Jackie Baillie

13 Aug 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what funding it has provided for Breathing Space in (a) 2007-08, (b) 2008-09 and (c) 2009-10 and what the anticipated budget is for 2010-11.

Answer · Shona Robison: Annual funding provided to Breathing Space is as follows:</p> <p >2007-08 </p> <p >£905,000 total funding received:</p> <p >£680,000 Scottish Government funding allocation for Breathing Space</p> <p >£225,000 NHS 24 funding (internal allocation).</p> …

12 Aug 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the C. diff Justice Group was consulted in advance of the decision to delay the reconvening of the Vale of Leven Hospital Inquiry to take further oral evidence.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The Vale of Leven Hospital Inquiry is an independent inquiry and any decision about the reconvening of oral hearings is a matter for the inquiry. For further information please contact the Secretary of the Vale of Leven Hospital Inquiry Team at <u><a href="ma…

12 Aug 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the reason is for the delay in the Vale of Leven Hospital Inquiry reconvening to take further oral evidence.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The Vale of Leven Hospital Inquiry is an independent inquiry. The procedure and conduct of an inquiry is determined by the inquiry''s chairman in accordance with his/her duties under the Inquiries Act 2005. Scottish ministers are therefore unable to comment a…

12 Aug 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the delay in the Vale of Leven Hospital Inquiry reconvening to take further oral evidence will have an impact on the overall timetable.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The Vale of Leven Hospital Inquiry is an independent inquiry. The procedure and conduct of an Inquiry is determined by the inquiry''s chairman in accordance with his/her duties under the Inquiries Act 2005. Under the terms of reference the inquiry is due to r…

12 Aug 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the timetable for the Vale of Leven Hospital Inquiry has been altered.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W 37527 on 30 August 2010. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at <a href="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2…

12 Aug 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive for what reason it has not publicly reported the failure that caused all three ambulance control rooms to cease functioning on 21 July 2010.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The contingency arrangements were activated, the fault was resolved quickly, and BT has confirmed that all 999 calls were answered. None of the information available to the Scottish Government indicated that it was necessary to make an announcement. However, …

12 Aug 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service assisted in dealing with all 999 ambulance calls from Scotland on 21 July 2010.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: In line with contingency planning arrangements that are in place for the Scottish Ambulance Service, both the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service and the North West Ambulance Service in England assisted in dealing with calls from Scotland on 21 July 2010.</p> …

12 Aug 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what its position is on the resilience in the provision of ambulance control and how it will ensure that the resilience is improved.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: <em>BT were instructed to undertake a full review of resilience of the system and the findings of that will be factored into future contingency arrangements.</em></p> <p >The Scottish Ambulance Service have been undertaking a thorough investigation in to the…

12 Aug 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has concerns that no ambulance control room was operating on 21 July 2010.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: It is not the case that no ambulance control room was operating on 21 July 2010. The Scottish Ambulance Service experienced disruption in their normal call handling operations on 21 July and there was a period of 50 minutes when all three Emergency Medical Di…

12 Aug 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when (a) civil servants, (b) the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing or (c) the Minister for Public Health were notified that all three ambulance control rooms were out of operation on 21 July 2010.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The Scottish Ambulance Service experienced disruption in their normal call handling operations on 21 July and there was a period of 50 minutes when all three Emergency Medical Dispatch Centres (EMDCs) were out of operation while a controlled close down and re…

12 Aug 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive for how long all three ambulance control rooms were out of operation on 21 July 2010.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The Scottish Ambulance Service experienced disruption in their normal call handling operations on 21 July and there was a period of 50 minutes when all three Emergency Medical Dispatch Centres (EMDCs) were out of operation while a controlled close down and re…

12 Aug 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what caused all three ambulance control rooms to not function on 21 July 2010.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The Scottish Ambulance Service has advised that the Cardonald telephone system is the main Hub for the three Emergency Medical Dispatch Centres in Scotland and controls the operation of the local telephone systems at the other sites. An initial fault on the I…

30 Jul 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what health services can be expected to be delivered from intermediate care centres.

Answer · Shona Robison: Intermediate care is a range of enabling rehabilitative and treatment services delivered through an integrated approach in community settings to shift the balance of care from hospital to the community. It will include a wide range of services that help preve…

30 Jul 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to include intermediate care in the General Medical Services curriculum.

Answer · Shona Robison: The content, standards and competencies required within the GP training curriculum are specified by the General Medical Council, in consultation with the Royal College and educational providers. It is a competency-based curriculum which, over several years, i…

30 Jul 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to promote intermediate models of care, such as at the Mid Argyll Community Hospital and Integrated Care Centre, in rural areas.

Answer · Shona Robison: The Joint Improvement Team has funded five demonstrator sites to identify the contribution of intermediate care to a managed shift in the balance of care in order to achieve the outcome of increased independence at home.</p> <p >We are currently engaging wit…

30 Jul 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how it will involve the Vale of Leven Monitoring Group in the consideration of the future of the Christie ward at the Vale of Leven Hospital.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: Having made this a specific requirement in the monitoring group''s remit, and having ensured there is relevant representation on the group for mental health service users and carers, I expect NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde to ensure that the group continues to…

30 Jul 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the (a) timetable and (b) process is for considering the future of the Christie ward at the Vale of Leven Hospital by (i) NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and (ii) the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: I understand that this will be discussed at the next Vale of Leven Monitoring Group on 30 August 2010. NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde should be prepared to discuss all reasonable options with the Group in the first instance.</p> <p >The fact that the ward is…

30 Jul 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many people from the (a) G81, (b) G82, (c) G83 and (d) G84 postcode areas have been admitted as mental health inpatients to (i) the Christie ward at the Vale of Leven Hospital and (ii) any other inpatient mental health facility in each year since April 2006.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The information requested is presented in the following table, as provided by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and NHS Highland.</p> <table border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 > <thead> <tr > <td valign=top > <p align=center >Postcode</p> </td> …

30 Jul 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what recent discussions have been held with NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde regarding the Christie ward at the Vale of Leven Hospital.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: Scottish ministers and officials regularly meet with NHS boards to discuss matters of importance to local people.</p> <p >I was very concerned to learn of the fire at the Christie ward on 11 July 2010. I wrote to the ward staff shortly afterwards to pay trib…

30 Jul 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it considers that substantive appointments will be made to the posts of consultant acute care physicians at the Vale of Leven Hospital.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde advise that, based on the likely dates of completion of training, they expect that substantive appointments to these posts will take place by the middle of next year.</p>

30 Jul 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that the employment of two locums to fill vacancies for consultant acute care physicians at the Vale of Leven Hospital is sustainable and, if so, for how long.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde advise that the acute physician appointments are to supplement the team of physicians based at the Royal Alexandria Hospital who will be providing acute care at the Vale of Leven Hospital on a rotational basis. The NHS board poin…

19 Jul 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of school building projects being halted across England and Wales, whether it remains committed to funding building of the new Dumbarton Academy to the previously agreed timetable

Answer · Keith Brown: This Government remains committed to Scotland''s Schools for the Future and the Scottish Futures Trust are continuing to work with each council to ensure delivery of their school in line with the timelines which have been confirmed. </p>

19 Jul 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when it anticipates the construction of the new Dumbarton Academy will (a) commence and (b) be completed

Answer · Keith Brown: The construction timetable for Dumbarton Academy has not yet been determined by West Dunbartonshire Council as the procurement process has not been completed for the school. The Scottish Government''s contribution towards Dumbarton Academy will commence in 20…

19 Jul 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what funding it has approved for the building of the new Dumbarton Academy

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government will provide a contribution of £12.1 million towards the replacement of Dumbarton Academy from Scotland''s Schools for the Future. </p>

19 Jul 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the annual cost to obtain a licensed taxi badge is, broken down by local authority

Answer · Stewart Stevenson: This information is not held centrally. Responsibility for setting the level of taxi and private hire car licensing fees for their area is a matter for individual licensing authorities.</b></p>

6 Jul 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether screening for MRSA six weeks before admission to hospital is appropriate given that there is time to become infected in the period between the test and admission.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: Health Protection Scotland advise that it is appropriate to screen patients six weeks prior to admission to allow adequate time for decolonisation and repeat tests for patients who test MRSA positive. However, the optimal time is 30 days.</b></p> <p >A recen…

6 Jul 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance it provides to NHS boards on the timing of screening for MRSA prior to a patient's admission to hospital.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: NHS boards are advised in the Health Protection Scotland protocol for MRSA screening national rollout in Scotland that patients who have a planned admission date should be screened at the pre-admission stage or at outpatient clinics.</b></p> <p >If this is n…

6 Jul 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the optimal time is for screening for MRSA in advance of a hospital admission.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: Health Protection Scotland advise that the optimal time for pre-admission screening for MRSA is around 30 days prior to admission.</b></p>

5 Jul 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will follow the lead of the UK Department of Health and publish weekly data on MRSA and Clostridium difficile on a hospital by hospital basis.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-34752 on 5 July 2010. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at <a href="www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/…

29 Jun 2010 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many people contracted hospital-acquired E. coli in (a) 2007-08, (b) 2008-09 and (c) 2009-10.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: Health Protection Scotland (HPS) has confirmed that until a better understanding can be established of what proportion of E. coli bacteraemias are healthcare associated, their epidemiology and what measures are available to prevent them, it would be difficult…