Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S4W-25664

Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 May 2015
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 3 June 2015

To ask the Scottish Government whether clinicians dealing with patients who have been referred by NHS Fife to services in NHS Tayside or Lothian can access the patient's (a) electronic clinical record other than by using the EMC or KIS systems and (b) laboratory results for tests carried out in NHS Fife.

Clinicians in NHS Lothian share a common clinical portal with NHS Fife and can access the information for NHS Fife patients via the clinical portal. NHS Tayside provide services to patients in NHS Fife in areas such as ear, nose and throat and vascular specialisms. Clinicians in NHS Fife can gain access to the NHS Tayside clinical portal if required. There are currently 196 NHS Fife clinicians who can access the NHS Tayside clinical portal. In addition, when NHS Tayside clinicians are involved in clinics in NHS Fife they can access the NHS Tayside clinical portal.

Question reference: S4W-25661

Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 May 2015
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 3 June 2015

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the closure of the TrakCare system in the NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde area for a 20-hour period in November 2014 for upgrade work, whether it (a) took steps to ensure this could not be repeated and, if so, what, (b) advised the other NHS boards that use the system that the contractor could take such action and (c) has taken action to ensure that contracts for such services specify that such interruptions should not take place.

The planned downtime that was required in November 2014 was as a result of a major version upgrade. Such upgrades are infrequent and are planned in full consultation with clinical teams. Such planning ensures that appropriate contingencies are in place and that disruption to the continuity and safety of patient services is minimal. NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde have been in ongoing discussions with the system supplier to work to reduce the overhead of future upgrades. During the period when Trakcare was unavailable, full access was available to the clinical portal that contains the full electronic patient record. The Personal Medical Services Strategic Oversight Group with membership drawn from Trakcare boards meets regularly to discuss a range of issues including minimising disruption during upgrades. There are contractual arrangements in place which specify penalties for unplanned interruptions in service.

Question reference: S4W-25567

Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 15 May 2015
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 2 June 2015

To ask the Scottish Government whether the Scottish Medicines Consortium (a) has considered or (b) will consider the use of bevacizumab in the treatment of wet macular degeneration.

Question reference: S4T-01028

Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 26 May 2015
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 26 May 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what action it has taken to ensure that the concerns of 56 doctors at the Beatson Cancer Centre regarding patient safety are fully addressed.

Question reference: S4W-25434

Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 May 2015
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 14 May 2015

To ask the Scottish Government how much it has cost to treat wet macular degeneration with ranibizumabin in each of the last three years, and what information it has regarding how much it would have cost if bevacizumab had been used.

Bevacizumab is not licensed in the UK for the treatment of wet macular degeneration. Information on how much it has cost to treat wet macular degeneration with ranibizumab in each of the last three years and information on how much it would have cost if bevacizumab had been used is not held centrally. It is the remit of the Scottish Medicines Consortium to provide advice to NHSScotland on licensed medicines. The Scottish Government has noted the literature on the use of bevacizumab, and the position of the UK regulatory authorities, and has no plans to introduce legislation that would be outside the legislative competence of the Scottish Parliament.

Question reference: S4W-25435

Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 May 2015
Current Status: Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 14 May 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the reported increase in (a) diagnoses of disorders in young people that require both physical and mental health care and (b) the age range of those accessing paediatric services.

A definition of ‘diagnosis of disorder in young people that requires both physical and mental health care’ is not available nationally.

The national policy regarding age appropriate hospital care for children and young people was outlined in Better Health, Better Care: Hospital Services for Young People in Scotland, published on 5 May 2009. The report expects NHS boards to have well-structured transition arrangements that accord with best practice and to take advantage of the flexibility offered by the revised age limits to defer formal transfer to adult services until the most appropriate developmental stage for the young person.

Question reference: S4W-25436

Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 May 2015
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 14 May 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the Cochrane Library review, Systemic (whole body) safety of bevacizumab versus ranibizumab for neovascular age-related macular degeneration, which suggests that bevacizumab is an effective and less expensive alternative to ranibizumabin in the treatment of wet macular degeneration and, in light of this, whether it has asked the Scottish Medicines Consortium to consider authorising its use.

Question reference: S4W-25437

Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 May 2015
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 14 May 2015

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on introducing legislation to ensure that doctors who act on the basis of the evidence in a Cochrane Library review are protected from legal action.

Question reference: S4W-25443

Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 May 2015
Current Status: Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 14 May 2015

To ask the Scottish Government how it ensures that paediatric inpatients can access appropriate multidisciplinary mental health care and treatment.

NHS boards should have in place procedures to ensure that mental health service link in to other services including paediatrics. Some health boards have mental health liaison services which can provide advice and support.

The Scottish Government committed £32 million over three years to improve priority specialist children’s services, as part of the National Delivery Plan: a three year plan (2009-11) with 55 commitments to enable improvement in priority specialist children’s services. Funding of £32 million was provided by the Scottish Government with recurring investment of £19.5 million from 2011-12 to ensure that services continue to improve, and this included funding from 2009-10 of £1 million recurring to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services.

Question reference: S4W-25359

Asked by: Dr Richard Simpson, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 27 April 2015
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 6 May 2015

To ask the Scottish Government how many police pipe bands there are; how many there were prior to the establishment of Police Scotland; whether the change in the number of bands has led to a saving being made and, if so, how much.