Current status: Answered by Neil Gray on 17 December 2024
To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to develop training programmes to support digital literacy and telehealth usage.
Digital inclusion, of which literacy is one component, is being prioritised as part of the national Digital Health and Care Strategy and associated delivery plan. In March 2023, the Scottish Government launched the £2m Digital Inclusion Programme. Delivered through SCVO, it has developed a framework to support digital inclusion to enable people to access digital services across health and social care. The programme has funded projects in remote and rural areas (see map), supported provision of devices and developed Digital Champions Training to support local literacy advice and support.
The Scottish Government also recently published the Digital and Data Capability Framework to support the development of digital capabilities for everyone working in health and social care in Scotland. The framework identifies the skills, knowledge and behaviours that are essential for the workforce and will be used to improve individual and team learning requirements.
Near Me video consulting was recently highlighted in the Audit Scotland report as a good practice example of supporting inclusive service development. As part of our national digital skills commitment, the Near Me Team have worked in collaboration with NHS Education Scotland (NES) to produce resources, including two video consulting modules on the TURAS learning platform for professionals.