Chamber and committees

NHS Inform is Scotland’s national health information service. Its aim is to provide the people of Scotland with accurate and relevant information to help them make informed decisions about their own health and the health of the people they care for.

NHS Inform has a dedicated long COVID microsite for people with ongoing symptoms after Coronavirus, setting out key information and sources of support for people impacted by long COVID.

This information is publicly accessible at www.nhsinform.scot/long-covid and comes in a variety of different languages and accessible formats to provide clear and accessible guidance to people living with long COVID on managing their symptoms.

I wrote to NHS National Services Scotland on 16 June 2023 to request that an evaluation of post COVID services (including long COVID clinics) in comparison to pathways in Scotland was added to the long COVID Strategic Network’s workplan for 2023-24. Consequently, the Strategic Network has contracted the University of Leeds to support the initial evaluation of long COVID services in Scotland.

The University of Leeds is currently the only institution in the UK evaluating long COVID services under the LOCOMOTION study, which includes NHS Highland as a pilot site. The University of Leeds also collaborates with ELAROS which has produced the C19-YRS digital tool which has been procured for use within NHS Scotland to monitor long COVID services. This partnership will also enable Scotland to benefit from the lessons already being learned from NHS England’s long COVID services.

As part of the evaluation, the University of Leeds will provide an: analysis of demand and capacity within Scotland’s long COVID services; analysis of longer-term outcomes for long COVID patients assessed within NHS Health Board services; and where possible, compare differences in service models.

All NHS Scotland Boards are providing support for children and young people with long COVID.

Assessment and initial investigation is being provided by local primary care teams, who can give advice and guidance about the management of symptoms and any potential treatment options for these in the first instance. Primary care clinicians can refer to occupational therapy and physiotherapy for further support where appropriate. In cases where referral to secondary care is required, children and young people may be referred to general paediatric services for investigation and management.

The Scottish Government is making available funding of £3 million over this financial year to support NHS Boards to increase the capacity of existing services providing support to people with long COVID, develop these in to more clearly defined pathways and to provide a more co-ordinated experience for those accessing support.

The individual delivery models being utilised and progressed by NHS Boards will vary, as they are tailored to local circumstances and needs. For example, some NHS Boards have developed single points of access for assessment and co-ordinated support from services including physiotherapy and occupational therapy. In other areas, the co-ordination role will be fulfilled by the primary care team based in the person’s local GP surgery.

The information requested is not held centrally by the Scottish Government.

The National Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) Specification (published in February 2020) and the National Neurodevelopmental Specification for Children and Young People: Principles and Standards of Care (published in September 2021), set out the levels of service that children, young people and families can expect across Scotland.

This includes nationally agreed referral criteria, a first engagement appointment for all those that meet the criteria, and personalised and meaningful signposting for all those that do not require treatment .

The National Specification for the delivery of Psychological Therapies and Interventions is also due to be published this month and will set out what patients can expect following a referral, and detail the whole system approach including early intervention options that services should offer.

We have allocated £48.6 million of supplementary funding to Boards this year via the Mental Health Outcomes Framework to improve the quality and delivery of mental health and psychological services for all. This is in addition to £36.7 million allocated to Health Boards via the Outcomes Framework in 2022-23, and the total package of core funding that Health Boards receive.

We recognise that not all children and young people need specialist services like CAMHS and that many can access more suitable support in their local community. This is why we are providing local authorities with £15m per annum to fund community-based mental health supports for children, young people and their families.

We have also invested £36m in our Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund for adults over two years, with approximately 3,300 grants being made to local organisations across Scotland. A further £15m committed in 23-24.

The new National Specification for the delivery of Psychological Therapies and Interventions is due to be published at the end of this month. It sets out what patients can expect following a referral and details the whole system approach including early intervention options that services should offer. This includes offers of evidence based digital therapies, which are accessed by around 5,000 people in Scotland annually.

Public Health Scotland produces a range of reports on sexual health data, which include breakdowns by demographic characteristics where this is appropriate and feasible. There are no imminent plans to change any of the demographics reported on in these publications.

The Scottish Government uses a robust process to support the development and updating of all national COVID-19 guidance. This includes the use of national clinical expertise and consideration of evidence and research.

In this instance, in April 2023 Antimicrobial Resistance and Healthcare Associated Infection (ARHAI) Scotland reviewed the latest scientific evidence and updated on the epidemiology of COVID-19, producing an evidence paper. The evidence paper, which is inclusive of an options appraisal from ARHAI Scotland can be found In the Scottish Parliament Reference centre, bib number is 64523.

Due to the risk of patient identification, a point has been redacted within the paper. ARHAI’s recommendation, based on the scientific evidence, was to withdraw the extended use of face masks and face coverings guidance across health and social care settings.

Scottish Government Professional Clinical Advisors in Infection, Prevention and Control (IPC), the Professional Advisory Group for health and social care, the National Clinical Director, Chief Medical Officer, Chief Nursing Officer, the Director for Primary Care and the Interim Director of Social Care Resilience were engaged and agreed that services should revert to the guidance on personal protective equipment, including the use of face masks, contained within the National Infection Prevention and Control Manual.

The Scottish Government revised the Code of Conduct for Property Factors in August 2021 to make it clearer, to drive up standards and to improve transparency and consistency. The changes ensured that the Code remains up to date and responds to concerns raised by homeowners.

There is evidence that the Property Factors (Scotland) Act 2011 is working as intended. However, officials will be taking a wider look at the operation of the property factor sector to see what more can be done to promote an ongoing improvement in standards in line with the requirements currently set out in legislation.