Chamber and committees

This is already happening. Nicotine Replacement Therapy is dispensed free to patients with an NHS prescription if they are personally exempt from payment of the NHS prescription charge. Emergency Hormonal Contraception is dispensed free to patients with an NHS prescription.

The safety of medicines is a reserved matter and is the responsibility of the Medicines Control Agency (MCA) and the Committee on Safety of Medicines (CSM).The MCA has advised that various data sources are used for monitoring drug safety. This includes the Yellow Card Scheme, where health professionals' report suspected adverse drug reactions to the MCA/CSM. The value of spontaneous reporting schemes such as the Yellow Card Scheme is in the early identification of possible drug hazards. The other data sources used regularly in the monitoring of drug safety in the UK include formal safety studies, published medical literature, information from pharmaceutical companies and other regulatory authorities throughout the world. When a new safety issue is confirmed, regulatory action is taken to minimise risk. This may include strengthened product warnings or restricting the terms of the marketing authorisation. Rarely, if there is evidence that the balance of risks and benefits is no longer favourable, it may be necessary to remove the medicine from the market.The MCA/CSM monitor the safety of all new medicines under the "black triangle scheme" where any of the following circumstances apply: if the medicine contains a new active substance or a combination of active substances; if the medicine is administered via a new route or drug delivery system; if the medicine is going to be used in a new population of patients.

All LHCCs have an important role in developing population-wide approaches to health improvement and disease prevention, for all those in the communities they serve.

According to the community health index, 5,350,424 patients are currently registered with general practitioners in Scotland.

The Scottish Executive Health Department is funding the evaluation of two demonstration Managed Clinical Networks, one in vascular services in Lanarkshire, the other in neurology with particular reference to stroke which is being taken forward jointly between Wishaw Hospital and the Institute of Neurological Sciences at the Southern General Hospital, Glasgow. A wide range of other Managed Clinical Networks are being developed.

The Scottish Needs Assessment Programme (SNAP) report on multiple sclerosis estimates that around 10,400 people suffer from multiple sclerosis in Scotland. A copy of the SNAP report has been placed in the Parliament's Reference Centre (Bib. number 9354). A UK-wide risk-sharing scheme for the treatment of eligible patients with multiple sclerosis begins on 6 May 2002. The scheme allows beta interferon and glatiramer acetate to be prescribed on the NHS to patients who meet criteria set out by the Association of British Neurologists. Patients' eligibility for treatment will depend on the clinical judgement of the specialist neurologists concerned.The health departments do not underestimate the work required to set up and operate the scheme and will be holding regular meetings with professional and patient groups to assess progress. The scheme includes incentives for the pharmaceutical companies to increase their investment in generic specialist MS nursing services.Full details of the scheme are explained in Health Department Letter (2002) 6, a copy of which has been placed in the Parliament's Reference Centre (Bib. number 20653).

This funding is not targeted at any particular group of patients, but at increasing recruitment to relevant clinical trials for all cancers. The availability of suitable trials, patient eligibility and consent to participate will determine appropriate action areas.

All claims for payment from general practitioners are subject to pre-payment verification checks ranging from a scrutiny of claim forms to contacting the patient to confirm details. Guidance on pre- and post- payment verification procedures was issued to NHS Scotland on 28 March 2002. The guidance issued under cover of circular NHS HDL (2002) 20, a copy of which can be obtained from the Scottish Health on the Web (SHOW) website at:http://www.show.scot.nhs.uk/publicationsindex.htm.

The Executive is currently funding a number of research projects on questions related to the genetics and treatment of depression. Over the past few years, the Executive has also funded the Scottish element of a range of surveys by the Office for National Statistics into depression and other aspects of psychiatric morbidity in both children and adults. The reports of these surveys can be found on the National Statistics website: www.statistics.gov.uk.

Under the National Health Service (General Medical Services) (Scotland) Regulations 1995, an Islands NHS Board or a Primary Care Trust is required to keep an up-to-date list of patients for each of its general practitioners. Where the board or trust is satisfied that a person no longer resides in the area where the general practitioner provides services or that the whereabouts of the person are no longer known to it, it should remove that person's name from the patient list. Students are entitled to have their names included in the patient list of a general practitioner in the area where they reside during their course of study. Registration of students is subject to the same controls as other patients. When a patient dies their name is to be deleted from the patient list as from the date on which notification of death is received by the board or trust. A general practitioner is obliged to send the medical records of a patient who has died to the board or trust in a case where he or she learned of the death other than by notification from that body.Temporary residents are not included in a general practitioner's list. The board or trust for the area of their normal place of residence should remove them from the list of their own general practitioner once their stay in the place of temporary residence exceeds 90 days and they have not returned to their own area.