Chamber and committees

Options for the treatment of both stress urinary incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse are discussed in the Independent Review’s interim report.

http://www.gov.scot/Publications/2015/10/8485/4.

It is the responsibility of the MHRA to regulate medical devices in the UK, and the Scottish Government will act as necessary, according to its advice.

I understand that all relevant evidence available has been considered by the Review. The passage of time between the publication of the Interim Report and the forthcoming Final Report is due to the Review awaiting the publication of several key studies.

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-07740 on 17 March 2017. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx

Adverse incidents involving any medical device must be reported as per General Medical Practice guidance.

The number of transobturator mesh tape and prolapse mesh procedures carried out by the NHS between June 2014 to Sep 2016 are set out in the following tables. The numbers of procedures carried out by each Health Board are not broken down by month due to the small numbers of patients involved.

Note: where a figure is not given, this is to protect patient confidentiality due to the small numbers involved.

Source: NHS National Services Scotland.

Decisions around the circumstances in which the use of mesh in any individual patient’s treatment is appropriate are a matter between the patient and the clinicians involved in her case. The Independent Review is expected to publish its final report during the spring. Health Boards will take appropriate action depending on the report's recommendations.

The resignation of the two members was unfortunate, has caused me concern, and I plan to meet with Ms McIlroy and Ms Holmes shortly in order to properly understand their reasons for resigning. I am, however, aware that Ms McIlroy and Ms Holmes have contributed much to the Review over the past three years and would hope that this is reflected in the Review’s final report.

The University of Edinburgh’s new two-year postgraduate teacher education course is a new form of initial teacher education that will result in the award of a full Masters degree and teachers being able to work across both the primary and secondary sectors. The higher academic qualification and increased flexibility in terms of employment will be attractive to graduates considering teaching as a career.

The commitment in the Scottish budget is that in future years investment in mental health will grow at a rate above the overall growth in the frontline budget. No specific percentage rate has been agreed. NHS Boards will report on mental health expenditure through the normal route in due course.