Chamber and committees

My understanding is that the contract is between Salus and Atos Healthcare. I am not aware that any other NHS board has signed a contract with Atos Healthcare to deliver personal independence payment assessments. Salus may, however, subcontract with other boards to help in the delivery of the contract.

It is understood that Salus has and had various arrangements and partnerships with the occupational health services of other NHS boards. The details of these contracting arrangements are a delegated matter for individual NHS boards to manage, and information is not held centrally.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-11254 on 6 December 2012. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-11450 on 6 December 2012. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

It is for the UK Government to determine the nature of any engagement they may wish to have with overseas governments or agencies.

Under the Edinburgh Agreement, the Scottish and UK Governments are committed to continue to work together constructively in light of the outcome of the referendum, whatever it is, in the best interests of the people of Scotland and of the rest of the United Kingdom.

In total five cases of NDM-1 have been detected in Scotland in the period 2003-2012. The first case was detected in 2009. Four subsequent cases were all detected in 2012.

Microbiology laboratories in Scotland routinely test all Enterobacteriaceae and non-fermenting gram-negative bacteria for susceptibility to carbapenems, and laboratory reports are automatically transferred to Health Protection Scotland (HPS), who monitor carbapenem resistance under the ‘Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) alert surveillance programme’, which monitors a range of microorganisms with particular resistance profiles that pose a threat to public health and/or patient safety (including NDM-1).

HPS alert (on a weekly basis) the NHS boards to any ‘AMR alert organism’ detected through this surveillance programme. When particular resistance levels have been reached isolates are sent to the UK ‘Antimicrobial Resistance and Healthcare Associated Infections Reference Unit’ at Colindale, where further typing and characterisation is carried out (which is how NDM-1 producers eventually are confirmed).

Currently healthcare professionals in NHS boards are alerted to specific risks associated with NDM-1 (and other resistant or multidrug resistant organisms) via public Health alerts issued as soon as a risk has been identified or if a particular interest in the public is present. Current notes in ‘Health Protection Scotland Weekly’ are also used to communicate specific risks and public health threats to healthcare professionals.

National guidance on non-prescribing measures to prevent and control carbapenem resistant enterobacteriaceae in hospitals (which includes NDM-1) has been developed and distributed to all NHS boards for consultation in 2012.

As stated in the answers to the questions S4W-09911 and S4W-10794 it is the responsibility for individual NHS boards to carry out pre and post employment checks and to take any appropriate action based on any information received. The Scottish Government does not hold this information centrally.