Margaret Curran

24 Apr 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to improve the quality of NHS24 by delivering services through more local mini-centres co-located with out-of-hours services in each NHS board area.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: NHS 24 is committed to a local presence in each mainland NHS board area, as outlined at their annual review in August 2007, and this is in place, or planned for each. Discussions are progressing with NHS board partners about a number of initiatives on the fur…

24 Apr 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether there are any plans to replace ambulances with one-man rapid response vehicles and, if so, how many ambulances will be replaced and when it anticipates any resulting effect on patient care.

Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Ambulance Service has confirmed that over the next 12 months they plan to update the mix of their emergency vehicle fleet to better respond to changing demand patterns and deliver improved levels of patient care. The result will be more emergency…

15 Apr 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of each NHS board’s budget was spent on (a) bank and (b) agency staff in each of the last five years.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The percentage of each board''s budget which was spent on bank staff was:</p> <table border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 > <thead> <tr > <td nowrap valign=bottom > <p align=left >NHS Board</p> </td> <td valign=bottom > <p align=center …

15 Apr 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much each NHS board spent on (a) bank and (b) agency staff in the last year.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The amount spent on bank and agency staff in the 2006-07 was:</p> <table border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 > <thead> <tr > <td nowrap valign=bottom > <p align=left >NHS Board</p> </td> <td nowrap valign=bottom > <p align=center >Bank…

4 Apr 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much was spent by NHS Scotland on stroke care in (a) 2006 and (b) 2007.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The information requested is not collected centrally.</p>

26 Mar 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what it is doing to promote a standardised approach to the funding of respite care places by local authorities.

Answer · Shona Robison: It is the responsibility of each local authority to allocate the total financial resources available to it on the basis of local needs and priorities, and taking account of its statutory obligations. This includes funding for respite care.</p> <p >The Scotti…

26 Mar 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to introduce a statutory right to respite care.

Answer · Shona Robison: Our manifesto includes a commitment that carers in greatest need will have a guaranteed annual entitlement to breaks from caring by 2011.</p> <p >We are considering the best way to achieve this and will be discussing the possibilities with relevant stakehol…

26 Mar 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has given any guidance to NHS boards on the provision of financial support to voluntary sector respite care providers.

Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Government recognises the important role voluntary sector providers play in the provision of respite services, helping to support carers in their caring role and to sustain the caring relationship.</p> <p >Existing respite guidance provides advi…

26 Mar 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what progress it has made towards its target of delivering 10,000 additional respite weeks per year.

Answer · Shona Robison: Progress towards delivering 10,000 extra respite weeks per annum is one of the commitments contained in the concordat signed with COSLA in November 2007. The concordat covers the period 2008-09 to 2010-11. Progress against each of the commitments in the conco…

26 Mar 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how it is supporting the development of a range of respite care opportunities appropriate for people with multiple sclerosis.

Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Government recognises the importance of respite for all groups of people with care needs and their carers, including those affected by multiple sclerosis.</p> <p >That is why our concordat with local government includes a commitment to make prog…

26 Mar 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what it is doing to meet the respite care needs of younger disabled people.

Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Government recognises the importance of respite for all groups of people with care needs and their carers, including younger disabled people.</p> <p >That is why our concordat with local government includes a commitment to make progress towards …

26 Mar 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what national advice and support is available to assist people to access respite care.

Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Government recognises the importance of clear, consistent advice to enable carers to access appropriate respite care. That is why we support a variety of national voluntary organisations which provide advice and information to unpaid carers.</p> …

6 Mar 2008 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when ministers last met representatives of organisations representing elderly people.

Answer · Shona Robison: Ministers meet frequently with both national and local organisations representing the interests of older people. I met the Scottish Pensioners Forum in November and with the Fife Elderly Forum in December. Next month I will chair a meeting of the Older People…

6 Feb 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what work is being undertaken on stroke issues and which organisations are involved in such work.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: The national CHD and Stroke Strategy, first published in 2002 and updated in 2004, sets out our approach to improving stroke care through each NHS board's stroke Managed Clinical Network. We are in the process of revising the strategy to take account of the f…

21 Jan 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what consultation was undertaken in relation to the extension of the Emergency Workers (Scotland) Act 2005.

Answer · Shona Robison: The extension of theEmergency Workers (Scotland) Act 2005, to cover doctors, nurses and midwives whenever they areon duty, fulfilled a manifesto commitment. Although noadditional consultation was undertaken, the arguments of different stakeholdershave been we…

21 Jan 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to increase the number of speech and language therapists.

Answer · Shona Robison: All NHS boardsreceive an annual allocation of funds. Each board’s allocation will beincreased in each year of the spending review period. It is for each NHS boardto decide how best to utilise these funds to meet the health care needs of itsresident populatio…

21 Jan 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it can guarantee that the homebase of the National Theatre of Scotland will be in Easterhouse and that all the implications of the previous administration’s commitment to base the theatre in Easterhouse will be honoured.

Answer · Linda Fabiani: I can confirmthat the National Theatre of Scotland (NTS) remains committed to theirpermanent homebase at the Bridge in Easterhouse and to building on their linkswith the community there.</p>

21 Jan 2008 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what measures of diabetes-related hospital admissions rates and bed days will be used in order to assess its HEAT target.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: As outlined in the Better Health,Better Care: Action Plan, one of the 2008-09 HEAT targets is “To achieve agreed reductions in the rates of hospitaladmissions and bed days of patients with primary diagnosis of COPD, Asthma, Diabetesor CHD, from 2006-07 to 201…

20 Dec 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it will take in light of any loss of services for those suffering from Huntington’s disease.

Answer · Shona Robison: The funding of services for thosesuffering from Huntington’s disease is a matter for NHS boards.</p><p>The Scottish Government valuesthe services which the Scottish Huntington’s Association provides for those livingwith the condition, and their families and c…

19 Dec 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when the planned review of the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003 will take place; what the timescale will be for completion of the review, and what planning has been done to ensure that the review mirrors the principles of the original Act.

Answer · Shona Robison: I have appointed ProfessorJim McManus, Glasgow Caledonian University as chair of the group which will undertake a limitedreview of the civil provisions of the act. Members of the group arerepresentative of different interests in the mental health field, inclu…

19 Dec 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what guarantee it can give to ensure that expenditure on mental health services will remain at current levels.

Answer · Shona Robison: Spend on mental health serviceswill be drawn from the record funds allocated to NHS boards and local governmentoverall. Further details can be found in the Scottish Budget Report and relatedconcordat with local government (Bib. numbers 44076 and 44077 respect…

19 Dec 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to promote greater awareness of the dangers of high cholesterol levels and to inform the public of healthy diet and lifestyle options to avoid heart disease and stroke.

Answer · Shona Robison: The Scottish Government, NHShealth boards, health professionals, the Food Standards Agency (Scotland) and ourpartners in the voluntary and private sectors provide information to the publicon the risks of heart disease and stroke associated with a poor diet, i…

19 Dec 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to introduce screening for bowel cancer in Scotland; when such screening is likely to be introduced, and how.

Answer · Shona Robison: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-3284 on 27 August 2007. All answers to written parliamentaryquestions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for whichcan be found at <a href="http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa…

19 Dec 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether drugs have ever been prescribed as an exceptional case by NHS Grampian.

Answer · Shona Robison: Information is not collectedcentrally on clinical decisions regarding the treatment of individual patients.NHS medicines usage data collected centrally relate to the number and cost of medicinesdispensed in the community and do not include data on medicines d…

19 Dec 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many NHS boards have a category of exceptional case, enabling them to prescribe drugs outwith Scottish Medicines Consortium guidelines; how often this provision has been used, and whether it is governed by local or nationally determined guidelines, broken down by NHS board.

Answer · Shona Robison: NHS boards should have processesin place to determine their prescribing policy on medicines, including considerationof requests by clinicians to prescribe medicines not approved by the Scottish MedicinesConsortium. Each request should be considered on its ind…

21 Nov 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much of the Community Regeneration Fund in Glasgow has been spent on health improvement.

Answer · Stewart Maxwell: The Glasgow CommunityPlanning Partnership has claimed Community Regeneration Funding totalling £21.5million for activities directly supporting the creation of healthier communities.This is based on final grant claims for the first two years of the three-year …

21 Nov 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much, in capital and revenue terms, will be spent on children’s health services over the period of the spending review.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: Spending onchildren’s health services will be met by NHS Boards from within their generalfunding allocation and is not separately identified.</p><p>In response tothe National Delivery Plan for Specialist Children’s Services, specificadditional revenue funding…

21 Nov 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what increases there have been in revenue budgets for mental health services.

Answer · Shona Robison: Spend on mentalhealth services will be drawn from the record funds allocated to NHS boards andlocal government. It is the responsibility of these agencies to work inpartnership and to allocate funds from the total financial resources availableto then on the b…

21 Nov 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide details of planned expenditure on health improvement.

Answer · Shona Robison: Plannedexpenditure on health improvement set out in the Scottish Budget SpendingReview 2007 document is as follows</p><table border=1 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=3> <thead> <tr> <td valign=top> <p>Area of Spending</p> </td> <td valign=top> <p align=…

21 Nov 2007 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Scottish budget provided funding to increase the number of allied health professionals.

Answer · Nicola Sturgeon: All NHS boardsreceive an annual allocation of funds. Each board’s allocation will beincreased in each year of the spending review period. It is for each NHS boardto decide how best to utilise these funds to meet the health care needs of itsresident population…