Chamber and committees

This information is not centrally collected.

National Records of Scotland produce a weekly publication which includes figures for the number of deaths associated with COVID-19 that occurred in various settings, however deaths in hospices are not reported separately. Hospice deaths are included in the hospital statistics where the hospice resides in hospital grounds, or included in care home statistics where the hospice is situated in the community.

The most up to date NRS statistics related to Covid-19 deaths can be accessed via the following link: https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/covid19stats

The criteria agreed by the four UK Chief Medical Officers to identify people at the highest risk of severe illness from COVID-19, did not include people with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/ Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS). Clinicians and GPs have been using their clinical judgement to add individuals to the shielding list if they deem it clinically necessary. It is not possible to provide information on the exact reasons why individuals have been asked to shield within each specific shielding group as this is not recorded in the list of people who have been asked to shield. Anyone that has been advised to shield by NHS Scotland is eligible to receive delivery of free weekly grocery boxes or priority access to online supermarket delivery slots, if they do not have a network of support to assist with this.

For anyone in the increased risk group who is unable to access the essentials they need, and have no support available to do so, they should contact the national helpline on 0800 111 4000.

Guidance on support and information is available on the Scottish Government website here Coronavirus: Guidance on support, information, food and other essentials .

We expect GPs and Health and Social Care Partnerships to assess people's needs and provide care and support accordingly, including home visits, taking account of relevant national and clinical guidance for operation during COVID-19.

Our mental health and wellbeing response to the COVID-19 pandemic will be led by emerging evidence as it becomes available. The Mental Health Research Advisory Group has been established to follow research developments to understand the medium and long term impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on mental health and will allow us to put evidence-based services and support in place to help meet the mental health needs of the population. Minutes from their meetings are published on the Scottish Government’s website.

A survey of the experiences of almost 13,000 shielded people carried out by Public Health Scotland, which closed on 14 June, will also inform our approach. A full report on the findings will be published later in the summer.

On 18 June, the First Minister announced that we are able to move into Phase 2 of the route map. This saw adjustments to the number of households able to meet outdoors and those who are eligible, to form an extended household.

This now means that people from up to 3 different households will be able to meet outdoors. However, we are still advising no more than 8 in any group. This will allow children from up to three households to play together outdoors, with physical distancing.

We also announced changes that will allow the formation of an ‘extended household group’ with one other household. This will allow those who live alone (or those living only with children under the age of 18) to be connected to another household to provide mutual social support. Children within an extended household group will be able to play together without the need to stay 2 metres apart.

We have funded Carers Scotland to run the Carer Positive scheme since it was launched in 2014. Information on the scheme, including Carer Positive employers are published on the Carer Positive website: http://www.carerpositive.org/

As of 16 June there are 194 Carer Positive employers in Scotland covering a total of 437,666 employees. This comprises 149 at the ‘engaged’ level, 27 at the ‘established level’ and 18 at the ‘exemplary level’.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that those living with respiratory conditions can access clinically appropriate, safe and effective person-centred healthcare treatment and support.

The draft Respiratory Care Action Plan for Scotland, currently out for consultation, contains a set of commitments to drive improvement in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of asthma, COPD, sleep apnoea, bronchiectasis and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.

Although our efforts are currently concentrated on saving lives, we are constantly planning how our NHS can move forward after this crisis has passed. We are keen to capitalise on the gains we have made as we move to prioritise the resumption of health services across NHS Scotland and caring for those who need ongoing help after Covid-19 will be an important part of that.

As we continue to develop our understanding of the impact the virus has had on the health of the people of Scotland, including those that have developed long-term respiratory problems as a result of contracting the virus, the final Respiratory Care Action Plan will play a key role in responding to the implications and consequences for many aspects of respiratory care going forward, including pulmonary rehabilitation.

Considerable efforts have been and continue to be made nationally and locally to rapidly increase workforce capacity across social care, including care at home, and healthcare. A national online recruitment portal has been developed to enable those with relevant skills and experience to support social care and healthcare services. As of 8 June there have been over 3,000 expressions of interest for social care roles.

There is already flexibility in the registration system for social services staff to move to another service or start to work in another type of registered service, but more has been done to clarify and implement minimum training requirements and enable redeployment of staff as necessary. The SSSC has developed a minimum training package for social care for redeployment and volunteers, who will play an essential role in the delivery of day-to-day services. Further information can be accessed via the SSSC website: https://www.sssc.uk.com/

We have been supporting care at home providers’ normal supply routes for PPE through additional supplies from national stocks. These arrangements have been in place since March, and are supporting the social care sector with all of its PPE needs where normal supply routes fail, including unpaid carers and Personal Assistants.

An initial £50 million to help the social care sector deal with the financial implications of coronavirus pandemic has been confirmed. The funding will help address immediate challenges faced in the social care sector and support ongoing provision of social care. Health and Social Care Partnerships across Scotland have all put in place mobilisation plans to ensure the health and social care system is as well placed as possible to address this pandemic. This funding is part of the Scottish Government’s commitment to support resilience in social care provision and ensure that any increasing need for social care as a result of the pandemic is met. Guidance on the principles of Social Care sustainability payments can be found here .

One of our key priorities is to ensure that children and young people with additional support needs, including those arising from health or disability, who may be finding this difficult time particularly challenging, continue to be supported with their learning, whether at home or at a local hub.

We have published a range of guidance to support schools, local authorities and families during this time. This includes guidance for term 4 that gives an overview of the measures in place and steps being taken, at a national and local level, to support all children and young people’s learning, including those with additional support needs; and guidance to help local authorities, early learning centres and schools continue to support children and young people's learning during the coronavirus outbreak, including advice on the provision of blended learning for children and young people who need support.

Children and young people with additional support needs have been, and will continue to be, provided with bespoke learning activities from their schools and local authorities. Support and advice is also available for their parents and carers though our Parent Club website and from a range of partner organisations.

We are working closely with local authorities and other partners to ensure all children and young people continue to be supported with their learning and that their needs are fully considered as we look, and plan, ahead.

The Health and Safety Executive have published advice on the risk of Legionella in buildings which are closed or running with reduced occupancy during the COVID-19 crisis. This can be found on the Royal Environmental Health Institute of Scotland (REHIS) website at https://rehis.com/story/legionella-risks-during-coronavirus-outbreak

Clinical and care staff across health and social care teams in Scotland have been providing care, support and treatment to people recovering from Covid-19 in line with the principles of psychological first aid, which include education about responses to trauma, provision of information on coping, and care for immediate needs. When clinically indicated, appropriate access will be provided to the range of evidence based support and care, including specialist psychological support.

The Scottish Government is fully committed to developing a trauma informed and trauma responsive workforce across Scotland that can minimise distress, overcome barriers and build trust. Since 2018, we have invested over £1.5 million in a National Trauma Training Programme to support all sectors of the workforce in trauma informed practice, as well as to embed and sustain this model of working.

The Scottish Government is investing a total of £6 million of additional funding to support the population’s mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. This includes £3.8 million to increase the capacity of NHS 24’s telephone and online services, and to extend the availability of digital therapies, and £1 million to roll out the Distress Brief Intervention Programme on a national basis.