first time ever.

"Our significant investment has allowed us to support and grow the NHS workforce to ensure people in Scotland get the high quality health care they deserve.

"In addition, we are building for the future with a recently announced rise of 5.6% in student nursing and midwifery intakes, the fourth successive increase in as many years.

"However, we know that demand on our NHS continues to grow, with increasing numbers of patients with more complex illnesses being treated.

"That is why we will continue to invest in our health service and the fantastic staff that work day-in and day-out to provide excellent quality of care to people right across Scotland."

The Royal College of Nursing was more cautious about the new figures, claiming faster growth was required to meet a growing demand.

Scotland director Theresa Fyffe said: "It’s very much ‘steady as she goes’ on workforce numbers, with only gradual increases in the overall figures and a vacancy rate that continues to run along at over 3%.

"But the pace of improvement is not enough given the pressures continuing to build on our hard pressed staff. In the most recent NHS staff survey, only 26% of nurses and midwives felt that there were enough staff to do their job properly.

"The call, which we have consistently made in recent years, remains the same. We need to take a long, hard look now at how our health services are delivered, if they are to be sustainable into the future.

"We know that no one can 'pull a rabbit out of a hat' to magically fill these vacancies but what the government can do is make sure that health boards have the resources to invest in their nursing staff, while at the same time implementing changes to the way services are delivered for the future."

BMA Scotland were equally unmoved by the new figures, expressing concern over "a worrying number of consultant posts still lying vacant".

Commenting, Dr Simon Barker, Deputy Chair of the BMA’s Scottish Consultants Committee said:

“The fact that official figures have shown the number of vacant consultant positions has decreased suggests that this is a step in the right direction, but we also know that there are consultant vacancies that do not get picked up in official statistics, so the picture is very likely worse than these figures suggest.

“Consultants in post and working are vital to patient care. Jobs unfilled after months on end puts huge pressure on services as remaining consultants struggle to cover the gaps.

“The Scottish Government must continue to take action to value the consultants we have, and attract those others that patients and services desperately need.”