Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government is currently seeking views on the new Mental Health Strategy.

We published a paper on Friday 29 July 2016 which summarises our proposed priorities for the new Mental Health Strategy which will cover a 10 year period.

The paper can be viewed and downloaded at the Scottish Government’s Citizen Space website via the link below.

https://consult.scotland.gov.uk/mental-health-unit/mental-health-in-scotland-a-10-year-vision

All patients who receive electroconvulsive therapy must either give informed consent or be protected by the legal safeguards in legislation. Consent must be in writing and be based on an understanding of the treatment, the reasons why it is being offered and possible risks and side effects.

Further information about consent and legal status can be found in the Scottish ECT Accreditation Network Annual Report. The latest report can be accessed here http://www.sean.org.uk/docs/SEAN-Report-2015-web.pdf.

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the costs of locating, retrieving and providing the information requested would exceed the upper cost limit of £600. This is because we file our information according to the subject matter, not by reference to organisations with whom we have corresponded, and to retrieve that information would require a search of all of the Scottish Government’s records.

Tell Us Once is a UK-wide programme administered by the Department for Work and Pensions, designed to save bereaved families work and stress during a difficult time by sharing data on a person’s death with a range of public sector bodies. In Scotland, it is supported by National Records of Scotland and local authority registrars. Presently, 30 out of 32 Scottish local authorities participate in the scheme, with the remaining two – Orkney and Highland – due to begin participating by the end of 2016 and early 2017, respectively.

The Scottish Government recognises the importance of early bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) as part of the ‘chain of survival’ to improve outcomes from Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest (OHCA). The Minister for Public Health launched “Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest: A strategy for Scotland” in March 2015, which is available at: http://www.gov.scot/Publications/2015/03/7484 The Scottish Government is working with a range of partners to provide training and support for CPR for communities across Scotland. Our ‘Save a Life for Scotland’ (SALFS) initiative provides the public with the opportunity to find out where they can take part in CPR training in their local area. CPR training opportunities have been supported by SALFS partners in various locations including schools, NHS and community premises. Further information can be found at: http://savealife.scotWe published research earlier this year to provide baseline data on CPR training, which highlights that most people are trained through their employment. We are using the survey findings to roll out activity aimed at encouraging bystander CPR.

Every health board publishes a Code of Conduct for their board members. Their Code is based on the Model Code of Conduct that was published by the Scottish Government following a period of consultation and the approval of the Scottish Parliament in December 2013. The Model Code is available to view at http://www.gov.scot/Resource/0044/00442087.pdf. The Code highlights the importance of avoiding conflicts of interest and focusses on the key principles of public life for members of public bodies. All members of an NHS board have a responsibility to ensure that they are familiar with, and that their actions comply with, the provisions of the Code of Conduct.In addition to the requirements of the Code, all health board members undertake induction training, which includes highlighting their responsibilities around the issue of conflicts of interest. An easy to read booklet on the important aspects of induction for health board members, including conflicts of interest, was published by the Scottish Government in August 2015 and is available to view at http://www.gov.scot/Resource/0048/00487869.pdf. NHS Boards will also make other opportunities available to both new and existing members to further understand their role in providing good governance through the provision of additional local training and development.The provisions for dealing with alleged breaches of the Code of Conduct is set out in Part 2 of the Ethical Standards in Public Life etc. (Scotland) Act 2000. This also sets out the sanctions that shall be applied if the Standards Commission finds that there has been a breach of the Code.

Our expectation is that Freedom of Information (FoI) is fully complied with by all NHS Boards. We also recognise that the Information Services Division’s (ISD) role as producers of official and national statistics means that, on occasion, it is appropriate for Health Boards and ISD to discuss FoI requests. National Services Scotland (within which ISD sits) and NHS Dumfries and Galloway, like other public bodies, are responsible for implementing the FoI Act and the Commissioner is responsible for enforcing and promoting FoI. The Scottish Information Commissioner's finding is a matter for NHS Dumfries and Galloway to respond to. The Scottish Government recognises the importance of transparency for all public bodies and, as such, expects all NHS Boards to fully comply with the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002.

The number of GPs in Scotland has increased by 7% under this Government, and we want to go further to boost GP numbers as part of a building a strong, multi-disciplinary Community Health Service. In Scotland we are transforming primary care, supported by £85 million of extra investment to put in place long-term, sustainable change within GP services that can better meet changing needs and demands. As part of this, over £2 million is being invested in work to explore with key stakeholders the issues surrounding GP recruitment and retention. We have pledged to increase GP training places for medical students from 300 to 400 a year and are expanding schemes to encourage trained GPs to return to practice in the NHS. We are working closely with the British Medical Association (BMA) and the Royal College of GPs to reduce workload, including our pioneering agreement to abolish the bureaucratic system of GP payments, and work towards a brand new Scottish GP contract from 2017. A £20 million package to support GPs will also help ease pressures on workload in the short term, and contribute to putting general practice on a more long-term sustainable footing.

Numbers of vacancies for GP posts are not held centrally as this is a matter for individual independent GP contractors as employers. However, as part of the move towards better quality, more regular, and more consistent information, a workforce survey was published on 14 June 2016.One in five (22%) responding GP practices reported current GP vacancies at 31 August 2015. This is an increase from 9% of practices reporting current vacancies in 2013. In 2015, half of the vacancies reported had been vacant for over 6 months.In Scotland we are transforming primary care, supported by £85 million of extra investment to put in place long-term, sustainable change within GP services that can better meet changing needs and demands. We have also pledged to increase GP training places for medical students from 300 to 400 a year and are expanding schemes to encourage trained GPs to return to practice in the NHS. We are working closely with the British Medical Association (BMA) and the Royal College of GPs to reduce workload, including our pioneering agreement to abolish the bureaucratic system of GP payments, and work towards a new Scottish GP contract from 2017. A £20 million package to support GPs will also help ease pressures on workload in the short term, and contribute to putting general practice on a more long-term sustainable footing.