Chamber and committees

We recognise the importance of increasing knowledge to ensure that adequate treatment and care is provided for people with neurological conditions.

Over 5 years of implementing the Neurological Care and Support – National Framework for Action 2020-25 we will allocate £4.5 million in total to improve the care of people with neurological conditions. To date, £2.2 million funding has been awarded to 37 innovative projects across the statutory and third sectors, which seek to improve neurological care and support services. A significant number of these have involved providing support and training to healthcare professionals.

Activity delivered directly by Scottish Government includes a jointly-organised Anticipatory Care Planning (ACP) webinar with Healthcare Improvement Scotland in August 2021 on how the principles of good ACP can be adapted for neurological conditions. The webinar was attended by over 250 individuals, the majority clinical staff, including nurses, allied healthcare professionals and healthcare support workers.

We established a Redesign Project Group in January 2021, as a subgroup of the Scottish Government’s National Advisory Committee for Neurological Conditions. The group developed and published guidance for healthcare professionals working in neurology on the appropriate use of video, telephone and face to face outpatient appointments. This was accompanied by a webinar for healthcare professionals.

I also refer the member to the answer to S6W-08398 on 23 May 2022. In addition to the £60m that will be invested through the EV Infrastructure Fund, the Scottish Government has provided a wide range of incentives to support the early uptake of electric vehicles including more than £145m loan funding to support vehicle purchase (of which £3.5m has gone to households and business in East Ayrshire) and over £50m investment in the ChargePlace Scotland Network of public chargepoints. Electric vehicles now make up a significant proportion of monthly car sales highlighting a rapidly developing and competitive market. This will create further opportunities and incentives for people and businesses across all of Scotland to shift to an electric vehicle.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

The Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration (SCRA) is responsible for the recording of data relating to children and young people in the Children’s Hearings System. Official Statistics, published annually, are available on the SCRA website https://www.scra.gov.uk/ , and include the number of children referred to SCRA each year, and the number of children on a compulsory supervision order.

Supply issues with Estradot® patches in the UK are now resolved, with all strengths available.

Any disruption in the availability of HRT products will be concerning to those who have been prescribed them. We recommend anyone who is affected by the disruption and experiencing difficulties in obtaining their prescribed medication to discuss alternative treatment options with their doctor in the first instance. Shortages of medicines are not an uncommon occurrence and the NHS has robust systems in place to manage them when they arise. The supply and pricing of medicines is reserved to the UK Government and we continue to press them to seek a lasting resolution to HRT supply issues as quickly as possible.

Shortages of medicines are not an uncommon occurrence and the NHS has robust systems in place to manage them when they arise. There is regular monitoring of supply issues, escalating when necessary to a UK Medicine Shortages Response Group, which is clinically-led and provides advice to clinicians on alternative therapeutic options. The Scottish Government issued three UK wide Serious Shortage Protocols (SSPs) effective from Friday 29 April 2022 and due to expire on 29 July 2022. The SSPs will enable community pharmacists to supply patients with no more than three months’ supply of medicine helping preserve stock holdings and ensure more patients have access to their prescribed medicines. Three products covered by the SSPs are Oestrogel® pump pack; Ovestin® cream; Premique®.

In response to the recent disruptions in the supply of some HRT medicines and the creation of a new HRT Taskforce, The Minister for Public Health, Woman’s Health and Sport wrote to the Maria Caulfield MP, Minister for Patient Safety and Primary Care on 12 May 2022, seeking assurances that the UKG are taking all necessary action to resolve current supply issues and the HRT Task Force formed by DHSC will work constructively with the Scottish Government and other Devolved Administrations.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-08462 on 23 May 2022. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers .

The Women’s Health Plan is a three year strategy, published in August 2021, which underpins actions to improve women’s health inequalities. The Plan includes the long term ambition to adopt a life course approach across all services to improve women’s health holistically.

Through the Respiratory Care Action Plan for Scotland we aim to improve outcomes for people living with respiratory conditions in Scotland. The Plan sets out our priorities and commitments for driving improvement in the prevention, diagnosis, care, treatment and support of people living with respiratory conditions including asthma.

This information regarding nursing roles is not held centrally.

The Scottish Government hold data on the number of journeys where children and young people are securely transported for the duration of a custodial sentence. Handcuffs are used in all journeys due to the type of vehicle used. The total number of journeys in the current contract period is:

In 2021-22, the Scottish Government funded NHS 24 £2,372,209 to support the delivery of Breathing Space, a free, confidential phone and web based service for people in Scotland experiencing low mood, depression or anxiety.

The Scottish Government recognise that demand for mental health support from NHS 24 continues to be high, that is why a significant investment of nearly £5 million was made from the Recovery and Renewal fund in 2021-22 to support the NHS 24 Mental Health Hub.

The Mental Health Hub is available for any individual calling the 111 service seeking support for their wellbeing and mental health, or if they are in distress, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Breathing Space and the Mental Health Hub will continue to support people experiencing mental health impacts as a result of the cost-of-living crisis as spending plans are developed and agreed with NHS Boards through the usual channels.

In keeping with its original purpose, the Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund is supporting grassroots community-based initiatives across Scotland which promote good mental health and wellbeing. Managed locally by Third Sector Interface (TSI) bodies, the Fund is aimed at tackling priority issues such as suicide prevention, social isolation and loneliness, prevention and early intervention and addressing the mental health inequalities exacerbated by the pandemic. This includes a particular focus on the needs of ‘at risk’ target groups including women, people from a minority ethnic background, people facing socio-economic disadvantage and older people, amongst others.

Nearly 2000 awards have been given to community projects through Year 1 of the Fund. Early data shows that projects are being funded across the whole of Scotland, supporting a wide range of community activities involving sport, nature, outdoor initiatives, the arts, community cafes and choirs, with a large proportion of these focused on prevention, social isolation and loneliness. Projects being funded include activities which are open to all; whilst many others are focused on the needs of the ‘at risk’ target groups outlined above. Key themes have emerged among projects, such as building community and interpersonal links, often by facilitating discussion or activities and providing space and support.

Officials are currently compiling a monitoring report on year 1 of the Fund, which will be published in June. The report, based on monitoring data provided by each TSI, will give a detailed breakdown of the type of projects funded, key themes and groups targeted by projects, organisation types, and a wide range of illustrative examples of projects funded across Scotland.

Some examples include:

? Avenue Confidential, in Aberdeenshire, who provide Family Wellbeing Groups for parents affected by relationship challenges. These cover topics such as: self-care; healthy communication; blended families; children’s wellbeing; and recognising the impact of trauma in oneself and others.

? The Cactus Book Club, in Aberdeenshire, who are launching a book club for 16-26 year olds who are isolated due to their health. This group is often overlooked and it is a difficult age to be isolated. The club will address loneliness and anxiety about the future and will offer members the chance to feel included.

? The Third Level Foundation, in Aberdeen City, who are running weekly workshops for family members affected by someone with Borderline Personality Disorder. The workshops will cover a range of topics to improve mental health and wellbeing for all.

? The Bridge, in Aberdeen City, who have increased their capacity to run ‘Link Friends’ which arranges for volunteers to visit and arrange phone calls to older people facing isolation. Funding enables increased staff time and facilitates more volunteer work.