I welcome the publication of this Report by the Royal Society of Edinburgh. The Scottish Executive will consider the recommendations in the report very carefully and will take its findings into consideration in the on-going review of the NHS complaints procedure and in the work of the expert group being established to look at the compensation system.

I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-3659.

I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-23636.

I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-23636.

NHS hospitals are required to implement the guidance in the Scottish Infection Manual (1998). This makes clear that:where the potential for the spread of infection may pose exceptional difficulties, hospitals should develop and adhere to appropriate infection control policies to reduce the risk to particularly vulnerable patients;suitable arrangements should be established for the admission, transfer and discharge of patients with infection, including liaison with the medical and nursing staff responsible for the care of patients during admission and after discharge or transfer, andhospitals are required to provide suitable accommodation for the clinical care of patients with healthcare associated infection.Trust chief executives are responsible for ensuring that effective arrangements for infection control are in place, including adequate clinical facilities and staff, microbiological resources, infection control teams and occupational health service. To ensure that hospitals are addressing healthcare associated infection effectively, the Executive requested the Clinical Standards Board for Scotland (CSBS) to introduce a new infection control standard. The CSBS will shortly provide an interim report on hospitals' performance against this standard.

NHSScotland should take account of advice and evidence from the Health Technology Board for Scotland and ensure that recommended drugs or treatments are made available to meet clinical need. Likewise, individual clinicians should take account of evidence-based guidance when exercising their clinical judgement.

The Clinical Standards Board for Scotland will undertake the process of external peer review of its diabetes standards during 2003. It will then publish a report on each visit, including a detailed assessment of performance against each standard, at the same time as it publishes a national report giving an overview of performance across Scotland against all the standards.Further information is to be found in the Scottish Diabetes Survey, an annual snapshot of diabetes care based on local diabetes registers. The results of the 2001 survey were published in November 2001. The report of the 2002 survey should be published before the end of the year.

Raising awareness of the causes and consequence of diabetes and improving the quality and availability of patient information about diabetes, are key strands of the Scottish Diabetes Framework. Specific plans in these areas will be developed by the Scottish Diabetes Group over the coming months.

The priority of the Scottish Executive is to prevent people with diabetes from losing their sight. Eye care is therefore identified as one of the first stage priorities in the Scottish Diabetes Framework, due to be published shortly.

The Scottish Diabetes Framework seeks to raise standards of care and support for all people with diabetes. Ethnic minority groups, parents with young children and carers are all recognised as groups with particular needs, in terms of coping with diabetes.