Chamber and committees

It is a quick question about the importance of tackling stigma and discrimination, which we have talked about in the past. Obviously, if we reduce stigma, more young men, young women and young persons will come forward. The ice hockey team in Dumfries has a campaign to tackle stigma and discrimination called “Skate out of darkness.” That is important work, so could you give us a couple of comments on the importance of stigma?

Maree Todd mentioned the UK Government’s austerity policies, which have had an impact, but I will not discuss poverty and disability too deeply.

I want to touch on how adverse childhood experiences, such as eating disorders, can affect health outcomes. During the pandemic, there has been an increase in the number of people with eating disorders, and I am interested in that area. How do adverse childhood experiences affect children as they grow up? What work is being done to address eating disorders?

I have a quick supplementary. Maree Todd mentioned progress on self-sampling for cervical cancer, in which I am interested because NHS Dumfries and Galloway is part of the research. My understanding is that there were 6,000 women who had defaulted on their smear, of whom 25 per cent have now taken up self-sampling. Therefore, 1,500 women have been screened who would not have attended in the past. That interesting progress shows that self-sampling might be a way forward.

Ultimately, this is about organ accessibility and saving lives.

The 1,140 hours of childcare is delivered by local authorities. What is the Scottish Government doing to help local authorities or other public organisations to deliver a Scotland where our young people flourish?

I am a former liver transplant nurse in Los Angeles and I was always interested in looking at the tracking, the tracing, the safety and where the organs came from. To what extent is the cross-border sharing of tissues, organs and blood an issue for us in Scotland?

It is obvious that everybody needs to collaborate and work together, and the utmost safety of any policy is crucial. I am curious to know whether the Northern Ireland protocol will have an impact. Under the EU-UK withdrawal agreement, Northern Ireland is in the UK customs territory, but it remains aligned with EU regulations. The rules in Northern Ireland could change in order to remain aligned with the EU, and the framework sets out the structures and processes for managing the impact of such changes. Could changes that result in divergence between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK obstruct any sharing of blood, tissues or organs?

Good morning, ministers. I am interested in some of our public health priorities. Priority 2 mentions

“A Scotland where we flourish in our early years”.

My question is for Maree Todd. How do we measure, monitor and evaluate whether we have a Scotland where our young people flourish?

The SQA has taken the decision to move to scenario 2, which is to provide support to learners to aid them with their preparation for exams, with full details to be provided in early March. Will the cabinet secretary outline what learners can expect in March?

I am pleased to be speaking in the debate, and I congratulate Jackie Baillie on securing it.

As others have mentioned, the theme of world cancer day 2022 is “close the care gap”. It is about understanding and recognising inequalities in cancer care around the globe and lobbying for improved outcomes and equal treatment for all persons with cancer. I am pleased that the Scottish Government has a commitment to improve cancer services across our country, including establishing a new fast-track diagnostic cancer centre at Dumfries and Galloway royal infirmary in Dumfries.

The Covid pandemic had, and continues to have, a direct impact on cancer services, and I look forward to seeing how that can be improved as we move out of the pandemic. However, we do not have to look too far from home to find inequality in cancer care. In my South Scotland region, some patients are not receiving equal treatment, and I am pleased that my colleague highlighted the issues that I am about to address.

In Dumfries and Galloway, 1,135 people are currently living with cancer, and around 530 people lose their lives to cancer each year. Dumfries and Galloway is a large rural region—from Canonbie in the east to Kirkconnell in the north, Stranraer in the west to Whithorn in the south Machars—and we also have many challenges with the delivery of cancer services.

Since my election to Parliament, I have been actively lobbying for change to current cancer pathway arrangements for the region. Currently, although we in D and G are in the south-west of Scotland, we are not in the West of Scotland Cancer Network. NHS Dumfries and Galloway is part of the South East Scotland Cancer Network, which means that patients, particularly those who are in the west of the region and Wigtownshire and require more complex treatments and radiotherapy, must often travel north-east to Edinburgh for treatment. That is a 260-mile round trip from Stranraer, which can cause distress and discomfort, and exacerbate the negative effects of cancer treatment.

After continuous campaigning by local residents and elected members, including my efforts over a five-year period and those of colleagues across the chamber, and by the Galloway community hospital action group, which includes a campaigner who has highlighted the issue for more than a decade, in 2019 NHS Dumfries and Galloway agreed to change the existing arrangements so that a more flexible approach that was focused on patient choice could be taken to people’s treatment destination.

However, constituents are concerned that very little progress has been made, and that patients are still being asked to travel to Edinburgh, without even being offered the choice of going to Glasgow for radiotherapy and other treatment. I understand the pressures that the pandemic has caused, but we are talking about a long-standing situation that the former health secretary said that she would help to improve. Similarly, in July last year, I was told by the current health secretary that NHS Dumfries and Galloway’s cancer pathway arrangements would be addressed as part of the Scottish Government’s modernising patient pathways programme. I have spoken to a few people in order to progress matters, but I have not had any response from the modernising patient pathways programme. I will continue to pursue the issue.

I ask the cabinet secretary to provide a commitment that I will receive an update on the work that has been undertaken regarding cancer pathway arrangements across NHS Dumfries and Galloway. I also ask the Scottish Government to impress upon the health board the importance of the work on cancer pathways being carried out immediately so that patients in the south-west of Scotland can be offered a choice about whether to be treated in Glasgow or Edinburgh, depending on their preference.

I welcome the debate, the work that the Scottish Government has done and the opening of the fast-track cancer diagnostic centre in Dumfries, and I reiterate the need for action to bring about equality with regard to cancer pathways for patients across Dumfries and Galloway.