- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 December 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 19 December 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive how many scientists are employed in cancer research.
Answer
The information requested is not held centrally.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 December 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 19 December 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive how much it spends annually on cancer research and how much is spent by charitable organisations on cancer research.
Answer
Within the Scottish Executive Health Department, the Chief Scientist Office (CSO) has responsibility for encouraging and supporting research into health services and patient care within the NHS in Scotland and, as such, is the main departmental funder of NHS-related research. The CSO spends £8.4 million annually on cancer research. The amount spent by charitable organisations on cancer research in Scotland is not held centrally.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 December 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 19 December 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what the average waiting time is for a hearing test, broken down by health board area.
Answer
This information is not available centrally. Information on waiting times for a first out-patient appointment with a consultant, following referral, is collected at specialty level only.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 December 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 19 December 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive how many vacancies there currently are for audiologists.
Answer
Information from ISD Scotland for 30 September 2000, which is the latest available, indicates that there were no consultant vacancies and no staff grade vacancies in the specialty of audiological medicine in NHSScotland. Vacancy data is collected for consultant and staff grades only.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 23 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 17 December 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive whether the full health effects of water fluoridation will be taken into account in its consultation process on water fluoridation.
Answer
The Executive will take appropriate account of all relevant issues raised by individuals and organisations who contribute to the oral health consultation process.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 22 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 17 December 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive how many posts for clinical oncologists (a) exist, (b) are vacant and (c) are currently funded by charities in each health board area.
Answer
The following table shows the latest available data held centrally on the headcount of staff in post at 30 September 2000 (provisional) for those doctors whose speciality is recorded as clinical oncology. Vacancy information for consultant and staff grade clinical oncologists show there were no vacant posts at 30 September 2000. Vacancy information for other grades is not available centrally. Information on the number of posts funded by charities is not available centrally but is held by local NHS management. Contact details for NHS management personnel is available on www.show.scot.nhs.uk.Cancer services in Scotland are delivered by clinicians working within three regional managed clinical networks. The number of oncologists working within a particular NHS board area is therefore not an indicator of the level of local patient access to these highly specialised services.Clinical Oncologist directly employed by NHSScotland
1Headcount at 30 September 2000 (provisional)
| | All Grades | Consultant | Associate Specialist | Staff | Specialist Registrar | Senior House Officer |
Scotland | 74 | 38 | 1 | 2 | 21 | 12 |
Argyll & Clyde | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - |
Ayrshire & Arran | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Borders | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - |
Dumfries & Galloway | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - |
Fife | 4 | 4 | - | - | - | - |
Forth Valley | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Grampian | 5 | 4 | - | - | 1 | - |
Greater Glasgow | 40 | 17 | - | 2 | 11 | 10 |
Highland | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | - |
Lanarkshire | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Lothian | 22 | 11 | 1 | - | 8 | 2 |
Orkney | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Shetland | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Tayside | 5 | 4 | - | - | 1 | - |
Western Isles | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Source: Medical and Dental Census at 30 September 2000 and is provisional, ISD Scotland.Notes:1. Includes honorary appointments.Data includes honorary appointments.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 12 December 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to put together an over-arching national strategy addressing the issues surrounding hospital acquired infection.
Answer
We have already put in hand a rigorous quality improvement process with a number of elements designed to tackle healthcare associated infection. This includes:- the detailed guidance in the Scottish Infection Manual,- implementing the recommendations of the working group on managing the risk of hospital acquired infection (HAI),- implementation of Clinical Standards Board standards for infection control, cleaning services and decontamination of reusable medical devices,- implementation of a mandatory national system of surveillance for HAI, and - the development of a Scottish action plan as part of the UK antimicrobial resistance strategy.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 12 December 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive how many isolation rooms and wards there were in each of the last five years in NHS hospitals.
Answer
That is a matter for individual NHS Boards.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 12 December 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive which aspects of its hospital acquired infection strategies it plans to change in the light of the report by Dr Andrew Walker Hospital Acquired Infection - What is the cost in Scotland ?
Answer
The report provided a better estimate of the costs of hospital acquired infection (HAI) but measures have already been introduced to ensure the NHS tackles the issue more effectively. These include the guidance in the Scottish Infection Manual, the recommendations in the report on managing the risks of Healthcare Associated Infection, the introduction of a national framework for HAI surveillance and the implementation of standards for infection control cleaning services and the decontamination of reusable medical devices which the NHS will be expected to meet.
- Asked by: Mary Scanlon, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 November 2001
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Current Status:
Answered by Malcolm Chisholm on 12 December 2001
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to address any spread of Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus infection in the community.
Answer
Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) poses no particular risk in the community because the population at large is much less susceptible to infection than the hospital in-patient population. Infection due to MRSA is uncommon outside hospitals.
