- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 April 2025
-
Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 23 April 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to protect the ongoing viability of local and regional museums and galleries.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 23 April 2025
- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 March 2025
-
Current Status:
Answered by Jenni Minto on 2 April 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to support the roll-out of alcohol-related brain damage services across Scotland to ensure equal access to support and treatment for all patients.
Answer
The Scottish Government is keen to see equal access to support for all alcohol conditions, including ARBD, and will continue to encourage local areas to base service provision on local needs.
We have committed to publishing a National Specification for alcohol and drug treatment and support services. The Specification will set out what services are required to implement the Charter of Rights for people affected by substance use, which includes those impacted by ARBD.
- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 March 2025
-
Current Status:
Answered by Jenni Minto on 2 April 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the (a) continuation of the Primary Care Alcohol Nurse Outreach Service (PCANOS) and (b) importance of PCANOS in addressing alcohol-related brain damage.
Answer
NHS GGC agreed in May 2024 that its PCANOS model and staff would be embedded into their specialist Alcohol and Drug Recovery Services in order to ensure long term sustainability. The realignment of PCANOS expertise into Glasgow Alcohol and Drug Recovery Services ensures that staff are fully supported by the wider Alcohol and Drug Recovery Service team to provide a full range of clinical, medical and psychosocial support services to individuals.
Glasgow City ADP greatly value the variety of specialist alcohol services across the city in dealing with the public health crisis in relation to alcohol. The Managed Alcohol Programme, the Fibro scanner pilot and the community and residential Alcohol Related Brain Damage Services are just some examples of the innovative and impactful provision in the city.
The Scottish Government is fully supportive of the actions being taken by both NHS GGC and Glasgow City ADP.
- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 March 2025
-
Current Status:
Answered by Jenni Minto on 2 April 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how it is supporting health and social care partnerships to implement the recommendations in the Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland 2021 report on care and treatment for people with alcohol-related brain damage.
Answer
The Scottish Government supports Health and Social Care Partnerships with funding provided to Health Boards and local authorities to implement guidance, such as that published by the Mental Welfare Commission on alcohol-related brain damage.
That will be supplemented soon by the UK’s first comprehensive guidance for clinical treatment for alcohol conditions. The guidance will include requirements for the treatment of ARBD and we will support the adoption of the clinical guidance.
We recognise that the management and support required for people with ARBD is not limited to healthcare. Whether it is social care, mental health support, primary care or alcohol treatment and support - including rehabilitation - in communities or in residential settings, the person affected must be at the centre of the support pathway.
- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 March 2025
-
Current Status:
Answered by Jenni Minto on 2 April 2025
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has any plans to increase training on alcohol-related brain damage for health and social care staff.
Answer
The Scottish Government will encourage local delivery partners such as Health and Social Care Partnerships to identify training needs and ensure staff are able to receive all relevant training.
The need for more specific training on ARBD is now something local delivery partners should be addressing and the Scottish Government will be keen to promote this wherever possible.
We have committed to publishing a National Specification for alcohol and drug treatment and support services. The Specification will set out what services are required to implement the Charter of Rights for people affected by substance use, which includes those impacted by ARBD.
- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 March 2025
-
Current Status:
Answered by Jenni Minto on 2 April 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to raise public awareness of alcohol-related brain damage.
Answer
The Scottish Government has committed in our Cross Government Plan for tackling substance use harms to publishing a National Specification for alcohol and drug treatment and support services.
The Specification will include advice and requirements for local areas to make the public and people impacted by alcohol aware of the full range of services available, including for ARBD.
- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 March 2025
-
Current Status:
Answered by Jenni Minto on 2 April 2025
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will develop a specific standard for the provision of alcohol-related brain damage services in every health and social care partnership.
Answer
The Scottish Government has committed in our Cross Government Plan for tackling substance use harms to developing standards for alcohol and drug treatment and recovery.
In the development of those standards, ARBD is a particular condition that will be a focus of attention given the significant number of people it has affected. The standards will bring together a range of guidance, principles and other relevant standards to help ensure services are working together, which is particularly important for conditions such as ARBD which requires a range of support to be offered in one package.
- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 March 2025
-
Current Status:
Answered by Jenni Minto on 2 April 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the (a) continuation of the Managed Alcohol Programme (MAP) in Scotland and (b) importance of MAP in addressing alcohol-related brain damage.
Answer
We continue to fund the Managed Alcohol Programme pilot in Glasgow being run by Simon Community Scotland. We await the evaluation of the pilot being undertaken by the University of Stirling before reaching a position on future expansion.
The MAP pilot itself does not contribute directly to work being done to address alcohol-related brain damage, as those impacted by ARBD are referred elsewhere. NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde does offer ARBD supported accommodation through Penumbra.
- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 March 2025
-
Current Status:
Answered by Maree Todd on 1 April 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how it is actively reducing stigma by raising and normalising period awareness in all sporting environments.
Answer
Since 2019, the Scottish Government has been supporting the sport sector to offer free period products; reducing stigma and addressing overarching gender equality.
I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-30734 on 11 November 2024. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers
In addition to the information provided in answer S6W-30734, sportscotland’s Working with Female Athletes learning platform on Brightspace has recently been updated to include additional e-learning resources. This includes Sport Wales’ e-learning module on the menstrual cycle in sport. Resources are available for all and are free of charge.
- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Friday, 21 March 2025
-
Current Status:
Answered by Jenni Minto on 1 April 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the autumn 2024 deadline not being met, when it expects to deliver the Fracture Liaison Service audit, and what steps it has taken to expediate this.
Answer
The Fracture Liaison Services (FLS) audit was commissioned by Scottish Government in July 2024. Whilst there was an initial delay regarding recruitment, this has now been completed, and progress now continues at pace.
Public Health Scotland are responsible for the delivery of the FLS audit and Scottish Government officials remain close to its development.
In line with all newly commissioned audits, we expect the audit to take several years to create high-quality, standardised data and consistency across NHS Boards in order to drive improvements and support clinical decision making.
I refer the member to the answer to questions S6W-35534 and S6W-35567 on 21 March 2025. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers
