Mr Lloyd Quinan

12 Dec 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-20424 by Nicol Stephen on 11 December 2001, what constitutes an understanding of autism on the part of educational psychologists.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: Psychologists should be familiar with the concept of the triad of impairments characteristic of autism, the range of autistic spectrum disorders and the most common approaches to teaching autistic children.<P>Their understanding should arise from their traini…

28 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much each health board has spent on computer network software licences in the current year.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The information requested is not held centrally.

28 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many educational psychologists are specialists in autism, broken down by local authority area.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: Data is not collected centrally on the allocation of responsibilities within services or on an educational psychologist's professional levels of specialist expertise. However, educational psychologists will have an understanding of autism and those dealing pa…

27 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how successful the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network have been in providing guidance to health professionals; whether this guidance has been acted upon effectively, and what evidence there is of the clinical and cost effectiveness of this guidance and that patients are accessing…

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The clinical guidelines produced by Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN), which are based on the most up-to-date published evidence, are of international renown. One of the accepted strengths of SIGN guidelines, apart from their technical excell…

27 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network has provided a single national focus for health professionals.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: I refer the member to the answer given to Question S1W-20469.

27 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network operates in an independent manner and how it will ensure that it continues to do so.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) is a network of clinicians and other health care professionals, including all the medical specialties, nursing, pharmacy, dentistry, professions allied to medicine, patients and health service management. Alt…

27 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many children are currently participating in home-based learning, broken down by (a) local authority area, (b) age and (c) gender.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: This information is not yet available. The Scottish Executive has recently undertaken a statistical survey to collect data on the number of children who are educated outwith school. The results will be published later this month and will provide data by local…

27 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive who the members are of the Review of Educational Psychologists and to whom the review will report and when.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: The review is in its final stages and the report will be put to ministers soon. The members are:<TABLE BORDER CELLSPACING=1 CELLPADDING=2 WIDTH=559><TR><TD WIDTH="19%" VALIGN="TOP" HEIGHT=16><FONT FACE="Arial" SIZE=2><P ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Eleanor Currie</FONT></…

23 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to ensure that general practitioners are qualified to give a diagnosis of autism or Asperger's syndrome.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: General practitioners, like other professionals, are encouraged to look at their own personal learning needs and the health needs of their patients and to seek training in specific areas accordingly. Guidance and assistance is available from the Scottish Coun…

23 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to ensure that there is a sufficient number of qualified and knowledgeable psychiatrists in autism and Asperger's syndrome.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The report of the Scottish Needs Assessment Programme review on autism and Asperger's syndrome is expected to be submitted in January 2002. It will inform future decisions by the Executive on the organisation of services for this important care group, includi…

23 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to replicate the initiative by Lothian Health Board by ensuring that an Adult Autism Co-ordinator is appointed in each health board area.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: <I>The same as you?</I> recommended that health boards and local authorities should identify a named professional who will be responsible for improving local services for people with autism and for linking local services to the national network. It is the res…

23 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive when the Needs Assessment Report on autistic spectrum disorders by the Public Health Institute of Scotland will be published and what course of action it will then take with regard to the report's recommendations

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The Needs Assessment Report on Autistic Spectrum Disorders is expected to be published at the end of December 2001.<P>We will wish to consider the report's recommendations carefully, particularly in relation to setting up the national network for autistic spe…

22 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what training is given to classroom assistants in primary schools, with particular reference to those who work with pupils with special educational needs.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: The training of non-teaching classroom staff is a matter for local authorities. A Professional Development Award for Classroom Assistants has been developed by the Scottish Qualifications Authority that contains optional modules dealing with children with spe…

22 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many classroom assistants are employed in primary schools in 2001-02, broken down by local authority area.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: The number of classroom assistants employed by education authorities in 2001-02 is not available. The latest returns for the Excellence Fund show that at March this year education authorities employed 2,663 FTE classroom assistants. A breakdown by authority i…

21 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what implications the decision of the General Medical Council's Preliminary Proceedings Committee in respect of the complaint against Dr Peter John Mansfield regarding the practice of giving children single vaccinations instead of the combined measles, mumps and rubella vaccination will h…

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: None. The decision of the General Medical Council relates to an individual health professional. It has no substantive bearing on immunisation policy.<P>Immunisation policy is informed by expert advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation. …

20 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-18479 by Malcolm Chisholm on 8 October 2001, what plans it has to initiate any data collection exercises in respect of the cost of caring for and educating people with an autistic spectrum disorder over their lifetime.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-18479 on 15 October 2001.

20 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether there are any alternatives to mainstream schooling for pupils with special educational needs.

Answer · Nicol Stephen: There is a broad range of provision for pupils with special educational needs. This includes local authority mainstream and special schools, special units attached to mainstream schools, independent special schools and grant-aided special schools. Some childr…

20 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how much has been paid in total since 1999 to date in landfill tax by each local authority in the west of Scotland.

Answer · Ross Finnie: This is a matter for HM Customs and Excise. The information requested is not held centrally.

20 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive which environmental organisations and projects in the West of Scotland have benefited from revenue raised from landfill tax in each year since 1999 and how much each such organisation or project received.

Answer · Ross Finnie: This is a matter for ENTRUST, the regulator of the Landfill Tax Credit Scheme. The information requested is not held centrally.

15 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many beds are available at the Western Infirmary in Glasgow for patients referred by the Immunology Clinic.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: I refer the Member to the answer given to question S1W-20011.

15 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many hours per week consultants at the Immunology Clinic at the Western Infirmary in Glasgow work and what average time is taken to carry out consultations.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: I refer the Member to the answer given to question S1W-20011.

15 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many consultants are based within the Immunology Clinic at the Western Infirmary in Glasgow.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: This is an operational matter for North Glasgow University Hospitals NHS Trust as local service providers.

15 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what the average waiting time is for a consultation at the Immunology Clinic at the Western Infirmary in Glasgow.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: This information is not held centrally. Information on waiting times for a first out-patient appointment with a consultant, following referral, is collected at speciality level only.

15 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many patients are currently on the waiting list for the Immunology Clinic at the Western Infirmary in Glasgow.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The information requested is not held centrally. Information on waiting lists is collected centrally only for hospital in-patients and day cases.

5 Nov 2001 · First Minister's Question

To ask the First Minister what plans the Scottish Executive has to introduce additional live vaccines for human immunisation.

Answer · Jim Wallace: The Executive has no such plans.

1 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what medical breakthroughs have been made in the treatment of myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) in Scotland.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The Executive is not aware of any recent significant advances in the treatment of ME in Scotland. The forthcoming report of the Chief Medical Officer's Working Group in England is expected to produce good practice guidelines on the treatment of people with ME.

1 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have been diagnosed with myalgic encephalomyelitis since 1995 broken down by health board area, year and gender.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: The information requested is not available centrally. However, estimated all-Scotland figures for patients seen by general practitioners for myalgic encephalomyelitis, based on a sample of Scottish general practices participating in the Continuous Morbidity R…

1 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has on any research that has been carried out into myalgic encephalomyelitis, stating in what year and by whom any such research was carried out and where any report of the findings may be accessed..

Answer · Susan Deacon: Information on non-commercial health related research carried out in the last seven years is available from the National Research Register, a copy of which is in the Parliament's Reference Centre (Bib. number 17404). Policy on accessibility of research report…

1 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will consider commissioning any studies into the use of food additives and any possible side effects caused by their consumption.

Answer · Malcolm Chisholm: On matters of food safety and standards, the Scottish Executive is advised by the Food Standards Agency. Additives are only permitted if independent experts consider them to be safe and their use is justified. The Food Standards Agency actively checks on the …

1 Nov 2001 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will consider setting up a research group to look into any effects of using pesticides in the food chain.

Answer · Ross Finnie: It is the responsibility of the Advisory Committee on Pesticides to ensure that all pesticides are safe to those who use them, to consumers of the treated produce and to the environment. In addition, the Pesticide Residues Committee (PRC) monitors the safety …