Chronic Pain
The next item on our agenda is consideration of the Scottish health boards' response to our questionnaire on chronic pain. I suggest that we postpone that until a later meeting.
When you made that suggestion earlier, I rashly agreed with you and thought that it was perfectly sensible. However, I have just checked and next week we must finish by 11.40 at the latest because of our hospital visit in the afternoon. The following week, there are four sets of witnesses and, unfortunately, I must leave that meeting slightly early, as there is a family engagement that I cannot avoid. The recess is approaching and health professionals are meeting the minister again in mid-October. It would be beneficial if we could discuss the matter before they meet the minister. Is there any way round that? The discussion will not take long—perhaps only 10 or 15 minutes. I crave the committee's indulgence.
Let us discuss the matter for 10 minutes and that will be that.
Thank you—I appreciate that.
I speak on behalf of the cross-party group in the Scottish Parliament on chronic pain, which I convene, and on behalf of some members of the committee. Kathleen Robson has produced a fine piece of research, which confirms in detail what we knew. Chronic pain services are short-changed and some things that happen are scandalous.
As we know, roughly 550,000 people suffer from chronic pain in one form or another. They may have spasmodic, regular, constant chronic pain or another form of it. We now know that only 47 whole-time equivalent health professionals in the whole of Scotland work with chronic pain. Only three of the 14 boards that responded to the questionnaire have a pain management programme, which is the yardstick. Roughly speaking, if the boards have not said that they have a pain management programme, that means that they do not have a proper pain service at all.
That patients are being shunted around the country is utterly unacceptable and borders on the inhumane. Boards admit that they send patients to England. Argyll and Clyde NHS Board sends more than 120 patients a year to Glasgow and England. Eleven out of 14 boards said that they send people to other areas. Borders NHS Board sends patients to Liverpool; Grampian NHS Board sent patients to England and Glasgow; and Tayside NHS Board sends patients to England. Tayside has good services, as does Lothian. Greater Glasgow NHS Board has 215 pained travellers, including patients from the Highlands, Ayrshire and Arran and Dumfries and Galloway.
Waiting times are outrageous at Glasgow southern general hospital—55 weeks is quoted. Someone in pain must wait one year and three weeks to see a consultant for the first time. The average Scottish waiting time is 16 weeks. The few services of excellence in Scotland are being overstrained and dragged down by the number of patients that they must take from other areas.
Had we existed half a century ago, many board attitudes might have been referred to us. No board had carried out a needs assessment of people with chronic pain in their area or could supply figures that would give us an estimate of total chronic pain funding in Scotland.
The paper states:
"Very few of the Board areas provided funding specifically for professional training in chronic pain."
Many nurses and physios must pay for such training themselves. Only Greater Glasgow NHS Board has a substantial programme, and it has been confirmed again that Highland NHS Board has absolutely nothing, even for young people.
The boards are exceptionally mean with the voluntary sector, which has only around £13,000—
Other members want to speak.
What are the recommendations?
The paper that pulls together the health boards' responses does not include a set of recommendations or proposals. I recommend that we send the paper to the Executive for its response. Bear in mind that we have said in our budget proposals that the issue should be considered. We can return to it during the next part of the budget process.
With respect, the points that Dorothy-Grace Elder is making are contained within the paper. The paper is good, but it does not include a set of recommendations or proposals. At this stage, we have to send it to the Executive for comment. When we receive those comments, we can make recommendations and proposals. They could form part of our budget proposals.
May I also submit a paper that I have done that pulls together some of the information? Would you consider referring to the decision that the committee made in mid-May, which was to ask the Finance Committee for funding for comprehensive chronic pain services throughout Scotland? It would be excellent if you could state that in the letter to the Executive.
That is the point that I have just made. We can state that in the letter and return to the issue. Are members agreed?
Members indicated agreement.
Can we put a short item on the agenda for the next meeting of the Health and Community Care Committee for an update on the interim report on the expert group on hepatitis C?
I have spoken to the clerks. A letter is being sent from me to the minister asking what is happening. I understand that the report will go to the Cabinet in the next week or week and a half.
Can we have a short response to that at our next meeting?
Yes.
Is it all right for me to send the questionnaire returns that Kathleen Robson has compiled to some of the doctors and health professionals who have a special interest?
Yes, it is a public document.
They could also give us their comments.
Yes.
Meeting closed at 12:56.