Jim Hume

5 Jun 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with NHS Blood and Transplant regarding introducing a national lung allocation system.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The allocation of organs is a highly complex clinical issue where we have to rely on expert advice. The Scottish Government contracts with NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) to develop organ allocation policies and NHSBT draws on the necessary expert advice to …

14 May 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to ban the use of glue traps for catching rodents.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The Scottish Government currently has no plans to ban glue traps for catching rodents although we do plan to review aspects of policy in relation to animal traps in the near future, consulting with the Partnership for Action Against Wildlife Crime Scotland Le…

28 Apr 2014 · Topical Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on a recent study that indicates that the reduction in staffed hospital beds in Scotland is happening at one of the fastest rates in the developed world.

24 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) children and (b) adults with type (i) 1 and (ii) 2 diabetes have undergone amputation as a result of their condition in each of the last four years, also expressed per 1,000 of people with diabetes, broken down by NHS board.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The information requested is not centrally held in the format requested. Information on the total number of people with type 1 and type 2 diabetes per health board who have ever had a lower limb amputation is published annually within the Scottish Diabetes S…

24 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) children and (b) adults have type (i) 1 and (ii) 2 diabetes, and how many new cases have been diagnosed in each of the last four years, broken down by NHS board.

Answer · Michael Matheson: Not all of the information requested in this question is held centrally. Data on the number of new cases diagnosed in each of the last four years broken down by NHS board is published annually within the Scottish Diabetes Survey. The most recent report conta…

17 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the standard review process is in cases of suspected suicide in NHS mental health wards; how many reviews have been carried out in each of the last 10 years, broken down by NHS board, and whether these results are made publicly available.

Answer · Michael Matheson: Review process: Across mental health services in Scotland, suicide review policies have been gradually integrated into NHS board adverse event policies which are part of the wider adverse event management. All NHS boards categorise every adverse event to det…

17 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many suicides have been recorded in NHS mental health wards in each of the last five years, broken down by NHS board.

Answer · Michael Matheson: All NHS boards’ mental health services carry out individual suicide reviews that examine the circumstances of suicides of patients under their care with the aim of making mental health services safer. Healthcare Improvement Scotland provides a unique resource…

17 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many patients are receiving compulsory treatment under the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003, broken down by NHS board.

Answer · Michael Matheson: This information is not held centrally, however, it is published by the Mental Welfare Commission through their annual monitoring reports. The reports are available online at: http://www.mwcscot.org.uk/publications/statistical-monitoring-reports/

16 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish new guidance for people eligible for the flu vaccine to help them to make an informed choice about whether to receive it.

Answer · Michael Matheson: Each year the Scottish Government, with the support of the Scottish Immunisation Programme Communications Advisory Group, delivers a national marketing and awareness raising campaign to people eligible for free seasonal flu vaccination. This includes TV and r…

16 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will review its plans to roll out the flu vaccination programme to all school age children in 2014, in light of new evidence provided by the Cochrane Collaboration on the effectiveness of Tamiflu.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The Cochrane Collaboration has recently published updated data on the effectiveness of antivirals, including Tamiflu, against seasonal influenza. Antivirals are used for the treatment and post-exposure prevention of influenza, and should not be confused with …

16 Apr 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what scientific evidence was used to justify the selection of primary school children for the programme of flu vaccination during winter 2013.

Answer · Michael Matheson: In line with the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation’s recommendations, a new childhood influenza vaccination programme was introduced in October 2013, which is being rolled out over the next few years on a phased basis. When fully implemented thi…

21 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will consider amending the Dog Fouling (Scotland) Act 2003 to increase the fixed penalty for fouling.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Scottish Government ran a consultation on measures to promote responsible dog ownership, which closed on 31 March 2014. Along with a number of other issues such as microchipping and licensing, this consultation invited respondents’ to give their views on …

19 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government where NHS boards that do not provide plastic surgery procedures refer patients requiring such procedures.

Answer · Alex Neil: Plastic surgery procedures are currently undertaken by consultant plastic surgeons in NHS Grampian, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, NHS Lothian and NHS Tayside. NHS boards that do not provide this type of procedure will refer patients to one of these centres o…

19 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government which NHS boards provide plastic surgery procedures and in which hospitals.

Answer · Alex Neil: Plastic surgery centres of expertise are located within NHS Grampian, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, NHS Lothian and NHS Tayside. Plastic surgery services are concentrated in these four NHS board areas, with in-patient services centred in the following hos…

19 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many plastic surgeons the NHS has employed in each of the last four years, broken down by NHS board.

Answer · Alex Neil: The information requested on the number of plastic surgeons the NHS has employed in each of the last four years broken down by NHS Board is provided in the following table. Headcount of plastic surgeons employed by the NHS in each of the last four years, bro…

19 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what support exists for patients in Scotland equivalent to the Patient and Advice Liaison Service in England and how much funding has been allocated to it in each of the last three years.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The Patient Advice and Support Service (PASS), established as part of the Patient Rights (Scotland) Act 2011, replaced the Independent Advice and Support Service (IASS) in Scotland. PASS, procured through a national contract with Citizen’s Advice Scotland, is…

6 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) women and (b) men aged (i) 16 to 34, (ii) 35 to 54 and (iii) 55 and over are estimated to have no natural teeth.

Answer · Michael Matheson: Information on how many (a) women and (b) men aged (i) 16 to 34, (ii) 35 to 54 and (iii) 55 and over are estimated to have no natural teeth is not held centrally. However, statistics on dental health are available from the Scottish Health Survey which show t…

6 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many teeth have been extracted in the (a) NHS general and (b) hospital dental service setting in each of the last four years, broken down by NHS board.

Answer · Michael Matheson: NHS general dental services Table 1 shows the number of teeth extracted in NHS general dental services by NHS board for financial years 2009-10 to 2012-13 inclusive. Table 1: NHS board of treatment Financial year 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 Ayrsh…

6 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many people aged (a) under five, (b) five to 18 and (c) over 18 have had teeth extracted in the (i) NHS general and (ii) hospital dental service setting in each of the last four years.

Answer · Michael Matheson: Table 1 shows the number of patients with a least one tooth extracted in the NHS general dental services; by age of patient and for financial years 2009-10 to 2012-13 inclusive. Table 1: Age of patient Financial year 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 0-…

6 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) nurses and (b) doctors specialise in neonatal care, broken down by NHS board.

Answer · Michael Matheson: Information regarding (a) nurses who specialise in neonatal care can be found in the following table. Information regarding (b) doctors who specialise in neonatal care is not held centrally. Neonatal care Number of nurses (headcount) Number of nurses (wh…

6 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the average occupancy rate has been for each specialist neonatal unit in each of the last four years, broken down by NHS board.

Answer · Michael Matheson: This information is not held centrally.

6 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many neonatal beds there were in each NHS board in each of the last four years.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The following table shows the current provision of neonatal cots by NHS board in Scotland. Figures for the provision of cots for the past four years were not provided by all boards. NHS health board Neonatal care cots Ayrshire and Arran 20 Borders 8 Du…

6 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many babies have required neonatal care in each of the last four years, broken down by NHS board.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The following table shows the available figures for babies requiring neonatal care in last four years. Figures for 2013 are not yet available: NHS Health Board The number of babies requiring neonatal care Year ending 31 March at 2009 2010 2011 2012 …

6 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) adults and (b) children have received dialysis (i) at home and (ii) in hospital in each of the last four years, broken down by NHS board area.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The number of patients in Scotland receiving renal replacement therapy for established renal failure is small and so data are provided in amalgamated age ranges that are consistent with the Scottish Renal Registry annual publication, that is, under 20s and ov…

5 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many people aged (a) 60 to 64, (b) 65 to 74, (c) 75 to 84 and (d) over 85 were resident in (i) local authority and (ii) private care homes in each of the last five years, broken down by local authority area.

Answer · Alex Neil: Figures showing the number of long stay residents in local authority, NHS and private sector care homes, for the last five years and broken down by age band and local authority has been placed in the Scottish Parliament’s information centre, SPICe (Bib number…

5 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether the (a) governance structure and (b) implementation groups required for the delivery of Prescription for Excellence have been formed.

Answer · Alex Neil: Work is progressing on the establishment of the governance structure and the various working groups that will be central to the effective implementation of the vision and action plan set out in Prescription for Excellence. The Scottish Government will provid…

5 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government which pharmacy (a) professional and (b) negotiating bodies the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing has met to discuss Prescription for Excellence.

Answer · Alex Neil: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-20016 on 13 March 2014. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at: www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Def…

5 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government which healthcare (a) professional and (b) negotiating bodies the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing has met to discuss Prescription for Excellence.

Answer · Alex Neil: I have not as yet met with healthcare or pharmacy professional or negotiating bodies, but plan to do so in the near future. Meetings have however taken place at official level with representatives of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (Scotland), the General P…

4 Mar 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-13476 by Keith Brown on 19 March 2013, whether it now plans to extend the national concessionary travel scheme to include other community transport services and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government has no plans to extend the national concessionary travel scheme to include additional categories of community transport services at this time. The scheme was designed for commercial bus services. Community transport is very different,…

3 Mar 2014 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to support rail travel in the South Scotland region.