Chamber and committees

Information about all child weight management activity in Scotland is not currently held centrally.

A new HEAT target was introduced in 2008 that requires each NHS board to deliver an agreed number of child healthy weight interventions. The minimum number of interventions required in each board area reflects the estimated size of the population of children aged five to 15 years whose BMI lies outwith a healthy range. Data on child weight management services will be collected as part of the monitoring and evaluation of the target.

Tayside, Lothian and Lanarkshire were part of Phase 1 of the Counterweight programme. Phase 2 of Counterweight was rolled out from April 2008 to NHS boards in Ayrshire and Arran, Grampian and Fife. Phase 3 of Counterweight was rolled out from August 2008 to NHS boards in Highland, Borders, Forth Valley, the Western Isles, Shetland and Orkney, with NHS Dumfries and Galloway due to commence delivery in 2009.

NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde run their own similar weight management programme.

Untreated genital chlamydia infection in women can result in pelvic pain and scarring known as Pelvic Inflammatory Disease which can progress to ectopic pregnancy and infertility.

There is also some evidence to suggest that untreated genital chlamydia infection in men can affect fertility.

The Chief Scientist Office (CSO), of the Scottish Government''s Health Directorates, has responsibility for encouraging and supporting research into health and health care needs in Scotland. The CSO is currently funding 12 research trials involving medicines at a cost of £2.7 million. Funds of £5.9 million have also been allocated to the NHS in Scotland this year to support an increase in clinical research and to fund research networks. Of this, some £324,000 has been allocated to the two experimental cancer medicine centres in Glasgow and Edinburgh and £325,000 for the medicines for children research network. More generally, the CSO allocates £38 million to the NHS to meet the additional costs of supporting research funded by major research funders such as the Medical Research Council and Wellcome Trust. Some of this research will also involve trials of medicinal products.

In addition, the Scottish Government and Scottish Enterprise have in the last five years allocated through a range of investments and grants approximately £35 million towards projects involving investment or development in drug discovery.

A range of evaluations are underway or planned in support of Healthy Eating, Active Living: an action plan to improve diet, increase physical activity and tackle obesity. For example, the HEAT target tackling childhood obesity is a developmental target and will be reviewed after its first year. The requirement for the monitoring and evaluation of the interventions being delivered by each health board is currently being determined. Counterweight has evaluation component built into the contract which provides the Scottish Government and health boards with regular progress reports including preliminary results of patient interventions, clinical outcomes, health economics and qualitative research.

Chlamydia testing is not routinely provided at travel clinics.

The risks of having unprotected sex abroad are however discussed at travel clinic appointments with detailed written information provided in leaflets and also accessible at www.fitfortravel.nhs.uk.

The Scottish Government is investing £56 million, of which £40 million is new money, in initiatives set out in Healthy Eating, Active Living, our three year action plan published in June 2008, which sets out the actions we will take, together with partners to improve diet, increase physical activity and tackle obesity. We are also working across government at a senior level and will work with all sectors of Scottish society to develop a longer term strategy to tackle obesity. This will build on existing work such as that seen in schools to promote healthy eating and increase physical activity.

The Guidance from the Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Health states that women with risk factors for chlamydia should be routinely screened. Clinicians who provide contraceptive coils are required to follow this guidance and will routinely discuss risk factors with their patients and offer testing for chlamydia.

While in Scotland there is opportunistic chlamydia testing for anyone who may have put themselves at risk, there is currently no routine anti-natal screening for chlamydia.

NHS boards are expected to implement SIGN Guideline 13 on the Management of patients with stroke or TIA: assessment, investigation, immediate management and secondary prevention.

Stroke SIGN Guidelines 13 and 14 are under review and will reflect recent evidence that thrombolytic therapy up to 4.5 hours is now effective. The NHS QIS stroke standards will also be updated to reflect the new recommendations.

The Scottish Centre for Telehealth (SCT) and the Scottish Stroke Research Network are working together with Stroke Managed Clinical Networks to introduce telemedicine links between hospitals and between consultants homes and hospitals to help ensure that thrombolysis is administered to appropriate patients and to ensure equity of access to this treatment.