- Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 19 February 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 17 March 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive what the statistical validity is of requiring of each NHS board a minimum of 300 observations of hand hygiene and whether it will publish the evidence for this.
Answer
Health Protection Scotland (HPS) advise that 300 opportunities monitored in each NHS board allows for consistency in the interpretation of results across all boards.
If 300 opportunities are observed in each board then there is a 95% power to detect that the board is falling below the level of 90% compliance with hand hygiene procedure.
Guidance issued in January 2009 detailed the requirements of NHS board chief executives in supporting a zero tolerance approach to non compliance with hand hygiene standards. This confirmed the expectation that in addition to the national monitoring undertaken by HPS, all boards must ensure that hand hygiene audits are undertaken on a minimum monthly basis, across all clinical areas, and for the results of this activity to be reported using the bi-monthly local HAI reporting template.
- Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 19 February 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 13 March 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of published guidance by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) on borderline and antisocial personality disorders, what steps it is taking to ensure that individuals with such disorders have access to the necessary assessments, treatment management and support.
Answer
Services for people with personality disorders are planned and delivered by NHS boards and their partners in line with national clinical guidelines and in accordance with the standards for integrated care pathways for personality disorders, published by NHS Quality Improvement Scotland (QIS) in December 2007 (Bib. number 44374).
This is complemented by the work of the Scottish Personality Disorders Network in engaging with key partners to promote best care, treatment and support for this patient group.
We are also providing funding support to NHS Lothian who are piloting joint work between the board, the prison service and criminal justice social work services to improve the management and treatment of offenders with personality disorders.
- Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 19 February 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 13 March 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive which NHS boards (a) do and (b) do not provide fully trained deafblind guide/communicators, whether directly or jointly with local authorities or through a voluntary organisation, and what steps it will take to ensure equality of access to a deafblind guide/communicator for deafblind people.
Answer
This information is not held centrally.
However, we are aware from information provided by Deafblind Scotland that they provide guide/communicator support within medical services to:
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde;
NHS Lothian;
NHS Lanarkshire, and
NHS Ayrshire and Arran.
We also understand that NHS Forth Valley has its own arrangements to provide a limited guide/communicator service within a hospital setting and that NHS Highland use Deaf Services, a voluntary organisation, to provide deafblind support.
The Scottish Government awarded Deafblind Scotland funding of £120,000 over three years from April 2008 until March 2011 from section 16b of the NHS (Scotland) Act 1978, as amended, to take forward work around the experiences of deafblind people within the health system.
As part of this work, Deafblind Scotland are currently using the section 16b funding to visit all health boards and to work with them to develop and improve services and ensure equality of access for those who are deafblind.
- Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 19 February 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Fergus Ewing on 13 March 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive how many residential drug treatment places there are and how many there were in (a) 2007 and (b) 2008.
Answer
The Review of Residential Drug Detoxification and Rehabilitation Services in Scotland, published in July 2007, found that there were 352 beds across 22 residential services in Scotland.
At the end of February 2009, the National Directory of Drug Services, maintained by the Scottish Drugs Forum and funded by Scottish Government, showed that there was a total of 450 beds across 28 residential services.
The number of beds does not equate to the number of places which depends on occupancy rates and length of programme.
- Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 February 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 11 March 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-18600 by Nicola Sturgeon on 15 December 2008, when the review of NHS board compliance with the Protocol for the Scottish Surveillance Programme for Clostridium Difficile Associated Disease by the HAI National Taskforce will be (a) completed and (b) published.
Answer
NHS board practice in the area of surveillance is monitored through the National HAI Action Plan and progress is reviewed by the HAI National Task Force, as confirmed in the answer provided to question to S3W-18600 on 15 December 2008.
There is no review of NHS board compliance with the protocol for the Scottish Surveillance Programme for Clostridium difficile Associated Disease (CDAD) planned.
- Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 February 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 11 March 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of the emergence of the 078 strain of Clostridium difficile and its potentially higher level of toxicity, whether it has issued new guidelines to replace those requiring samples to be submitted where (a) a patient has developed a severe disease, including (i) admission to hospital or an intensive care unit with, (ii) surgery for or (iii) death following a diagnosis of Clostridium difficile associated disease (CDAD), (b) an outbreak of CDAD is suspected or (c) infections or outbreaks of ribotype 027 are suspected.
Answer
Health Protection Scotland (HPS) confirm that their current guidance on Prevention and Control of Clostridium difficile Associated Disease (CDAD) in Healthcare Settings in Scotland provides for the possibility of more virulent strains being identified. HPS also advise that irrespective of strain, early and appropriate treatment, effective infection control procedures, and prudent antimicrobial prescribing are the key interventions needed to minimise the risk of Clostridium difficile Associated Disease (CDAD).
- Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 February 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 6 March 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-18599 by Nicola Sturgeon on 15 December 2008, where the study of Clostridium difficile ribotypes will take place; when it will start and finish; when it will be published on the Health Protection Scotland website, and when the results are expected to be published.
Answer
Health Protection Scotland (HPS) has indicated that results from their study, which started in January 2009, will be included in each of the Clostridium difficile Associated Disease (CDAD) quarterly surveillance reports which are published on the HPS website.
http://www.ewr.hps.scot.nhs.uk.
Publication dates for these reports can be found at http://www.documents.hps.scot.nhs.uk/ewr/2009-schedule.pdf.
- Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 29 January 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 9 February 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-18600 by Nicola Sturgeon on 15 December 2008, what monitoring the Healthcare Associated Infection Task Force has undertaken in each NHS board for compliance with the Protocol for the Scottish Surveillance Programme for Clostridium difficile Associated Disease in respect of the submission of samples to the national reference laboratory.
Answer
Monitoring is carried out by laboratories who submit quarterly reports to Health Protection Scotland (HPS). These reports are quality assured by HPS who check with each NHS board that all episodes have been reported. In addition, HPS report findings to the Scottish Government''s Healthcare Associated Infection (HAI) Task Force on a regular basis.
- Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 29 January 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 6 February 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it has taken to ensure that there is a standardised data collection system for recording toxin testing for Clostridium difficile.
Answer
A standardised data collection protocol for recording Clostridium difficile toxin testing was introduced in October 2007 and can be found on the Health Protection Scotland (HPS) website at:
http://www.documents.hps.scot.nhs.uk/hai/sshaip/guidelines/clostridium-difficile/cdiff-protocol-v2-2007-10.pdf.
- Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 23 January 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 6 February 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive what consultation it undertook with stakeholders prior to announcing the proposal to merge the Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland with NHS Quality Improvement Scotland and the Care Commission, listing (a) who was consulted, (b) the method of consultation and (c) when it took place.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-20163 on 6 February 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.
