Chamber and committees

I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-27461 on 3 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.

I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-27461 on 3 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.

The extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) unit in Leicester was established more than five years ago to evaluate the evidence for treating adults with ECMO, but it was not until 2007 that it was recognised as a national service for the treatment of patients from across the UK, including Scotland. All admissions to the unit were considered as part of this trial of effectiveness.

NHS boards arrange transfers of patients to Leicester directly. However, we are aware that one patient from NHS Ayrshire and Arran was transferred for treatment in 2007-08, and this month, one patient from NHS Lanarkshire and one from NHS Dumfries and Galloway were transferred.

There are existing long-standing reciprocal arrangements in place to ensure that patients requiring extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) in the UK can receive treatment at European ECMO centres when the national UK centre at Leicester is operating at full capacity.

Under these arrangements, only one adult patient from NHS Ayrshire and Arran was transferred for treatment to Stockholm, Sweden, in July 2009.

I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-27633 on 12 October 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 fundamental that patients who might benefit from extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) have access to it.

On 1 October, UK health ministers agreed to double capacity at Glenfield Hospital in Leicester, the UK''s ECMO centre. This decision was taken based on advice from the UK Critical Care Clinical Group, which had been asked to make recommendations on ECMO provision in the context of the current H1N1 pandemic. The group did not support the expansion of respiratory ECMO to hospital units that are not currently providing it.

The additional costs of doubling ECMO capacity at Glenfield will be £2.33 million until March 2010 and funding will come from within the existing budget of the UK National Commissioning Group.

In addition, an expert group is being set up to consider the future medium and long-term provision of ECMO treatment for adults in Scotland.

Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) is a highly specialised technique demanding even higher levels of medical, nursing and technical/laboratory support than a Level 3 (Intensive Care Unit) facility, including double the number of nurses per traditional intensive care bed. An ECMO service therefore also has to have access to a large range of skills “ including trained intensive care medical and nursing staff with specific expertise in ECMO, perfusionists, respiratory specialists, operating theatre support, laboratory services, physiotherapists and other physicians and surgeons, as well as numerous other services.

The cost of an ECMO machine is approximately £40,000, taking into account fluctuating exchange rates, and an additional £4,000 per patient for required associated consumables.

Staffing costs represent approximately two-thirds of the associated costs of running an ECMO service. Based on the provision of paediatric ECMO in Yorkhill in recent years, this currently equates to a fixed costs of approximately £810,000 per year, plus an additional £1,400 per patient per day for each day of ECMO treatment.

As I announced on 1 October, the UK health ministers have agreed to double capacity at Glenfield Hospital in Leicester, the UK''s extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) centre. This decision was taken based on advice from the UK Critical Care Clinical Group, which had been asked to make recommendations on ECMO provision in the context of the current H1N1 pandemic.

The group did not support the expansion of respiratory ECMO at hospital units that are not currently providing it.

The additional costs of doubling ECMO capacity at Glenfield will be £2.33 million until March 2010 and funding will come from within the existing budget of the National Commissioning Group. Doubling capacity will take approximately two weeks to achieve.

This question was answered in the Chamber. The answer can be viewed in the Official Report using the following link:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/business/officialReports/meetingsParliament/or-09/sor0924-01.htm

Scottish Swimming have confirmed that an Olympic sized swimming pool is 50m in length whereas an Olympic standard swimming pool is 50m in length but must have 10 lanes, as set by the F©d©ration Internationale de Natation.

In Scotland, excluding the outdoor pool at Stonehaven, there is an Olympic standard pool at Tollcross in Glasgow with a further three Olympic sized swimming pools at the National Swimming Academy in Stirling, the Royal Commonwealth Pool in Edinburgh and at the Dollan Aqua Centre in East Kilbride. There are plans to develop a further two Olympic sized pools in Aberdeen and Dundee.