Chamber and committees

I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-28939 on 26 November 2009. 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.

Yes. Within Curriculum for Excellence progression up to the end of S3 will be through curriculum levels early, first, second, third and fourth, paving the way for work towards qualifications in the senior phase at the SCQF level appropriate to the needs and achievements of each young person. Learning will be assessed against the standards and expectations set out in the curriculum guidance and in line with the strategic vision for assessment published on 23 September. The levels are spaced in a way which will allow teachers to plan for greater depth, enrichment and consolidation of learning, ensuring well planned progression based on secure, well established learning. The expectations of learning at each level described within the curriculum guidance were signed off by the Curriculum for Excellence management board, which includes representatives from the Educational Institute of Scotland, School Leaders Scotland, Scottish Secondary Teachers'' Association, Association of Scotland''s Colleges and the Association of Heads and Deputes in Scotland.

I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-28939 on 26 November 2009. 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.

It is the responsibility of local authorities, schools and headteachers to support the implementation of Curriculum for Excellence by identifying priorities and providing opportunities for parents to learn about the changes to the education system.

We are also working with the local authority parental involvement network, parent councils and parent bodies, through seminars and newsletters, so that they have the information and advice they need to keep parents informed of the developments in Curriculum for Excellence. This will include a toolkit to support practitioners in the New Year.

Learning and Teaching Scotland''s Parents as Partners in Learning website has examples of good practice on how to tell parents what they need to know about the changes to their child''s education:

http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/parentsaspartnersinlearning/about/cfevideos.asp.

The Framework for Assessment, which will provide guidance on assessment approaches for Curriculum for Excellence, will published early in the New Year.

I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-28939 on 26 November 2009. 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.

Specialist NHS inpatient care is provided by the Eden Unit at the Royal Cornhill Hospital Aberdeen which serves north of Scotland NHS boards and under contract with the independent providers at The Priory, Glasgow and Edinburgh Huntercombe Hospitals which serve west and east of Scotland NHS boards.

There are currently no waiting lists for NHS patients to access services at these facilities.

The NHS Quality Improvement Scotland''s Eating Disorders in Scotland Recommendations for the Management and Treatment highlight the importance of both tailored physical assessments and the need for DXA scans to estimate bone density which can be an indicator of osteoporosis to be carried out on individuals with anorexia nervosa.

The Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service (SNBTS), which organises and collects blood donations, currently works with a number of, but not all, public authorities, including fire and police organisations, local councils, universities, colleges and hospitals.

Data on whether staff from the relevant organisations who give blood are paid is not collated centrally. However, SNBTS believes that this is the case.

The SNBTS Accessibility Group is expanding as much as possible the blood donation collections that take place with other NHS bodies.

All NHS board areas provide a range of specialist inpatient and community-based care for people with anorexia nervosa, either directly or through arrangements with the independent sector.

The Eden Unit, which is a specialist NHS eating disorder inpatient unit at the Royal Cornhill Hospital, serves the north of Scotland NHS boards. In other board areas, NHS specialist inpatient care is provided in NHS hospitals or under contract with the independent sector at The Priory, Glasgow and Edinburgh Huntercombe Hospitals.

All NHS boards keep arrangements and services under review and are working towards improved access and outcomes for service users based on prevention, appropriate intervention and sustained recovery.

NHS boards in the south east are currently considering proposals for a 12 bed inpatient unit to be based at St John''s Hospital, West Lothian. Decisions are expected early next year.

Decisions on treatment options rest primarily with the clinician, in consultation with the individual, and where appropriate, the carer and family. Treatments will be based on a through assessment and tailored to the needs of the individual to achieve the best possible outcomes.

Medication may be used to treat co-morbid conditions with anorexia nervosa such as osteoporosis. However, all healthcare professionals should be aware of the risk of using drugs for co-morbid conditions that prolong the QTc interval. All patients with a diagnosis of anorexia nervosa should have an alert placed in their prescribing record concerning the risk of side effects. ECG monitoring should be undertaken if there is a prescription of medication that may compromise cardiac functioning.

Patients with anorexia nervosa are routinely given vitamin and mineral supplements in an oral form during both inpatient and outpatient weight restoration and this may improve bone density. Hormonal treatment using oestrogen or dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) does not have a positive impact on bone density and oestrogen is not recommended in children or adolescents due to the risk of premature fusion of the bones.

Other treatment for osteoporosis can have harmful cardiac and or renal side effects and have to be used with care, particularly in young people.