Chamber and committees

We commissioned the Scottish Health Technologies Group to undertake an assessment on the efficacy of using Haematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation for the treatment of people with highly active relapsing remitting Multiple Sclerosis where other highly effective drugs or forms of immunomodulatory treatment have not been successful. The Scottish Health Technologies Group recently published its findings. We will work closely with MS Society Scotland, other third sector bodies and the clinical community to consider what these findings mean for provision in Scotland, including the information that needs to be available to people about eligibility and risks.

Of the £98.7 million EU Exit consequentials received between 2017-18 to 2019-20, we have already spent or committed £98.25 million. A full breakdown of money allocated to EU Exit preparation is contained within the Scottish Government’s overview of no deal preparations published on 8 October, with the below table taken from paragraph 46 of the plan:

Ensuring patients receive their medication on time when in hospital is a fundamental aspect of good quality care. This is set out in professional guidance, published in January 2019 by the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, on 'the Administration of Medicines in Healthcare Settings'.

In addition, the Chief Pharmaceutical Officer published a strategy 'Achieving Excellence in Pharmaceutical Care' that makes reference to the use of people’s own medicines when they are inpatients, a strategy to facilitate medicine compliance in hospitals. This practice supports the medicines reconciliation process and ensures medicine changes are shared with care providers.

The Scottish Government and NHS Scotland are also investing £257 million each year to maintain, upgrade and implement core health IT systems, including the roll out of hospital electronic prescribing and medicines administration systems (HEPMA). Electronic prescribing has already been successfully implemented in four health boards across Scotland and all remaining NHS Boards are on track to roll it out within the next three to five years.

HEPMA supports both accurate prescribing and the administration of medicines to be recorded and therefore missed doses can be identified and rectified more quickly.

HEPMA’s functionality supports and enables more accurate, legible prescriptions through reduced transcription errors, reducing the risk of missing records and missed or late doses, resulting ultimately in a reduction in adverse drug events and allergic reactions.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that everyone living in Scotland with neurological conditions, including Parkinson’s disease, is able to access the best possible care and support, and benefit from healthcare services that are safe, effective and put the patient at the centre of their care. We have worked with the neurological community to develop Scotland’s first ever National Action Plan on Neurological Conditions, which we will publish before the end of the year.

The Scottish Government looks forward to working with Parkinson’s UK and other key stakeholders to support and improve care through the development of this plan taking account of the recommendations of this report as we do so.

This information is not held centrally. Under the Education (Scotland) Act 1980, it is the responsibility of all local authorities to maintain the school estate.

However, the Scottish Government's school building programmes - the current £1.8 billion Scotland’s Schools for the Future and the new £1 billion Learning Estate Investment Programme – are helping to replace the worst condition schools across Scotland.

The following table sets out the number of (a) short; (b) full and; (c) other school inspections undertaken in the last five academic years.

Prior to the UK Government regulatory changes introduced on 1 November 2018, cannabis was a schedule 1 controlled drug under the terms of the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001.

Prescription levels or numbers for information on unlicensed cannabis based products for medicinal use (CBPMs) is not collected by the Scottish Government.

The annual iMatter questionnaire designed by staff, for staff, asks them if they feel that their manager and their employer cares about their wellbeing. This allows managers and health and social employers to monitor and take action to reduce work related stress, staff workloads and other wellbeing matters such as fatigue.

Additionally, the NHS Scotland Staff Governance Standard requires health boards to demonstrate that staff are provided with a continuously improving and safe working environment and that they are promoting the health and wellbeing of staff.

We will continue to survey all staff through iMatter in 2020.

The GMC’s ‘Promoting Excellence: Standards for Medical Education and Training’ sets out requirements for the management and delivery of undergraduate and postgraduate medical education and training. University medical schools encompass GMC requirements which includes a requirement for medicals schools to minimise the adverse effects of fatigue and workload.

Student mental health and wellbeing is a key priority for the Scottish Government and we are investing £20m in the sector over the next 4 years so that colleges and universities can access and recruit additional mental health councillors.

Universities will also be required to have a mental health strategy openly available and to work alongside student associations to ensure this is implemented.

Each NHS Board is responsible under the Health and Safety at Work Act (1974) and its subsequent regulations, to provide appropriate staff rest facilities. They are best placed locally to determine the particular requirements for safe staff working, including quantity and mix of rest facilities.

To assist NHS Boards in determining their needs in all healthcare facilities, Health Facilities Scotland (HFS) provide over 150 guidance documents on their website www.hfs.scot.nhs.uk/publications-/guidance-publications which covers a wide range of issues including rest facilities. For example, 'Facilities for surgical procedures (HBN 26) (2004)' states: '5.59 Anaesthetist on-call facilities are required within the department. Facilities should include a bed, en-suite shower/WC, clothes storage, a hand-wash basin, a desk and chair, and a computer with connection to IT services. Additionally, 'Accident and emergency facilities for adults and children (SPHN22) (2007)' states: '4.11 For senior on-call staff, a minimum of one single en-suite bed/sitting room that provides overnight accommodation is required within the department. The planning team should decide on the number, size and location of rooms following local consultation'.

The Scottish Government believes that this guidance provides sufficient clarity as to what rest facilities need to be provided for medical staff and this would be provided and managed locally by NHS Boards.