Neil Findlay

28 Jul 2014 · General Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to privatise NHS services.

15 Jul 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many children per 10,000 population have been prescribed Ritalin in each year since 2009.

Answer · Alex Neil: The number of children in Scotland, aged 0-18 years, prescribed Ritalin and the rate per 10,000 population by calendar year (2009-13) are shown in Table 1. This data relates only to Ritalin and does not include its equivalents with the non-proprietary name m…

15 Jul 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many children with (a) attention deficit hyperactive disorder and (b) an autistic spectrum disorder were prescribed Ritalin in (i) 2012-13 and (ii) 2013-14.

Answer · Alex Neil: This information is not held centrally.

14 Jul 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to address the reported shortfall in psychiatry numbers.

Answer · Michael Matheson: The Scottish Government has increased the numbers of core specialty trainees in Scotland for the 2014 recruitment round and is continuing to work closely with the Royal College of Psychiatry, NHS Education for Scotland and other stakeholders. It should be no…

7 Jul 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of its news release of 26 June 2014, £220 million for schools and health facilities, when it will announce similar new investment in primary and community health premises.

Answer · Alex Neil: The allocation of further resources will be considered over the summer with an announcement in the autumn of a future investment programme.

30 Jun 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on reports that a new system on access to medicines has not been brought in on time.

Answer · Alex Neil: The new Scottish Medicines Consortium system is in place and has already begun work.

30 Jun 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it would seek to change the appeals process for complainants unhappy with initial decisions made by the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman in an independent Scotland.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: There are no plans to change the appeals process for complainants unhappy with initial decisions made by the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman in an independent Scotland.

30 Jun 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it would seek to retain the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman in its present form in an independent Scotland.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Scottish Public Services Ombudsman is widely respected and praised for its work. Any system we develop should build on current successes.

30 Jun 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what appeals process it would seek to introduce for complainants unhappy with initial decisions made by any newly established ombudsmen in an independent Scotland.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Consultation on the model of the proposed Scottish Ombudsman Service is ongoing. The model chosen will determine the appeals process which will be introduced. The options for complainants unhappy with initial decisions made by ombudsman are largely determined…

30 Jun 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what new ombudsmen it would need to establish in an independent Scotland.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Much of the current competition and consumer protection landscape is fragmented. There is significant scope to deliver this more efficiently in an independent Scotland offering a real opportunity to deliver better outcomes for consumers. Scotland’s Future pr…

30 Jun 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has considered alternative appeals process models employed by other ombudsmen with a view to seeking changes to the process for complainants unhappy with initial decisions made by the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: There are no plans to consider alternative appeals processes adopted by other ombudsmen. The Scottish Public Services Ombudsman has recently set up a new internal complaints process within the Complaints Standards Authority with further redress to an indepen…

30 Jun 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has discussed with any other body the possibility of changes to the appeals process for complainants unhappy with initial decisions made by the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: There have been no discussions about changing the appeals process for complainants unhappy with the initial decisions made by the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman.

30 Jun 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the appeals process for complainants unhappy with initial decisions made by the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) was set up as an independent body, not accountable to the Scottish Government, in order to maintain an independence from the public services which they could be investigating. Its decisions cannot be reviewed by m…

30 Jun 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to seek changes to the appeals process employed by the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: There are no plans to seek changes to the appeals process employed by the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO). The SPSO has set up a new internal complaints process within the Complaints Standards Authority. A complaint about the service can be made to…

25 Jun 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the average length of time has been between the receipt of an application under the individual patient treatment request system and a decision.

Answer · Alex Neil: NHS boards prioritise individual patient treatment requests in accordance with the patient’s clinical needs and it is expected that due consideration is given to the urgency of the request given the patient’s clinical condition. The Scottish Government does …

25 Jun 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many patients have submitted applications under the individual patients treatment request system and how many were (a) successful and (b) unsuccessful.

Answer · Alex Neil: Individual patient treatment requests (IPTRs) are made by clinicians rather than individual patients. The Scottish Government is compiling the most recent information on IPTRs in order to provide an update to the Health and Sport Committee before Parliament e…

25 Jun 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when the peer approved clinical system will replace the individual patient treatment request system.

Answer · Shona Robison: Changes to access to medicines policy have already been introduced and hundreds more patients throughout Scotland are already accessing new treatments. The interim individual patient treatment request system was introduced in 2013-14, and brought greater fle…

6 Jun 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact on patient care of the reduction in funding for general practice from 9.8% of the NHS budget in 2005-06 to 7.8% in 2011-12.

Answer · Alex Neil: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-21671 on 19 June 2014. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybu…

6 Jun 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it considers that (a) the integration of health and social care is crucial to the financial sustainability of the NHS and (b) the general practice share of NHS spend should be restored to ensure that general practice has the resources to deliver critical services in partnership w…

Answer · Alex Neil: a) Integration of health and social care will play a key role in ensuring the ongoing quality and sustainability of health and social care in Scotland. We are integrating health and social care services in order to improve the quality and consistency of care…

5 Jun 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government on what issues relating to the east coast main line it has been consulted and whether it expects that further consultation will take place.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government has been fully consulted by the Department for Transport as part of the InterCity East Coast refranchising process, and has presented its requirements of the new franchise, in partnership with the department, at the Bidders’ Awareness …

5 Jun 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has made representations to the UK Government that the east coast main line should be retained in the public sector.

Answer · Keith Brown: Since the Railways Act 1993, several UK Government administrations have had the opportunity to reverse the decision to privatise the railways but have failed to do so. The Scottish Government has noted the performance of East Coast Main Line Ltd, a public se…

5 Jun 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has made representations to the UK Government to ensure that services to and from Scotland will be retained at least at their current level following the privatisation of the east coast main line.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government has discussed in detail with the UK Government the continuing need for the provision of services to and north of Edinburgh and notes that the specification of the InterCity East Coast franchise included within the invitation to tender …

5 Jun 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact of the privatisation of the east coast main line.

Answer · Keith Brown: Since the Railways Act 1993, several UK Government administrations have had the opportunity to reverse the decision to privatise the railways but have failed to do so. The Scottish Government has made numerous representations to the UK Government about the u…

5 Jun 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what consultations it has had with the UK Government regarding the future of the east coast main line.

Answer · Keith Brown: The Scottish Government has not recently been engaged in any specific consultations regarding the East Coast Main Line, although it engages in general industry processes around the management of the line. It notes that Network Rail, who manage and maintain th…

30 May 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it will take to ensure that dieticians are made compulsory members of pancreatic cancer multidisciplinary teams that review people with pancreatic cancer.

Answer · Alex Neil: As noted on the NHS inform website the Scottish Government recognises dieticians as a core part of a multidisciplinary team. We would encourage NHS boards to ensure that this is the case with regard to pancreatic cancer multidisciplinary teams.

30 May 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that people diagnosed with pancreatic cancer will be assigned a clinical nurse specialist.

Answer · Alex Neil: The role of the Scottish Government is to provide policies, frameworks and resources to NHS boards in order that they can deliver services that meet the needs of their local population. Within this context, the actual planning and provision of healthcare serv…

30 May 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that treatments proven to show benefit to people with pancreatic cancer will be made available on the NHS as quickly as possible.

Answer · Alex Neil: New technologies for patients require careful evaluation of the safety, efficacy and clinical and cost-effectiveness prior to use. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) publishes Multiple Technology Appraisals (MTAs) which are then rev…

30 May 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will establish a pancreatic cancer specific symptom awareness campaign.

Answer · Alex Neil: The Scottish Government is committed to improving survival rates from cancer. The Detect Cancer Early Programme was formally launched in February 2012. The tumour types covered by the programme are breast, colorectal and lung, chosen because these tumours acc…

30 May 2014 · Written Question

To ask Scottish Government whether it will undertake a review of pathways between primary and secondary care for the referral and investigation of pancreatic cancer.

Answer · Alex Neil: Healthcare Improvement Scotland is leading on a review of these Scottish Referral Guidelines for Suspected Cancer. The guidelines for breast, lung and colorectal cancers were published in October 2013. Revised guidelines for suspected oesophagogastric, hepato…

30 May 2014 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that the medical training curriculum promotes early diagnosis of pancreatic cancer.

Answer · Alex Neil: Early diagnosis of pancreatic cancer remains challenging as symptoms are initially often vague and non-specific. The most common presenting feature is obstructive jaundice but may also include weight loss and abdominal pain. Specifically in relation to manage…