Chamber and committees

The Chief Scientist Office (CSO) within the Scottish Executive Health Department has responsibility for encouraging and supporting research into health services and patient care within the NHS in Scotland. CSO has no plans to commission research into attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD), but would be pleased to consider proposals for research into ADHD, which would be subject to the usual peer and committee review.

An audit of NHS trusts, conducted in December last year, revealed restrictions to a very small number of out-patient waiting lists. The following list gives names of NHS trusts which identified waiting lists for psychological services which had been closed:Lothian Primary Care NHS Trust; Lanarkshire Primary Care NHS Trust; Lomond and Argyll Primary Care NHS Trust, and Renfrewshire and Inverclyde Primary Care NHS Trust. Following the audit, the Chief Executive of NHSScotland and the Chief Medical Officer issued guidance to the Health Service in Scotland instructing NHS Chief Executives to ensure that no patient who has been referred for assessment, or treatment, is refused admission to an appropriate waiting list.

Clinical guidelines are prepared by expert working groups, who use the best available definitions of a given condition world-wide. Such definitions are usually prepared by professional bodies, though the World Health Organisation (WHO) issues a publication called International Classification of Diseases (ICD) which is regularly revised.The Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network guideline on Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorders in Children and Young People, published in June 2001, gives detailed advice on the definition, diagnosis and treatment of these conditions, informed by more than 150 publications, including the WHO classification.

The amendment or repeal of the British Railways (No.3) Order Confirmation Act 1994 is not a matter for the Scottish Executive. This is a reserved issue and involves private legislation procedures.In terms of the Larkhall-Milngavie rail link itself, as my previous reply made clear, we are pressing Railtrack and the Strategic Rail Authority to keep the project moving.

The Scottish Executive has not made any representations to the UK Government regarding the level of benefit paid to patients in long stay hospitals.

Currently there are no universally accepted guidelines for clinicians treating people with depression. However, Clinical Evidence, a compendium of best available evidence in healthcare, has been distributed to healthcare professionals throughout Scotland and includes guidance on recent evidence for the effectiveness of some drug treatments for depression. NHS boards and also have their own Drug and Therapeutic Committees to advise professional staff about approved drugs including oral anti-depressants.

I refer the member to my letter of 25 February 2002.

Information, derived from Continuous Morbidity Recording system, about the 10 most common reasons why people consulted their general practitioner (GP) in the year ending December 2000 can be found at the following web page:ISD Online - Primary Care - 10 most common reasons for consulting a GP in 2000 http://www.show.scot.nhs.uk/isd/primary_care/gmp/pcare_gmp_gp_20003.htm.Further information on patients use of GP services is shown in the report Scotland's People, Results from the 1999-2000 Scottish Household Survey (Volume 3 Annual Report). This can be found at the following web page:http://www.scotland.gov.uk/stats/bulletins/00115/00115c-01.asp

The National Research Register (NRR) records over 300 research projects throughout the UK into antidepressant drugs, some of which will involve research into their prescription. A copy of the NRR is available in the Parliament's Reference Centre (Bib. number 17404).

This will depend on the school and the community. The principal purpose of a school in any community, rural or urban, is as a place in which pupils should receive education and learning directed to the development of their personality, talents and mental and physical abilities. Many schools also have a role in providing for other uses and activities, both for the children who attend the school and the wider community.