Chamber and committees

The third sector is very successful in reaching families, individuals and communities—in many cases, it is far better than Government agencies. How has the Covid pandemic affected the third sector in relation to volunteers? The sector relies heavily on them and I know that, with two of the organisations that I have been involved in, the volunteers have not returned in the same numbers. I will ask Richard Meade about that first.

There are very strict criteria at Shouldice hospital, especially on patient weight loss. In fact, Dr Spencer Netto told the committee that some of its patients have to lose between 50 and 100 pounds before the hospital will even see them before going ahead with a natural repair. Could such criteria be brought into play here? Would it be acceptable to do so?

Are the skills in natural tissue hernia repair techniques being lost in Scotland in favour of teaching surgeons mesh repairs? Could more surgeons in Scotland be receiving training in natural tissue methods?

Again, I think that what the petition calls for has been achieved. Therefore, I would like us to close the petition under rule 15.7 of standing orders, on the basis that the terms of reference for the Covid-19 inquiry have now been published and will include consideration of the provision of education and certification during the pandemic.

In closing the petition, we might wish to draw the attention of the Education, Children and Young People Committee to the issues that have been raised.

What do you think are the recurrent issues that impact on recruitment of health and social care staff in rural areas?

I think that this issue has been well investigated by the committee over two parliamentary sessions. We have taken evidence from everyone we needed to hear from. In our most recent evidence session, we got assurances that the proposal would not go ahead for five years. I do not think that we can take the issue any further—how many of us will be here in five years’ time?

I believe that what the petition originally called for has been addressed. I am therefore happy for us to close the petition under rule 15.7 of standing orders, on the basis that the issues that were raised by the petitioner now appear to have been resolved.

Considering the position of COSLA and the fact that the Scottish Government has no plans to review the processes, I think that we have no option but to close the petition under rule 15.7 of standing orders.

Good morning. In his evidence, Dr Spencer Netto highlighted how successful Shouldice hospital had been with natural tissue repairs, which have resulted in a low recurrence of hernias. How do pre-operative preparation and post-operative care for hernia repair surgery in Scotland differ from the steps undertaken in that hospital?

The example of Shouldice hospital demonstrates the success of a specialised hernia repair unit. Would it be possible to have such a centre in Scotland, taking into account the criteria that would need to be met in order to have such a success rate?

I probably know the answer to this question, but I want to get it on the record. If we are to focus on the inequalities in the health and wellbeing of children and young people that have been caused by the pandemic, taking into account the capacity of the system, where should we focus first in order to get the best results?