Chamber and committees

During the cost of living crisis, some people are, out of necessity, having to eat highly processed food that is probably not that good for them. There has been an increase in the number of people suffering from preventable diseases such as rickets. Has the Scottish Government thought about how we will deal with that issue?

I would be delighted to nominate Ivan McKee.

Thanks, convener. I am very happy to be here and to be part of the committee. I have nothing to declare.

The responses also highlighted the high levels of fuel poverty, which is obviously causing issues for people who are trying to heat their homes and so on. I have read about the pilot in which doctors were prescribing heating and the real impact that that seemed to be having. Do you know of any other such pilots or services where people are thinking outside the box and are focusing not just on what needs to be done when patients present, but on how we can help to ensure that they do not have to come in in the first place?

Our inquiry is looking at the effectiveness of last year’s winter preparedness plan. How does the Government feel that the plan went? In this meeting, we have heard a lot about moving away from the notion of winter planning and moving to a whole-system approach. Is that something that the Government is going to do?

As I said to the earlier panel, we are in a cost of living crisis and people are dealing with many issues, including heating their homes and fuel poverty. Are we thinking outside the box in relation to initiatives to stop people with those problems presenting to the NHS? I read about one initiative where doctors were prescribing heating to patients. We know that the health service does not work only as one thing. Are we thinking about all those other things that will help people to avoid becoming ill and presenting?

Good morning. My first question is for Nicky Connor.

Many responses to our inquiry highlighted the importance of social care in robust winter planning, but many respondents said that, last year, we did not account for that sufficiently. What would you like to be done differently this year?

We know that rural and island health boards are experiencing significant challenges because of demographic shifts. They are also having particular difficulties in filling vacancies. How will the Government ensure that those health boards are supported so that the urban-rural divide does not become a thing and those inequalities do not come to pass?

We know that older people now generally enjoy better health than their predecessors of equivalent age did, but we also know that they still have significant and multiple health needs. What is the Scottish Government doing to examine that demand and those health needs?

Good morning. I want to ask about the response time definition change. I understand that, for all UK ambulance services, that changed on 1 April 2022. What does the change mean for staff and what does it mean for patients?