Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S3W-14802

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 July 2008
Current Status: Answered by Bruce Crawford on 14 July 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive who it has appointed as parliamentary liaison officers, broken down by portfolio.

Question reference: S3W-14800

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 July 2008
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 14 July 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has an equivalent governance framework to the Code of Practice for NHS Trusts issued by the Department of Health.

A governance framework is in place in NHSScotland. NHS boards are required to have governance arrangements in place to cover their corporate and clinical responsibilities.

NHS boards are required to provide assurance that robust governance arrangements are in place for the purpose of safety, quality and probity. Organisations such as NHS Quality Improvement Scotland and Audit Scotland provide scrutiny of these arrangements and offer development and improvement support.

Question reference: S3W-14801

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 July 2008
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 14 July 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive whether NHS Scotland has core standards which NHS boards should meet and are legally enforceable.

Question reference: S3W-14220

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 13 June 2008
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 27 June 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive when NHS Scotland was first informed about the outbreak of clostridium difficile in the Vale of Leven Hospital.

Question reference: S3W-14232

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 13 June 2008
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 27 June 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive whether any of the incidences of clostridium difficile in the Vale of Leven Hospital occurred in patients transferred from other hospitals and, if so, how many patients were involved and from which hospitals.

I am advised that seven of the 55 patients confirmed as having clostridium difficile were originally transferred from the Royal Alexandra Hospital, between 28 December 2007 and 25 March 2008, to the Vale of Leven Hospital. It cannot be confirmed, however, if these patients contracted clostridium difficile before being admitted or whether they contracted the infection after arrival at the Vale of Leven Hospital.

Question reference: S3W-14227

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 13 June 2008
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 27 June 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will establish an independent inquiry into the outbreak of clostridium difficile in the Vale of Leven Hospital, with the report of the inquiry being made public.

Question reference: S3W-14230

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 13 June 2008
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 27 June 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive what measures are being put in place to tackle clostridium difficile in hospitals.

The principal interventions effective against clostridium difficile (C.diff) in our hospitals are rapid diagnosis and isolation of patients; prudent prescribing of antibiotics; environmental cleaning; and rigorous hand hygiene procedures.

Mandatory national reporting of C.diff cases by laboratories was established in 2006, and the national C.diff reference laboratory for Scotland was established in 2008, which is a source of expert advice as well as providing information on typing of strains such as the hyper-virulent O27 strain. A national policy on provision of single rooms in new hospitals is also under development.

Prudent prescribing guidance was issued to NHS boards in 2005 by the HAI Task Force, and this was followed up by the launch in March 2008 of the Scottish Management of Antimicrobial Resistance Action Plan. The action plan has already resulted in the funding and establishment of the Scottish Antimicrobial Prescribing Group, which will oversee national surveillance of resistance and antibiotic use, and drive improvements in prescribing practice.

The Scottish Government’s HAI Task Force issued the national cleaning services specification in 2004, and the related monitoring system has shown continuing improvements in hospital cleaning standards across Scotland ever since. Monitoring of compliance with hand hygiene has also shown good improvements, with all NHS boards making good progress towards achieving our target of 90% hand hygiene compliance by staff by November 2008. This is supported by our ongoing national hand hygiene campaign.

Health Protection Scotland have also issued a model policy document on transmission based precautions, advice on management of C.diff O27, and a “care bundle” of five essential elements of care for all C.diff patients. An overarching new Scottish guidance document on C.diff is currently under preparation by HPS.

The independent review of Vale of Leven cases announced by me on 18 June 2008 will examine any failings there may have been in following these procedures.

Question reference: S3W-14228

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 13 June 2008
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 27 June 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive what incidences of clostridium difficile there have been in each hospital in NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, broken down by (a) numbers infected and (b) subsequent fatalities caused in whole or part by clostridium difficile in the Vale of Leven Hospital in each month in (i) 2007 and (ii) 2008.

Information on the number of clostridium difficile cases is currently reported quarterly by Health Protection Scotland and broken down by NHS board. Scottish Government officials have, however, written to all NHS boards, including NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, to ask them to provide a report on the number of clostridium difficile cases for each acute hospital within their area, providing data at hospital level, for the period December 2007 to May 2008.

We have asked that the information includes all cases diagnosed from admission onwards and for a commentary on interpretation of the data presented, whether any clusters were identified, and what actions were taken in response to any apparent excess of cases or deaths over this period.

Question reference: S3W-14225

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 13 June 2008
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 27 June 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive why there was a delay in reviewing cases of clostridium difficile during the outbreak in the Vale of Leven Hospital.

Question reference: S3W-14221

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 13 June 2008
Current Status: Answered by Nicola Sturgeon on 27 June 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive on what dates NHS Scotland held discussions with NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde about the outbreak of clostridium difficile in the Vale of Leven Hospital.