Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government have agreed child healthy weight targets with NHS boards. Individual boards have responsibility for making decisions on research and data collection locally.

NHS Health Scotland is exploring the feasibility of using locally collected data as part of the national evaluation of HEAT 3 which is currently underway.

I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-34848 on 8 July 2010. 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/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

NHS territorial boards across Scotland have confirmed that since 2006, when the case-law was established, a total of two patients have received treatment in Scotland under Article 49/Article 56.

There is no EU cross-border healthcare agreement. Rather, European case-law has established that, under Article 56 of the Treaty of the Functioning of Europe (formerly Article 49 of the EU Treaty) patients have the right to obtain healthcare services in another European Economic Area (EEA) country that is the same as, or equivalent to, a service that would have been provided under the patient''s home healthcare system. This is subject to prior authorisation in certain circumstances, as set out in the National Health Service (Reimbursement of the Cost of EEA Treatment) (Scotland) Regulations 2010.

The patient pays for the treatment up-front and has a right to claim reimbursement up to the amount the same, or equivalent, treatment would have cost had the patient obtained it from their home healthcare system, or the actual amount if this is lower.

NHS territorial boards across Scotland have confirmed that since 2006, when the case-law was established, a total of three patients have received treatment in other EEA countries under Article 49/Article 56.

The responsibility for ensuring that pre-employment checks are undertaken on all staff working in NHSScotland is for the employing NHS board. The Partnership Information Network (PIN) Policy Safer Pre and Post Employment Checks, published in December 2007, is mandatory for all NHS boards and describes procedures for the entry of staff into NHSScotland, irrespective of source including employees, volunteers, students, trainees, secondees, agency, and locum staff.

In March 2010, we reminded NHS boards of the need to comply with the existing Code of Practice on the use of medical locums, which includes provisions relating to pre-employment checks.

In consultation with key stakeholders, we are reviewing the existing pre-employment arrangements for medical locums in the light of the findings of the Audit Scotland report Using locum doctors in hospitals, to determine what further improvements may be necessary.

I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-34600 on 28 June 2010. All the 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/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-34586 on 25 June 2010. All the 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/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

Performance will continue to be monitored by National Services Scotland''s National Procurement division with summary reports being distributed to NHS boards. Suppliers are required to respond to all requests made by boards and put forward suitable candidates for those assignments. Failure to do so will initially trigger improvement plans but could ultimately lead to removal from the framework if the issue is pervasive and attempts to improve performance are not successful.

Recruitment and selection of staff is a matter for individual NHS boards. In the next few years it is anticipated that there will be considerably more doctors completing specialist training than expected vacancies. Boards should be able to design posts in order to attract the surplus of doctors available.

I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-34637 on 25 June 2010. All the 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/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-34637 on 25 June 2010. All the 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/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.