Question reference: S5W-00378
- Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
- Date lodged: 1 June 2016
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Current status: Answered by Shona Robison on 14 June 2016
Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has any concerns about NHS Lothian's workforce planning policies, in light of the report by Healthcare Improvement Scotland on elderly care wards in Astley Ainslie Hospital, Ferryfield House, Findlay House and Ellens Glen, which suggest that care was under pressure due to staff shortages, and what support it can provide to NHS Lothian to address this issue.
Answer
While it is the statutory responsibility of each NHS Scotland health board to have in place workforce plans, the Scottish Government works closely with boards to develop better workforce intelligence through robust supply and demand profiles, capacity trends, patient acuity and other factors. We expect boards – including NHS Lothian – to include this intelligence to help project their needs forward, inform and develop their workforce plans, and combine it as appropriate with the workload and workforce planning tools we have mandated them to use.
NHS Lothian has accepted all the findings and recommendations made in the NHS Lothian hospital-based complex clinical care review.
The use of this guidance, along with the recommendations from the NHS Lothian review will be monitored by the Scottish Government officials who meet regularly with the board to discuss performance related issues.