Question reference: S6W-17575
- Asked by: Alexander Stewart, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
- Date lodged: 28 April 2023
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Current status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 15 May 2023
Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the policy of moving away from a vaccination model based on GP delivery, and whether it is considering reviewing this policy and returning to more locally-administered vaccinations at GP surgeries.
Answer
Five years on from the joint agreement between Scottish Government and the British Medical Association (BMA) on the 2018 GP contract, we have made significant progress in the implementation of Primary Care Improvement Plans (PCIPs). The Vaccination Transformation Programme element of the 2018 GP contract is complete.
While the Scottish Government will seek continuous improvement of our vaccination services, I would envisage neither a return to a model of default GP provision nor local models based on optional GP participation. This is because the aim of the Vaccination Transformation Programme was to ensure that GP practices are able to focus on the work only they can do, such as complex care and diagnosing undifferentiated presentations. Vaccinations can be administered in a wide range of different settings by a wide range of healthcare professionals.
The GP profession voted as a whole in 2018 in favour of not providing vaccinations and this position remains extant. There will always be exceptions to this of course, in rural areas and where the need to vaccinate quickly is paramount. Notwithstanding these exceptions, I would not anticipate making any fundamental changes to our vaccination model which are counter to our 2018 agreement with GPs about the future of the profession.