Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government's guidance on the Procurement of Care and Support Services explicitly states that, when procuring such services, greater emphasis should be placed on quality rather than cost. Compliance with this requirement should mean that decisions are never based on price alone.

Scottish Government is not aware of any capital projects, other than that at the East Ayrshire Community Hospital PFI, where BAM Construct UK’s has a contractual funding relationship with the Ahli United Bank.

The projected cost of work on the project incurred by NHS Ayrshire and Arran is £758,381.

Within the above cost, £146,727 was spent on permanent improvements to facilities. Of direct benefit to the Frail Elderly and Elderly Mental Health’s Pennelburn and Holmburn Wards were building alterations, including door widening and floor improvements. Also included in the cost of the permanent improvements were additional car parking spaces and changes to the kitchen.

The Social Responsibility was widely consulted upon prior to the passing of the Alcohol etc. (Scotland) Act 2010.

No meetings have been held with stakeholders to discuss the social responsibility levy since the passing of the act.

As the existing arrangements are ad hoc, voluntary and over and above the NHS board’s core provision, this cannot be considered a major service change.

NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde have three responsibilities in relation to public events: they advise as part of the event licensing process to ensure proposals for on site medical and first aid cover is adequate; they provide back up through their hospital and primary care services; and if there is a major incident then they are responsible for ensuring there is a comprehensive NHS response. The responsibility to provide and pay for event medical and first aid cover lies with the organisers, not with the NHS and the public purse.

NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde has never had a major event service but have previously taken responsibility on behalf of event organisers to arrange medical and nursing cover. The NHS board has now concluded that this approach has confused responsibility and has shifted costs from event organisers to the NHS.

NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde will continue to scrutinise event organisers’ medical plans so that the highest standards of medical and first aid care are provided to the public.

The Social Responsibility was widely consulted upon prior to the passing of the Alcohol etc. (Scotland) Act 2010.

No action has been taken to implement the social responsibility levy. The Scottish Government has been clear that the levy will not be taken forward until the wider economic circumstances are right.

The direct service costs are largely recovered from promoters but do not include the time of the boards civil contingencies team and pharmacy staff in planning and managing this process.

The service currently provided by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde is on a voluntary basis and is not part of the board’s core, statutory provision. In these circumstances there is no need to carry out a clinical risk assessment as the changes do not impact on patient care.

As part of their inspection process The Care Inspectorate review both the qualifications and the continuing professional development training plans of care home provider staff.