Chamber and committees

In Scotland the precise term dementia specialist nurse is not recognised as such; rather there are clinical nurse specialist and nurse consultants as registered nursing professionals who have also acquired additional knowledge, skills and experience, together with a professionally and/or academically accredited post-registration qualification in a clinical specialty. They practice at an advanced level and may have sole responsibility for care episode or defined client/group such as those with dementia.

NHS boards'' nurses specialising in dementia have a range of roles including: playing a key role in the delivery of an individually-focused service to people with dementia; providing expert advice to other nurses, carers and agencies; leading and disseminating research; educating and supporting staff in care homes, as well as informing national policy development.

There are currently 37,957 healthy start beneficiaries in Scotland, of which approximately 3,000 are pregnant women.

NHS (e) Tayside has implemented some of the updated criteria but patients are returned to the waiting list after each unsuccessful cycle of infertility treatment. NHS (c) Greater Glasgow and Clyde offers two cycles of treatment, instead of the recommended three. However, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde include suitable frozen embryos within a cycle of treatment, whilst many other NHS boards do not.

NHS (a) Fife, (b) Forth Valley and (d) Lothian have still to implement the updated criteria from the 2007 Review of Infertility Services.

Infertility Network Scotland is working directly with NHS boards to ensure that the voices of patients are heard at a local level in the planning of infertility services in Scotland. The charity will concentrate their initial work on NHS boards not compliant with national guidance.

No. Healthy start is open to pregnant women and families with children under the age of four who are on income support, income-based jobseekers'' allowance or child tax credit (but not working tax credit unless their family is receiving working tax credit run-only) with an income of £16,040 a year or less.

All pregnant women under the age of 18 also qualify for the scheme, whether or not they are on benefits.

In Scotland the precise term dementia specialist nurse is not recognised as such; rather there are clinical nurse specialist and nurse consultants as registered nursing professionals who have also acquired additional knowledge, skills and experience, together with a professionally and/or academically accredited post-registration qualification in a clinical specialty. They practice at an advanced level and may have sole responsibility for care episode or defined client/group such as those with dementia.

NHS boards'' nurses specialising in dementia have a range of roles which will include helping to improve the experience of those with dementia in accessing acute health services.

Nationally, there are three posts funded by Alzheimer Scotland for specialist nurses to work in accident and emergency and acute care, to lead the development and delivery of an individually focused service to people with dementia in those settings. Other approaches to provision in acute care include the Dementia Champions being set up in several NHS boards in Scotland, and The University West of Scotland is piloting a programme wherein general nurses from acute care undertake training in dementia and lead change in their area.

We will set out future plans for dementia service development and improvement in the National Dementia Strategy which will be published in April.

Funding over the three year period is being allocated in an annual lump sum to NHS health boards. It is for them to determine how best to use that funding to meet local needs, within the broad criteria set out in CEL 36.

Details of the allocation were outlined in CEL 36(2008) Nutrition of women of childbearing age, pregnant women and children under five in disadvantaged areas, which can be found at:

http://www.sehd.scot.nhs.uk/mels/CEL2008_36.pdf.

The Scottish Government announced at the introduction of the Tobacco and Primary Medical Services (Scotland) Bill that the display ban of tobacco products in shops will be introduced for small shops in 2013 and larger retailers in 2011. The Scottish Government intend to consult on draft regulations as soon as practicable after Royal Assent of the Tobacco and Primary Medical Services (Scotland) Bill. As is current best practice, three months has been allowed for the consultation process on the regulations.

Draft regulations were shared with the Health and Sport Committee in advance of its stage 2 consideration of the Bill and can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/s3/committees/hs/TGPBill/documents/2009.11.03TPMSBill-Draftregulations.pdf.

The at risk groups as announced on 13 August 2009 includes all people who have asthma that requires continuous or repeated use of systematic steroids or with previous exacerbations requiring hospital admission.

The H1N1 vaccination programme was launched on 21 October and proceeded with a phased roll out from this date. Health boards have indicated that vaccination has been offered to all those in the initial priority groups and a mop up exercise continues to take place to the end of January to ensure that everyone in the initial priority groups has been invited for vaccination.

An estimated 7,991 children aged 0 to four years in Scotland contracted H1N1, experienced symptoms and were taken to see a GP. An estimated 21,036 children aged five to 14 years in Scotland also contracted H1N1, experienced symptoms and were taken to see a GP.

A total of 1,482 H1N1 laboratory confirmed individuals have been admitted to hospital. Where the age had been specified or was known, 255 (17.2%) were aged under five years.

It is anticipated that the vaccination of young children will be completed by the end of January, with some mop up activity into mid-February, to ensure all children aged over six months and under six years are invited for vaccination.